Every December we happily look forward to the Christmas teas that 52Teas puts together for their Christmas box. Our Sister will be giving us the daily low down on which teas made their way into the box this year . . . . .
The First Day of Christmas
Coconut French Toast with Cardamom Maple Syrup Black Tea
For the First Day of Christmas, 52 Teas gave to me….coconut crusted French toast with cardamom syrup! This was the tea of the week for June 15, 2015 and at that time I had not yet heard of 52 Teas, so I am really excited to have the chance to try this. It sounds like pure Heaven!
The dry leaf smell is creamy, maple-y, and coconut-y! There are big chunks of coconut and cardamom pods. Maple and cardamom tend to go well together and, in my humble opinion, coconut just goes well with almost anything!
I steeped this tea for about 3 minutes with very hot water and I also added just a tad bit of agave. This is so, so good! The cardamom shines through so well, its not overpowering though. Sometimes I feel that cardamom can add such an intense flavor and end up outshining the other ingredients, but here it just accents everything. The combination of coconut and maple add this nutty sweet and creaminess. I am very much enjoying this one, so this holiday TEAson (see what I did there?) is off to a fantastic start! I am going to enjoy the rest of this cup now and also finish the entire sample bag- and can I be honest with you guys? I feel like I haven’t done that in a really long time. I mean yeah I’ve found the teas I’ve been ordering to be very enjoyable, but to finish off the cup and the rest of the tea leaves? That’s rare for me these days so i’m really happy to be loving this tea so much.
So cheers to you and yours, enjoy this lovely symphony of flavor, and come on back tomorrow to see what I have to say about Day #2!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
I think we should kick off this holiday countdown with some BREAKFAST – don’t you? How about some delicious coconut crusted French Toast with a touch of butter and some sweet maple syrup that’s been infused with the warmth of cardamom? Sound good? Yeah, it sounds good to me too!
Here’s our original description for this tea:
This tea was inspired by a very memorable breakfast. Coconut crusted French toast that was topped with melted butter and a cardamom syrup. I went a step further and added maple flavoring because it sounded like a good idea. It tastes even better than it sounds!
I stuck close to the recipe here although there’s a bit more cardamom here than in my past versions. I wanted to highlight the cardamom!
organic ingredients: black teas, toasted coconut flakes, cardamom pods & natural flavors
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
French Toast Oolong Tea from Steeped Tea. . . .
I’ve totally been into French Toast Flavored Teas lately and there are some really wonderful ones out there for a bunch of different reasons. Today I would like to share French Toast Oolong from Steeped Tea!
Of course it has Oolong Tea as the base – you can tell that by looking at the name – but to look at the Oolong used – dry and prior to infusing – it is one of the darkest dry Oolong I have seen so far!
After you move along to the other ingredients you will notice this tea has pineapple bits (that are coated in a little sugar), Coconut Chips, Lemon Wedges, Cranberries (that are coated in a little sugar and Sunflower Oil), Orange Peels, Rose Buds, Pomegranate Blossoms, Prickly Pear Blossoms, Vanilla, and flavors.
The blossoms are lovely and add a VERY little floral aftertaste to this. But the flavors that really shine are the Coconut Chips and various fruit ingredients. The fruits that have just that spec of sugar coating add a nice touch. And that’s just what it is – a nice touch – it’s not overly sugared. I was actually surprised with all the fruity ingredients that it wasn’t overly fruity to the tongue. But it was surprisingly buttery-sweet, nutty, savory, and creamy! Not any of the individual ingredients are overdone. EVERYTHING and I mean EVERYTHING has just enough flavor to all mesh well with the other ingredients, too! YUM! This was a special treat!
I’ve tried other French Toast Flavored Teas that were more French Toasty but this one was a winner on it’s own. Not so much for the toastiness – not so much for the cinnamon – not so much for the buttered-bread-likeness of others – but for the ratios used and flavor combo that turned out to be something completely of its own.
I wouldn’t mind if this had a sprinkle of cinnamon in it but it’s completely fine without it, too! Well done!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Steeped Tea
Description
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Coconut French Toast with Cardamom Maple Syrup from 52Teas. . . .
French Toast Tea. I’ve had a few. The ones I have tried I have adored. More than one of the French Toast flavored teas have been from 52 Teas whom I also adore. Today I want to tell you about Coconut French Toast with Cardamom Maple Syrup from 52 Teas.
The name in itself is a thinker. Coconut French Toast with Cardamom Maple Syrup. My dyslexic brain converted the name to Coconut French Toast Cardamom with Maple Syrup. Either would have worked, I suppose. But I guess the Maple Syrup was Cardamom Flavored and not necessarily the French Toast.
Regardless – this was wonderful. And it didn’t stay in my stash for long. Just a few short days, actually.
