I’ve missed a few days here and there posting my thoughts on the Plum Deluxe’s Tea Advent Calendar and thought I’d do a quick summary of the last few days. . .
Day 7- Honey Dust- This is an example of some of the goodies that are tea related that you can find in the countdown. I’m not a huge fan of adding sugar to my teas and typically don’t use honey except for on biscuits but I’m sure I’ll find the right tea to try this lovely delight on here in the upcoming weeks. Not necessarily something I would personally pick up myself, but its cool that I’m able to try the honey dust.
Day 8- Chocolate Hazelnut Chai Tea- This black and honeybush based tea was delicious! I loved the nutty and chocolate notes way more than I thought. This is one of those teas that I didn’t think I would like but wanted something with a hint of spice so I thought I’d give it a whirl. Really delicious and another example of a chai tea that doesn’t go overboard on the spice which I really appreciate it. Big fan of this one and would be a tea I would like to have more of for sure, especially with the cold winter months still ahead of us here in the Midwest.
Day 9- Gratitude Blend Black Tea- This black tea based earl grey tea sounds amazing but I am not a fan of earl grey and actually have trouble even drinking earl grey teas. I’ll be passing this tea along to someone I know will love it.
Day 10- Snowman Ornament- This little ornament is very charming and would be a great addition to a desk size tree or one of the miniature trees. I have a feeling I’ll throw this guy onto a bow to dress up a package for the holidays.
Day 11- Snowy Mountain Black Tea- Black Tea, Orange Peel, Chestnut and Vanilla flavors. . .if that doesn’t scream holiday flavors, I don’t know what does. I’ll be honest, I haven’t tried this tea just yet only because I wanted to enjoy this tea with my dad on Christmas. I thought I’d whip us up some Snowy Mountain Black Tea Lattes while we watch the kiddos open presents. I can just tell this blend is going to be a winner.
Day 12- Nice Vanilla Spice Herbal Tea- I’m literally finishing up this sample right now. If this tea isn’t available on the Plum Deluxe site, then I’m going to beg Plum Deluxe to blend me up a ton of this herbal. Ginger root, cinnamon chips, fennel seeds, and vanilla extract. This tea doesn’t look like a whole lot but wow this tea is as soul soothing as you can find. Wonderful crisp ginger marries perfectly with the sweet cinnamon and the fennel and vanilla add to that lovely playful taste. This is one of those mugs you just wrap your hands around and sit back. Absolutely perfect!
Day 13- Reading Nook Blend Black Tea- I have a confession to make. I am one of those tea drinkers that dislikes lavender. . .a lot. I actually blend up my own teas and do have a lemon lavender tea that I adore but that is literally the only lavender tea I’ve ever liked. This blend looks to have a lot of lavender in it so I’m going to pass this tea along to someone that will thoroughly enjoy it.
Day 14- Caramelized Mango Black Tea- I’m bummed. This tea sounds amazing but I see the second ingredient is Red Rooibos. I wish honeybush had been used, but alas, I can’t complain. Unfortunately red rooibos and I do not get along so I will be passing this tea off to one of my Sisters who I think will love this blend.
Day 15- Slowly Unwind Herbal Tea- Wow, this tea is amazing! Sweet, fruity, with a hint of floral and earthiness. . . I don’t know why I’ve been digging herbals so much lately but this one is another stellar example of an herbal tea done right. You’ve got your honeybush base which gives this sweetness almost vanilla touch, berries which provides a bit of a tartness with the familiar berry flavor, and you’ve got your rose which gives you that elegant floral touch. I actually added in more rose petals because I just love rose petals that much and wanted to really kick this tea up. Really delicious and really comforting during this busy season.
Day 16 (posted earlier this week)
Day 17- Creme Brulee Grey Black Tea- Again, another wah wah moment for me. I know I mentioned this earlier but I’m not a fan of earl grey and actually have trouble drinking teas that have Bergamot Oil, so this tea is another blend not for me but again I know just the right person who I think will dig this blend way more than me.
