Day 6!
It’s not Christmas morning yet but today’s tea is a great blend to have at breakfast: Banana Pancakes Black Tea. Put your nose in the bag, and you’ll see that the tea smells like your favorite diner or breakfast restaurant, with plenty of maple syrup flavor and a whiff of sliced banana.
Brewed, there is a pleasant starchiness in the black tea that suits the natural starchiness of the banana and adds to the pancake feeling. The maple and banana flavor combination reminds me of banana nut muffins or banana bread. This is a fun, sweet blend on its own but it would also go great with a few mulling spices for a banana chai, or with some coconut milk or nut milk for an almost banana nut cereal taste.
I’m always a fan if banana teas, so I was more than happy to go bananas over this brew!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
52teas
Description:
I don’t think it’s any big secret that I love banana teas. So when I go a couple of months without releasing a banana tea – I really start to miss them. And it seems like it’s been quite some time since I’ve done a pancake tea (actually, I haven’t done a pancake tea since the famous Pancake Breakfast tea which I reblended back in January of last year.) So, I’m thinking – why not bring these two flavors together in one tea?
I started with a fantastic blend of black teas from China: an Assamica from the JingMai Mountains, a Fujian Black and a Yunnan Gold. Then I added some bananas along with pancake and maple essence. But don’t worry, it’s vegan and gluten free – and depending upon how you serve it, its also sugar- and fat-free!
Take a sip on this and experience a stack of banana-filled pancakes dripping with maple syrup! Yummy!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Waffley Wedded Custom Blend from Plum Deluxe
Waffley Wedded from Plum Deluxe is a specialty blend, and I was lucky to get a taste thanks to a tea swap. In trying this tea I learned that Plum Deluxe can be contacted to make a custom blend for a special occasion, in this case for a wedding.
With such a sweet and punny name, I was predisposed to like Waffley Wedded. I got a novelty waffle iron a few holidays ago and I use just about every weekend. This is a great tea have on hand while I’m waiting for my waffles to cook.
This is a blend of black and oolong tea, so it is both full-bodied but has a rounded mouthfeel. Sweet maple and creamy vanilla are the driving flavors, perfect on its own or with a dash of milk to pump up the dessert-like experience. A hint of citrus comes through from the orange peels to help the blend bright and not overly sweet.
You won’t see this blend on their everyday listing, but if you’re looking for something similar give Pick Me Up Oolong a try, which also has maple and oolong flavors. Or blend your own tea favors for a special occasion and customize it just the way you like.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black and Oolong
Where to Buy: Plum Deluxe
To have your own custom blend made and see all the amazing blends Plum Deluxe has to offer, click below.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea #VeganMoFo2016
This isn’t just a tea review post of Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea this is a post with several goodies within including a tea review, a tea recipe with variations, and some lovely photos! So sit back and scroll away!
As I opened the sample bag of Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea I seriously couldn’t BELIEVE the aroma! Not only was the scent spot-on it was powerful and incredible! I wanted to dive into a cup at first sniff but I had to hold off until now. Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea was totally worth the wait.
Apples and Cinnamons with a bready aroma topped with a heavy and potent maple syrup flavor all wrapped up into one that is what this Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea not only smells like but tastes like! The black tea base is of medium strength but the other flavors are intense and I LOVE it in this flavored black!
If you have ever had Maple Water and enjoyed it – you might get a kick out of this tea! Lucky for me I certainly did enjoy Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea. But I want to say the word ‘enjoy’ is a drastic understatement! This tea is down right scrumptious!
As promised we have a recipe using this tea for you but I can’t take credit for it – it was listed on S&V’s website but I thought it was so interesting and unique that I wanted to share it here, too! Check out the information below in the ‘Here’s The Scoop’ section. Because I don’t eat eggs/dairy I hope to try this with an egg substitute and almond milk or other non-dairy milk in the future but I am sure there are several ways to use this tea in recipes if you are clever and wanting to tinker in the kitchen! Until then…I think I will pour myself another cup of this glorious Apple Cinnamon French Toast Black Tea from Simpson & Vail Tea!
Apple Cinnamon French Toast Tea Crepes
Ingredients:
1 cup flour
½ tsp salt
3 eggs (or vegan egg substitute)
2 tsp. Apple Cinnamon French Toast Tea 1 cup milk (or Milk Alternative)
2 Tbsp melted butter (or vegan butter)
In a small pot, heat the milk on the stove until very hot. Remove from the stove, add the tea, cover and steep for 4 minutes. Strain out the tea leaves.
Blend all ingredients with a whisk or in a blender until smooth. Pour 2-3 Tbsp at a time in a hot oiled frying pan and swirl until evenly distributed. Cook until lightly browned then flip and cook the other side.
Spread with your favorite jam or preserve, roll it up and enjoy.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Simpson & Vail
Description:
Apple and cinnamon goodness with a hint of maple flavor. The aroma is pure lazy Sunday morning. Breakfast on the griddle, hot tea in your hand, your favorite book waiting to be read. The sweet apple and the heady cinnamon flavors dance on your tongue, while the rich maple taste offers the base note in this amber colored cup.
Ingredients: black teas, apple pieces, organic cinnamon pieces and apple cinnamon french toast flavoring.
Brew tea at 212º – steep for 3 minutes.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Darjeeling Mim from Pekko Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Pekko Teas
Tea Description:
Country of Origin: India
Region: Darjeeling
Shipping Port: Calcutta
Grade: TGFOP1 (Tippy Golden Flavoury Orange Pekoe 1)
Altitude: 6800 feet above sea level
Manufacture Type: Orthodox
Cup Characteristics: Good body with a classic muscatel character. This quality is only available during June when the 2nd flush growing season is at its peak.
Infusion: Bright tending light
Ingredients: Luxury black tea.Mim is in the Darjeeling area of Northern India. From the town center on a clear day the peak of Mount Everest can be seen. The genus of the Darjeeling tea bush is the Chinese Jat, which gives it the distinctive muscatel character. Because the tea is grown at such high altitudes and in relatively cool weather the bushes do not grow quickly, and as such the production is limited. The best time of the year for quality is during ‘second-flush’ (end May – end June). During this time Darjeelings are incomparable to any other tea in the world. The fragrance and taste is a complex bouquet that reaches right out of the cup. Some would describe the taste as nutty; others find it reminds them of black currants, but most often it is described as similar to the taste and fragrance of muscat grapes.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Now I am not as knowledgable on Darjeeling as my SororiTea Sister Anne, so I can’t pretend to know just how good this stacks against others of its caliber, however I am throughly enjoying this tea!
I can taste the muscatel in this tea, the base is great, and the mouthfeel is rich, almost creamy.
Its not AS robust as some black teas but yet it has its own nice level of somewhat roast-y flavor.
As Anne stated in her review, there is a slight bit of astringency not to be confused with bitterness – its like it is meant to be there – almost a little tart, like a fresh grape.
I have enjoyed this tea many times now, but one thing that I find with this particular Darjeeling, that I have not found in others, is a sweetness, not just from the muscatel, but rather a maple syrup flavor that is quite amazing!
It is almost a dreamy sort of tea, one that takes me away from the chaos of the world and eases me into a very relaxed, yet rejuvenated state of mind.
This is truly a stash must have. I find myself reaching for it regularly. Its not just a dependable tea but an impressive tea as well. One to enjoy while reading, with breakfast, enjoying the outdoors, excellent cold brewed, and by all means, serve this to your tea friends, as they are sure to be impressed by its quality. I know that I am impressed by it every time I steep it.
