“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!
Carnival Candy Crackle from Tickled Tea. . . .
I discovered Tickled Tea in the summertime which meant I got to take advantage of their limited edition summertime blends. Among those was Carnival Candy Crackle, a rooibos with candy pearls AND crackling candy that had my inner child adding it to the cart before I could stop it (her? me?).
I discovered Tickled Tea in the summertime which meant I got to take advantage of their limited edition summertime blends. Among those was Carnival Candy Crackle, a rooibos with candy pearls AND crackling candy that had my inner child adding it to the cart before I could stop it (her? me?).
Due to the initial let down, I let this sample float around my tea stash as I reached for other teas to drink. It was not until a friend mentioned that she enjoyed this as a cold brew that I decided to use up the last of my sample and give this tea another taste.
After cold steeping overnight, this tea is finally ready to drink. As I sip on this cold tea, I can confidently say this is an improvement from the hot tea. The rooibos is much more subdued which allows for the sugary sweet flavor you’d expect from carnival candy crackle to take over. There is still a bit of a fruity/berry note but candy is definitely better captured in the cold brew than the hot tea.
With that said, though this is an improvement, this tea is still just a sugary water drink and thus, as an adult, not something I need to revisit. It was fun to try and the crackle candy in the leaf makes for a bit of a fun auditory experience when you brew this but that is where the fun ends.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Tickled Tea
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Timid Red from Tea Taxi. . . .
Tea Taxi is one of those tea companies I hear about all the time, but I’m not sure I’ve ever tried. They have a bunch of fun looking mixes, complete with sprinkles and cute names.
Today’s pick was Timid Red, which I mostly reached for because there are little red hearts in it. Cute! In addition to the tea, this mix rocks “Candy (sugar, cornstarch, cellulose gum), natural flavors, sunflower, safflower, [and] calendula.” CANDY AS THE FIRST INGREDIENT?
The flavor itself is mostly vanilla with a kick of grenadine and a very light floral note.
It’s a savory and sweet mix that’s pretty strong, which I love. (Watery tea is the bane of my existence.) I’m not sure why it’s called “Timid Red,” since it’s fairly bold. Maybe the vanilla is supposed to be sweet (ergo timid)?
I disagree with this assessment. I think that this red is a go-getter. It’s SASSY.
The only beef I have with this tea is the company’s slightly confusing branding system. On the sample-size bag, each type of tea comes with an animal symbol instead of one universal Tea Taxi symbol. So my sample came with a stag and “Rouge Timide” on the front, and I had to Google what it was and work my way backwards. I don’t think that the full-size bags have that issue, thankfully.
If you’re reading this, Tea Taxi friends: j’adore votre thé, mais votre emballage est confusant. Merci pour votre temps.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea Taxi
Description
The delicate aromas of vanilla and pomegranate in this black tea may well remind you of your first pangs of love. Close your eyes and let yourself go…
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Honey Gingerbread Pancake Yunnan Tea from A Quarter To Tea. . . .
Even the name of this tea is downright exciting! It is beautiful to look at, with pearly Yunnan snail black tea as the base. And with pancake in the name, I had to have it for Sunday breakfast with the family!
The dominant aroma is ginger. I also found it to be the dominant flavor. (It really reminds me of fall and Christmas because that is the only time we use much ginger. Note to self – get more near the holidays!) The black tea base is strong enough to come through and not be masked by the added flavors, though. They didn’t skimp there.
I took mine sans additions and found it to be awesome as a breakfast tea, but it would also be very good with afternoon sweets.
My husband sniffed it and said, “It is okay, but you know I don’t care for ginger much and I don’t prefer flavored teas.” He then proceeded to empty the pot by drinking three cups in a row. So I guess that is a thumbs up for this flavored tea. He always adds milk and sugar to black tea and this tea can handle it.
I resteeped and I must say the Yunnan snail base performed beautifully. Of course the added flavors are diminished, but this still has nice, rich color and as much flavor as many teas have on their first steep, making it a wonderful follow-up to sip on through the morning.
Looking at their website to learn more about this tea, I saw and just had to order some Badger Breakfast Tea, too! I can’t wait to get that one and review it! German hops in tea? Yes, please!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
A malty, high quality yunnan tea offers a platform for this sweet breakfast treat of cinnamon, ginger, spices, and honey.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Spritz of Glitz from Tea and Tins. . .
What attracted me to this tea was the little silver candies. I’m sucker for sprinkles!
This was a very striking blend with the silver gleaming against the dark green tea leaves. While the name of the blend is ‘pear,’ the dry blend and wet leaves had more of a peach aroma to me. If you are familiar with Sour Peaches, it smelt like that!
However, when I went in to sip the liquor, I got a whiff of pear. There was a rich pear flavour from the liquor as well. Since the blend leaned towards sweet, it reminded me of pear candy instead of freshly picked pears. I kept getting a mixture of pear and peaches in my mouth.
This yellow liquor tea is for pear (and peach) lovers!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Tea and Tins
Description
Ingredients: green tea, succulent peach and fresh pear with a glitzy spritz of sparkling sugars!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
