“The cake is a lie” is a video game reference, specifically Portal. If you aren’t a gamer, do yourself a favor and watch someone play through and enjoy. It is a fun little game. Tell Wheatley I said hi.
There are sprinkles in the blend, which makes the morning start with a little smile, because who can resist smiling at sprinkles?
The tea is a nod to cake, and the aroma captures it pretty well. I don’t fall all over myself in astonishment shouting, “Wow, this is just like cake!” But the aromas of the vanilla and cream flavors call it to mind if you already know what they were aiming for. There is caramel flavor, which I don’t immediately associate with cake but definitely with dessert so it has that going for it, which is nice.
While eating breakfast, this was a good companion. When the food was all gone, the tea became a tad more astringent than I care for, because the black tea base has a little fruitiness on the tart side, like the way lemon tingles your tongue.
I don’t usually add milk and sugar, but for the remaining sips of this mug I added the tiniest splash of milk, which brought it back into my comfort zone. Having tried it that way, I wondered if a sprinkle of sugar would increase the cake element of the tea, but since I don’t care for sugar in my tea, it really didn’t float my Borealis.
If I had this again by itself, separate from a meal or snack, I would definitely go with a splash of milk right up front. No sugar needed for me. With food, it is sufficiently companionable as is and I expect the briskness means it is a good breakfast tea and would please those who like milk and sugar in the morning or just like brisk tea.
Of the two Geek Teas I have tried, I prefer Bad Wolf. But if you like brisk breakfast tea, this one is worth a try for you.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Geeky Teas
Description
Black tea, natural vanilla flavor, candy sprinkles, natural creme and caramel flavor.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
12 Teas of Christmas 1-6 from 52Teas. . . .
52 Teas 12 Teas of Christmas 1-6 (SPOILERS) While I’m a huge fan of 52 Teas and their creative blends, I’ve never before ordered their ever-so-popular 12 Teas of Christmas countdown sampler. This year, I decided to treat myself! After a shipping snafu (anyone else find themselves ordering online goodies six months after moving and not until you’ve hit purchase do you go– “DANGIT, that’s being sent to my old address!” Just me? Cool.) that Anne and her team went above and beyond to fix for me, I was EXTRA pumped for these goodies to come my way. I’m going to break these mini-reviews into two, so you’ll get a 1-6 and then a 7-12 installment as I drink these tasty treats in real time! Now: let’s get sipping!
Day One: Foggy Coconut Black – Let’s just say I am… a less-than-enthusiastic earl grey drinker. I’ve recently been introduced to the concept of “blergamot” (i.e. bergamot in tea makes you go “blerg!”), which hit the nail on the head for me. But while I was skeptical when I opened this package, its delightful creaminess was intriguing. I’m so pleased to say that this is one Earl Grey I’ll be enthusiastically sipping! Like my favorite London Fog lattes, the creamy coconut and vanilla balance out the floral and blerg-y undertones of traditional earl greys, making this one a winner– especially as a latte!
Day Two: Candy Cane Marshmallow Green – Ever since becoming pregnant (baby tea lover, due June 2019!), I’ve been… off my tea drinking game. Most teas just haven’t been sounding good to me! But peppermint has totally been the one element that ALWAYS sounds good to me in this pregnancy, so I was thrilled to see this one in the mix. It’s a delightful, creamy Genmaicha, with light minty notes in the background. This preggy peppermint-lover would have adored the peppermint flavor to be more of a POW, but if you’re looking for a gentle, creamy mint holiday tea, this one is a winner.
Day Three: Raspberry Almond Cookie Honeybush – I opened this package, and was immediately sold by those tart, mouthwatering raspberry notes. Brewed, the raspberry loses some tartness, but is balanced really wonderfully by some beautiful, creamy marizipan-esque undertones. Delightful with cream!
Day Four: Ginger Cola Black – I was Skeptical-with-a-capital-S of this one (cola?! In my TEA?) but friends, it is KILLER on ice. I’ll admit I haven’t tried it hot yet (warm cola is not sounding great to this mama-to-be), but it’s spicy and cola-esque without all that syrupy sweetness. I can see why this one is a popular blend!