Day 18- Lift Your Spirit Black Tea- I’m one of those tea drinkers that smell the blend before they brew the tea up. Thank goodness because I didn’t fully read the label on this blend and unfortunately for me, I see red rooibos in the ingredient list and can totally pick up on that red rooibos aroma just from the dry leaf. I know I should probably just be a big girl and try it, but I’ve had several red rooibos blends including a few Plum Deluxe and I just know for a fact that I won’t care for this blend. Instead of wasting the tea, I’d rather send along to someone who I know will enjoy it.
Here’s hoping that Days 19-25 contain some amazing goodies for me!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Advent Calendar
Where to Buy: Plum Deluxe
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
52Teas’ the 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 4-Spoilers!
Day 4!
This tea has a great name and great flavor: Ginger Cola Black Tea. This tea is meant to reference the old timey soda shoppe flavor of ginger cola. Not to be confused with ginger ale, there is plenty of dark caramel cola taste and the sweet buzz of ginger. I think flavor comes from a time where sodas had more spice, like the New England Moxie soda, or even the cherry and spice flavors of Dr. Pepper.
Enough about soda, getting back to tea. I’m not sure what kind of tea is used as the base in this blend, but the leaves are a little longer and more tightly rolled than the typical black tea base, so they were chosen specially for this blend.
This tea smells and tastes remarkably like cola but in such a way that it’s spice still suits the tea. A touch of cloves and the caramel cola taste are balanced with the warm heat of candied ginger. The spices makes this appealing as a hot beverage but the cola flavors do make it promising as an iced tea too if you are so inclined.
As a fan of both ginger tea and ginger cola, this has been one of my favorite blends so far in the set. Hope I get a chance to order more!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
I have a confession. I have been cheating on tea with a cola. Not like all the time – not even every day . . . but every once in a while, I’ll crack open a can of the ginger cola that’s made by one of the 2 big cola giants. I’m not going to name names because I don’t want to get a ‘cease and desist’ order – but it’s in a slender, tall, bright copper-orange can and it’s sold by individual cans rather than by the 6 or 12 pack.
Anyway, I originally only bought one can of this stuff – you know – just to try it. Curiosity. But I was hooked after my first sip. It’s so good – that little touch of ginger cuts through the syrup-y sweetness that usually turns me off when it comes to soda.
I happen to like the cola flavored teas (in most cases, more than I like cola itself) so I decided I should try to craft a ginger cola black tea to get me over my affair with the cola because I like it better when tea is the main beverage in my life.
So I started with a base of black teas from China (Golden Yunnan, Fujian & Assamica grown in the Jing Mai Mountains) and added ginger as well as some candied (sugared) ginger and some cola essence. And WOWZA! I’m loving it! This is tasty as a hot tea but it excels as an iced tea!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
A Day Late But Day 16 of the Plum Deluxe Tea Lover’s Advent Calendar. . . SPOILERS!
I had a kiddo’s birthday party weekend over the last weekend and found myself a bit behind in my reviewing of the Plum Deluxe Tea Lover’s Advent Calendar. We are a bit over halfway thru and I will say, I’m happy I was able to experience this calendar, but there have been a 50/50 toss up on the hits and misses. Day 16, I’m happy to report, was a hit!
Gingerbread Chai Tea was Day 16 and I’m not a huge black tea drinker nor am I a big chai drinker but lately I’ve found myself drawn to all things gingerbread, so needless to say, I was excited to check out this blend. For the steeping set up, I brewed up this blend with freshly prepped boiling water and allowed to steep for 5 minutes and then cooled for a few more.
First sip in and I have to say this tea was such a delight. I wish the gingerbread flavors were a bit stronger, but there is a delicious mix of spices and tea for sure. Definitely a wonderful blend to thrown in some frothed milk (which I did) and enjoy as a latte. If you aren’t a fan of spiced tea, this tea doesn’t have that smack you in the face ginger or cardamom notes that one can normally see, more a gentle touch of spiced goodness that warms the heart during these colder last few days of 2018. This is one of those teas where you wrap your hands around the mug and it feels like the tea is hugging you back.
