You always hear that smell is one of the most powerful senses as it is connected to your memory.
The Hot Cinnamon Spice blend from Adagio has a nostalgic aroma to me – it reminds me of red hot candies from my childhood when it’s dry, and the aroma makes you think that the flavor will be overpowering.
When brewed, it still keeps that red hot candy aroma, but the flavor is surprisingly mild compared to the aroma. If you try this tea, know that you must like cinnamon in your tea! Also, be sure you drink it hot – when it cools off it taste more like a cinnamon stick.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Adagio Teas
Description
Finally, the wait is over! A long-time customer request, Fiery Cinnamon Spice is here to stay! This tea packs the perfect punch of cinnamon flavor, blended with Ceylon tea, orange peels, and cloves for an amped up, kick-in-the-palate cinnamon experience. Perfect to heat you up on a cold day, or just wake up your palate on an early morning. This tea will bring a smile to any cinnamon lovers face.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Wild Black Tea-Dian Hong/Teabook. . . .
I have had this sample of Wild Black Tea/Dian Hong for quite some time now. I have taken it out to make it countless times and then got distracted by another tea and went that route instead.
Well, when I finally made it, I didn’t even drink it hot. My sister called to FaceTime me with her puppy and the call went for some time. The tea cooled. Yet when I did finally take my first sip, I quite liked it.
The tea is somehow both brisk and smooth at the same time. For me, briskness is usually synonymous with astringency but this tea managed to have one without the other. The good morning-pick-me-up without the bad bitterness. With that said, at times it can be drying but mostly it is a sweet honeyed malt.
Is this tea my favorite Dian Hong I have tried? No. But it is nice. A solid option.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Teabook
Description
This tea is not listed on the site but click below to learn more about Teabook.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
2017 Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong from Verdant Tea. . .
The Backstreet Boys have a song on an early album that went, “If you wanna get it good, girl, get yourself a bad boy.” This is pretty rich coming from the Backstreet Boys, obviously, but one cannot deny the appeal of a bad boy. Cigarettes, leather, motorcycles, hard liquor, and a devil-may-care attitude.
In my teas (and in my real life), I tend toward the “good boy”: straight or sweetly-flavored teas. But every once in a while, the bad boy winks at me — and I see, for a moment, what all the other girls are gushing about.
This lapsang souchong is a trouble-maker. It’s smoky and rich and dark and mineral. Its flavor is “natural and subtle addition that came from drying the leaves in a wok heated by pine wood. The smoke from the pine wood naturally mixed with the tea, creating a deeper and more foresty flavor that accentuated the tea’s minerality.”
If you’d like to see that drying room in action (you know you do), you should go to the listing for the tea.
Although this tea isn’t my “type,” I totally see its appeal for other people, and think that, if you want to try a rich new lapsang souchong, this might be the one for you. It’s a wild, satisfying ride.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Description
The earliest Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong, (or Lapsang Souchong as it is commonly referred to in the West) was never deep-smoked. The smokiness was a natural and subtle addition that came from drying the leaves in a wok heated by pine wood. The smoke from the pine wood naturally mixed with the tea, creating a deeper and more foresty flavor that accentuated the tea’s minerality. The Li Family preserves this old-school aesthetic with careful application of smoke from local resinous pine. The sweet, roasted quality of the smoke processing blends with the rich flavor of the tea to yield a dark fruity flavor, and bring front and center the mineral texture of the soil of Wuyi.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Butter Brew/Bird & Blend. . . .
When I was in Harry Potter World in Universal, I tried “Butter Beer.” The over-hyped, lackluster beverage was $6 for a clear Solo cup’s worth. The flavor was like a cream soda mixed with a root beer. Meh.
After that disappointment, I was on the lookout for a better butter beer — and have found it with Butter Brew from Bird and Blend. (Alliteration, anyone?)
This blend is like an English Breakfast into which someone dumped molasses/sweetness/creamer. A LOT OF CREAMER. The warm dairy sweetness of this is POTENT.
This blend also includes calendula petals. I looked up this plant, because I keep seeing those petals everywhere. What’s their flavor? What’s their reason?
Turns out — in case you were wondering at all — that calendula is a type of flower that includes the marigold. (You may have seen it in gardens. Perhaps your own garden.) The flower has alleged anti-inflammatory properties. MOSTLY, however, calendula is used to give a pop of color to a dish. Which I totally get, because tea is so dull and brown without the flowers. I love a good inclusion. It says “here’s a fancy, pretty treat JUST FOR YOU, on this bitter and sad and cold morning.” The yellow also, I suppose, is the color of butter, now that I think of it.
Depending on who you are, the $6 soda concoction might be for you. But I, personally, prefer the MANY, MUCH BETTER cups of tea you can get for a comparable price at Bird & Blend.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bird & Blend
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Organic Nilgiri Black Tea from Bare Leaves Tea via Sipsby Box. . . . .
Black tea is a variety of tea that just isn’t my go to. Give me a solid white, green, or oolong and I’m a happy camper. For some reason I seem to shy away from black teas more and more. Which is why I adore Sips By boxes so much.
Sips By is a company that curates a monthly tea box for about $15 that contains tea from a variety of different tea companies. Usually get 4 different selections in your box. These selections are based on your tasting profile that you fill out when you sign up for the service.
So I will admit. . . this sample has been hanging out in my tea stash for a few months. Again, because black tea just isn’t what I grab as my daily drinker. But after you discovering my love for my Wall Infuser Mug, I thought this tea may just be the way to start off my day today.
Brewed up freshly boiled water and scooped in a hearty serving of the tea into my Wall Infuser Mug. Allowed the tea to steep for a few minutes and took my first sip. And to be honest, this tea isn’t too bad. Actually, I’m digging this tea a lot!
The tea is very soft and subtle. The malty notes are slight and so is the astringency factor. I’m also noticing this flavor that reminds me of a floral note. This is such a gentle blend that I would have no problem drinking this as a daily drinker. I’m excited to try this tea as a cold brew. I can only imagine the dynamite cold brew this tea could offer.
And before I know it, my mug is empty and I need more water for a second steeping. If you are like me and maybe black tea varieties just aren’t your (ahem) cup of tea. . . maybe check out this offering from Bare Leaves. It might just give you a change of pace that you didn’t realize you were even looking for!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bare Leaves
Description
This bright and fragrant tea comes from the South Indian mountainous region of Nilgiri, which translates to “Blue Mountains.”
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
