Shades of Earl Grey / Let It Snow from For Tea’s Sake. . . . .

by VariaTEA

I have said it before and I will say it again…Earl Greys are just not my favorite. I don’t love citrus teas and Earl Grey is all about the citrus. Cream of Earl Greys I can get behind a little bit more given the vanilla/cream elements but I still am not a lover. To me they just seem too brisk and sharp. However, the idea of a London Fog always appealed to me. For those who are not sure what I am talking about, a London Fog is an Earl Grey tea latte with a splash of added vanilla. Simple yet appetizing if you ask me, even with my dislike of the tea base. Well, I tried making one at home and things did not go as planned.

I was looking through my many teas and noticed that in the holiday sampler pack of For Tea’s Sake that I bought on Black Friday there was an Earl Grey. Not a Cream of Earl Grey. Not a flavored Earl Grey. Just a plain Earl Grey. And I thought to myself “I don’t want to drink that!”. But then I remembered all the eggnog I had left to use up and decided this would be a good time to try out a London Fog. So, I took my sample and got to work.

I used my normal measurements of one cup each of tea, eggnog, and milk to go into my 24 ounce latte mug. Because of how many ounces I was using, I made sure to use A LOT of leaf. In fact, I used the whole sampler. I got my vanilla and mixed it into the eggnog/milk mixture in the milk frother and got all excited for the treat that was in store. Except when all the appliances started beeping and alarms started chiming I realized the latte mug was nowhere to be found. In my panic to ensure the tea didn’t oversteep, I drained it out of the gravity steeper into a 16 ounce mug. Then, I hoped for the best and tried topping it with all of the eggnog/milk/vanilla. Of course it didn’t fit so I managed to spill the latte everywhere.

Anyways, next was the moment of truth. I took the first sip and of course it was all bergamot. Brisk, bitter bergamot. Now, this is probably due to the very concentrated flavor that should have been diluted by the other components…the components that didn’t fit in my undersized mug. Knowing this, I persevered. Drinking and then adding the eggnog/milk/vanilla mix as I made room in the mug. Eventually something wonderful happened and the flavors balanced out. Gone was the overwhelming citrus and in its place was a decadently creamy concoction of deliciousness. Classic bergamot brightness that was kept soft by the sweetness of the vanilla. Add to that the gentle spices of the eggnog and you get a smooth yet flavorful beverage.

I should mention that I believe this tea is For Tea’s Sake’s Shades of Earl Grey but it seems to have been rebranded as Let It Snow for the holidays so this review would apply to both those teas as they are one in the same.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black Tea
Where to Buy:  For Tea’s Sake
Description

The story goes that a gift of this tea was given to Charles Grey – 2nd Earl Grey and Prime Minister of England. The story goes that a gift of this tea was given to Charles Grey – 2nd Earl Grey and Prime Minister of England. Midnight blue cornflower pairs with traditional Earl Grey black tea to deliver this creamy tasting blend. A sensual experience for all lovers of tea to enjoy.

INGREDIENTS:
black tea, cornflower petals, natural flavours

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in Black Tea, For Tea's Sake