Subtle spiced chai goodness with ginger and orange flavors leading the charge with the honeybush providing this lush vanilla background. All in all, a delicious tea to enjoy for the holidays!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black/Honeybush
Where to Buy: Plum Deluxe
Description
This tea blend is part of the advent calendar but is available in the store. Click below.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
52Teas’ the 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 1-Spoilers!
Day 1! The 12 Teas of Christmas set from 52Teas really lets you surprise yourself, with the name of the tea hidden under a silvery scratch-off label on the pouch. It is one of the most fun and most unique daily tea surprise sets I’ve tried.
Today I tried Foggy Coconut Black Tea. In the past I tried Smoky Coconut from 52Tea and enjoyed it, but Foggy Coconut is a new one to me! As soon as I opened the pouch I was wrapped in the distinct citrus scent of earl grey. The fog in the name clearly refers to the London Fog drink, made with earl grey tea. Among the black tea leaves were big curls of white coconut.
Historically, earl grey teas are always walking that balance between crisp bergamot and creamy vanilla, so pairing an earl grey tea with smooth coconut was a winning idea. Even without milk, this tea is full bodied and has plenty of cream taste. The coconut adds a rich buttery feel and taste without causing too much of that oil slick on the top of your tea. All the vanilla creaminess is balanced with just enough of earl grey’s tried and true orange zest to make for a delicious and complex flavor experience.
This tea is also appropriately Christmassy: brew up a cup of Foggy Coconut in honor of the foggy night that Rudolph earned his place among Santa’s reindeer.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
My inspiration behind this blend is one of my favorite coffee shop drinks: a London Fog Latte! I order mine with coconut milk and half the usual amount of vanilla syrup (otherwise, it’s just too sweet!) One day as I was sipping on this drink, I found myself contemplating the beverage. I love the way the hints of coconut play with the bergamot but I found myself wishing that the coconut notes were stronger. (I do love me some coconut!) I also found myself wishing that the tea notes were stronger – which I felt would be accomplished if it didn’t have so much milk product in it – but then, the coconut notes would not be present. Then the idea hits me: why not make my own version of this drink with these improvements in mind!
And here we have it: I started with a base of Assam and Yunnan for a rich, bold, malty flavor. Something that could hold it’s own even with the strong note of creamy coconut. Then I added bergamot – I didn’t want to go too heavy on the bergamot because I didn’t want the coconut and bergamot competing with each other. I wanted enough bergamot to be tasted but not so much that it would interfere with the coconut flavor. Then I added some vanilla bean. Again, not a heavy vanilla taste – just enough to lend creaminess to the coconut and soften the edge of the bergamot and strong teas.
Then I went coconuts! This is a strongly coconut flavored tea but there’s enough bergamot there to give the cup the flavor that I was going for – this cuppa is my ideal London Fog! It’s got lots of coconut flavor without the milk drowning out the flavor of the tea. No “latte” required here, there’s enough creaminess to the flavor. Of course, if you want to go latte, that’s OK – but I’d recommend trying it without first!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Bonfire Toffee from Bird and Blend Tea Co.
Bonfire Toffee tea from Bird and Blend should be part of everyone’s fall and winter brewing. A full bodied black tea is sweetened with the brown sugar and butter notes of caramel and toffee. The blend stops from being too sweet by the addition of crisp apple and smoky lapsang souchong.
If you aren’t into smoky teas, give this one a try. The smoke is mostly in the scent of the brew, and gets lost beneath black tea and toffee tones in the taste.
This tea feels like taking a walk in the fall. The robust black tea is wrapped around you like a wool scarf, and you can smell the pleasant char of your neighbor’s wood stove on the air. Take a bite out of a fresh apple and follow it up with something sweet, like holiday caramel candy.
I had been curious about trying Bonfire Toffee for its blend of sweet and savory, and the tea does not disappoint. Brew up a cup for your next leaf-peeper trip, or your next winter bonfire.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bird and Blend
Description:
Traveling tea merchants used to carry tea from east to west,all the way across Russia… well, their horses did anyway! It’s said the campfire smoke would infuse into the loose tea leaves at night creating smoked teas. Add some caramel, apple and toasted cinnamon and you get a spectacular Bonfire Night treat!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