The black tea base was on the stronger side. There was a pretty spot-on liking to a French Toast flavor that is for sure. The Cardamom was present and pleasing. The Maple Syrup sweetness was subtle but true. The coconut added to the overall sweetness but also provided a separate and stand alone sweetness standing beside the sweetness of the Maple Syrup flavor. There is even a speck of cinnamon to top things off!
52 Teas has SURELY done it again with this wonderfully flavored black tea!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
French Toast Showdown. . . 52 Teas vs. The NecessiTeas
My mom has been on a french toast kick lately. Seriously, if a loaf of bread is still in the cupboard after a few days all we here is “you know, I could make a french toast casserole with this!” We are not sure what inspired this since she does not even eat french toast but here we are, up to our eyeballs in everything french toast. So as we compared how different breads altered the taste of the casserole she is now so found of making, I got to thinking about all the french toast teas I tried. With so many options out there, the question remains, which french toast tea reigns supreme? So I grabbed the two french toast teas I currently have stocked and got to prepping.
The companies: 52 Teas vs. The NecessiTeas. 52 Teas has been a long time favorite of mine that has only gotten better since taken over by Sororitea Sisters’ very own LiberTeas. I know that might sound biased but I have felt this way long before I started writing for Sororitea Sisters and I am sure I will feel this way for a million years to come. The NecessiTeas, on the other hand, is new to my cupboard but I don’t think I have come across a blend yet that I am not wowed by. So, these two companies are both loved by me which means this French Toast showdown is bound to be a fun one.
The names: 52 Tea’s went simple and straight to the point when they named their blend “French Toast Black Tea”. The NecessiTeas also didn’t beat around the bush when it came to naming their tea given they called it “Cinnamon French Toast”. I suppose it would depend how you feel about cinnamon when it comes to deciding which tea name is more appealing. As for me, I clearly was drawn in by both names seeing as I purchased both blends.
The ingredients: 52 Tea’s combines the organic ingredients of black tea, cinnamon, calendula petals and natural flavors to create their french toast while The NecessiTeas opted for black tea, cinnamon, marigold petals, brown sugar, and natural and organic flavors. So for those that don’t particularly like their teas pre-sweetened, 52 Teas might be the one you reach for. As for me, I don’t mind when a company adds real sugar if it helps create a flavor (on the other hand, I very much mind when they add artificial sweeteners that have a horrible aftertaste – luckily that is not the case for either of these teas).
The scent: So weirdly enough, the 52 Teas blend, the one that doesn’t have “cinnamon” in the title, smells more strongly of cinnamon while The NecessiTeas captures the scent of the egg mixture you’d batter your french toast in. You also get notes of the brown sugar bits within the tea. Both smell amazing but I think the NecessiTeas captured my nose just a touch more.
Finally, the taste: 52 Tea’s is a more subtle french toast flavor. The cinnamon note is on the top of the tea while the egg mixture is a bit more timid and hiding underneath. The black base contributes a nice maltiness though and a bit of a maple syrup flavor. The NecessiTeas is a bit more in-your-face. The egg mixture is right there at the forefront with a cinnamon sugar taste trailing right behind it. The black base here mostly just serves as a foundation, supporting the other flavors as opposed to contributing anything of its own. So, which tastes better of the two? I am going to go with the answer my roommate used to give me when I asked her to compare things and say “they’re different”. I would not rate one above the other because both deliver on what they promise but in very unique and different ways. The 52 Teas blend is more refined while I would describe the NecessiTeas as being a fun blend (in light of the flavor punch).
So, though I may not have crowned a clear winner, I think it is fair to say that anyone would be happy with either of these blends if they are looking for a french toast tea. The one thing the NecessiTeas has going for it over 52 Teas is that their french toast blend is currently stocked and available on their website. That’s not to say that the 52 Teas option won’t be reblended in the future so keep an eye out for that and happy drinking!
Here’s the scoop!
Where to Buy: 52Teas & The NecessiTeas
French Toast from 52Teas
I’ve sampled this tea twice and gotten different impressions of it, so it has a lot of facets to examine. The first time I tried it, I mostly picked up on the maple.
“Mmmm,” I thought. “Sweet, sweet Canada.” My eyes fluttered with visions of maple leaves, Mounties, moose, and POLITENESS. Oh my goodness. So much HUMAN DECENCY.
And health care! The bountiful health care! O CANADA!
The second time I tried the tea, I got a lot of malty richness. I got less of the syrup, and more of the toast. The depth of the black tea made me think about a nicely crisped bread piece. Hmmm.
Neither time did I get a lot of cinnamon/butter, which I thought was a little odd, since I feel like cinnamon and butter are pretty key. Maybe a future sip will yield it, but even if it doesn’t, this is a pretty swell mixture.
I would happily sip it while watching a Toronto Maple Leaf ice hockey game, traipsing through the Yukon territory, or practicing my français in Montreal.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