Day Five: BlackBerry Custard Tart Green – While some teas haven’t sounded great to me this pregnancy, berry teas have sounded delightful across the board. This one hit all its promised notes– fresh and fruity berries, creamy custard and flaky pastry. I (gasp!) served it with some milk and found it brought out ALL the flavors even further, while muting some of the green grassiness. Yum!
Day Six: Banana Pancake Black – I have shocked myself in recent months with a love for banana flavored teas. I’m pretty neutral on bananas themselves, and even more negatively-skewed on banana flavoring, but for whatever reason, I cannot get ENOUGH of them in tea lately. This blend delivers on the banana and bready, malty, maple-y pancake goodness of a breakfast treat, all whilst not being overtly banana-in-your-face (think banana bread, rather than banana candy). I served this one with a touch of maple syrup and cream, and had to stop myself from chugging the whole cup. Delightful!
Here’s the scoop!
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
The majority of these 12 Teas of Christmas are sold out but some of them are still available below.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Chocolate Chip Pancakes from Bumble Tea. . . .
My doctor told me to drastically decrease my caffeine intake, which means less tea. I got until 3:30 pm (right now) before making myself my one daily cup. I’d been hoping to cold turkey it and try talking about decaf teas for a while, but I crashed.
Today’s feature: Chocolate Chip Pancakes! YUM!
When you open this up, the chocolate powder puffs out. The majority of the mix is solid (tea parts, etc), but the powder is exciting. It smells REALLY amazing.
This is a malty, dark chocolate flavor. Like the pancakes have been a little bit crisped. The shimmering perky chocolate is a great contrast to the deep assam. Neither overpowers the other. It’s yin. It’s yang. It’s… CHOCOLATE CHIP PANCAKES, GUYS. And oh god, thank goodness, it has caffeine.
I think if you put a splash of milk in this, it’d be GOLD, but we ran out of milk in the office, and it’s my turn to buy it. It’s not a finance issue; it’s a “can’t be bothered to go to a STORE” issue.
I probably can’t be bothered because I have literally no energy in my veins. Caffeine, I miss you.
All of my reviews from here on out will have a certain joy in them because they’re the only times in my day when I am allowed to have my previous zip-juice.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bumble Tea
Description
Wake up with a decadent blend of black assam tea leaves, with carob & real dark chocolate. Best enjoyed with cream & sugar!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Banana Nut Pancakes from A Quarter To Tea. . . .
I love banana nut anything. I actually just made banana nut muffins a few weeks ago and they were delectable. Thanks, Martha Stewart.
One of my favorite teas from DAVIDsTEA is their Banana Nut Bread fruit infusion. But, because it is an infusion, its caffeine free. This is fine for evenings, but I need caffeine during the day. When I saw that A Quarter to Tea had a caffeinated banana nut flavored black tea, I was so excited and ordered a few samples right away.
Every tea I have tried from this company thus far has been a complete dream. I have not disliked a single one. I actually have nothing bad to say about this company as a whole. They have an array of flavor options and super fast shipping.
Anyways, back to banana nut pancakes. This tea was very mellow. DAVIDsTEA’s Banana Nut bread is much more in your face with flavor. This was very mellow and i’m not sure if I would know immediately that it was impersonating banana nut pancakes. However, after a few sips that nuttiness, sweetness from the “pancake” part, and the banana flavor do start to come forward. I think that overall it is a good blend. I can’t say that it compares much to Banana Nut Bread from DAVIDs, for I feel that they are two very different teas. Banana Nut Pancakes is very mellow and good for a treat with breakfast or lunch. Banana Nut Bread is more so a dessert tea that you would have after dinner in place of something fat and calorie laden, as it more so satisfies my sweet tooth than Banana Nut Pancakes.
I still think that A Quarter to Tea is an amazing company and I still have nothing bad to say. I did enjoy this blend and would reorder. It is just not in-your-face with banana and nut flavor, and that is okay. Sometimes you don’t want something dripping with flavoring and sugary sweetness. Sometimes you just want something light and smooth, and that is exactly what Banana Nut Pancakes from A Quarter to Tea will deliver to you with this one!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
What could possibly be better than having pancakes for breakfast?
Drinking them of course. Ceylon is used as the base here and is paired with the flavors of banana nut pancakes drizzled in vanilla butter.
Makes an excellent latte.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!