279 Tasting Notes
52teas 12 Teas of Christmas 2023 – Day 4
I’ve been sitting here for the last half an hour or so, sipping on this tea, thoroughly enjoying myself – and then I realize – Oop! I need to be writing about the tea!
I absolutely love the Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha blends – this one is no exception. So, I’m always excited to see which Genmaicha blend will earn its way into the holiday box each year. I’m really happy it was this one this year – it checks off two boxes, it’s a genmaicha & it’s a candy cane tea! (Thanks voters, for helping me with my checklist!)
The crisp peppermint with the sweet, soft marshmallow notes is just so nice. The green tea is pleasant & smooth with just the right note of toasty flavor. so good!
52teas 12 Teas of Christmas 2023 – Day 3
I was excited when this one earned its way into this year’s box, because it’s one that I’ve not yet blended! This reblend IS definitely going to be different from the original for several reasons: first, I didn’t really care for the bergamot flavoring that Frank would use. It tasted a bit more like bubblegum than bergamot to me & I love bergamot. I have sourced an excellent, organic cold-pressed oil of bergamot that I’ve used in my previous bergamot blends, so that’s what I used here.
I also have a different base of teas. I typically do not use Darjeeling teas in my blends, not because I dislike Darjeeling teas – I have used them in the past and will use them in the future, but I prefer my Darjeeling tea not to be blended with other black teas as I feel the more delicate flavor profile of a Darjeeling will be poorly supported by the addition of other teas. Instead, I used a blend of Assam, Ceylon, Yunnan & Nilgiri teas. This well-composed blend worked so beautifully with these flavors.
Anyway, this tea turned out even better than I hoped for. A lovely note of bergamot, softened just so with the addition of a rich, creamy cheesecake essence that is vegan, gluten-free & allergen-friendly! So much yum in one cuppa!
PS: I brewed this pot of tea strong so I can go latte with it. It is sooooo good as a latte! So good!
You’re going to break my tea buying hiatus if there’s any amount of this available on your site at the end of the advent. It’s seriously delicious!
Although I never had the chance to try Frank’s version, it’s neat to see what you changed up! Thank you for sharing. :)
Ha, now that I see what black teas you put in this, it makes sense. I mostly taste Ceylon, but I can now gather Assam and Nilgiri but not Yunnan. I bet the Assam and Nilgiri are what made Kiki think “fruity”, whereas I thought it might be Darjeeling giving her that fruity impression (which I didn’t get). Great tea, Anne :)
@Crowkettle – I hope you’re not expecting me to apologize for breaking the tea buying hiatus. :) because – sorry, not sorry.
@derk Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it. There is a very small amount of Yunnan – just to add a bit of roundness to the base, but not so much to add an assertive Yunnan flavor. The Ceylon tends to work best when it comes to the bergamot. Not sure why, it just does – the bergamot just seems to need the Ceylon to live up to its full potential. However, my plan is to slowly phase out Ceylon from my regular inventory. My plan is to only utilize it for my EG teas as I prefer Assam and Yunnan teas (and these two together will be my new go-to base for black blends). As for the Nilgiri in this blend, I wasn’t terribly sure about adding it, but because Frank utilized a Darjeeling tea in the original blend for this tea, I decided to go with a somewhat similar base – Nilgiri – in my opinion – is the stronger, bolder cousin to Darjeeling and as a result, I tend to prefer Nilgiri over a Darjeeling, especially in a blend. And all of that is probably more than you wanted or needed to know when it comes to my mental processes while blending teas!
Actually this was super helpful and informative, both because it’s just interesting and because it helps me assess how the blend is likely to affect my comically delicate constitution. Thanks for sharing!
Kaylee: I have found that black teas from India tend to do a number on my stomach. I steep them with delicacy! Green Indian tea has never bothered me – Harney and Sons often uses it for their flavored green blends. I guess terroir plus processing plus varietal all matter.
ashmanra: yes, same! black teas from China, even Nepal are usually fine, but Indian black teas are just not my friend.
52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas 2023 – Day 2
I am absolutely certain that I’ve told the story at least once or twice about my affection for figs, so I shan’t bore you with that story again. At least, not now. Maybe at some point in the future. But not now.
I really like how this tea turned out. It’s sweet with a pleasant fig note & the gingerbread is sweet yet peppery with just the right amount of spice to make this a cozy cuppa. And no caffeine so maybe I’ll be able to get some sleep tonight!
52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas 2023 – Day 1 -
Well, it’s currently 11:46 so I’m just barely making this in time for the 1st day of Christmas! (Yeah, I’m behind for my own advent on the very first day! Not a good look.) Anyway . . .
today has been crazy, so it’s nice to take a moment to sit down and enjoy a cuppa. I was so happy when this tea earned the votes to make it into the 12 Teas of Christmas box because it’s one that I absolutely love: rich black tea, tart cranberries & just enough sweetness from the vanilla & cream to soften that edge from the cranberry. The cinnamon is just barely there – it smells a lot more cinnamon-y than it tastes. I love the warmth it brings to the cup.
I slept in a bit (I no longer engage with going out on Black Friday because it’s way too people-y for me) so this is my first tea of the morning. Lately, I’ve been enjoying a matcha latte as my first tea of the day, but today, I wanted something different, so this is the tea I grabbed – and it is so good!
I don’t know why, but the settings on my Breville were for 3 1/2 minutes, rather than the usual go-to of 3 minutes. I didn’t even check it when I started the tea maker, so this was brewed a 1/2 a minute longer than I would usually steep a black tea – and it turned out amazing (I might even argue better? Than the usual 3 minutes!) So I may have to start trying the teas out at 3 1/2 minutes rather than 3 minutes for my recommended steep time. For this tea, I highly recommend 3 1/2 minutes!
Nice black base, flavorful spices & a smooth cake batter-y taste. The cake batter & vanilla soften the spices a bit, so this isn’t overly spicy, but I do get some warm spices – like a spice cake batter tea. I like it! :)
Currently sipping this lovely tea. I only have a few more pouches of this one available as part of the fundraiser event. Thank you to everyone who participated in the fundraiser – I truly appreciate your help!
I absolutely love this tea. The tea has a natural chocolate-y note which marries beautifully with the vanilla notes. So good!
Oh my! I love this tea!
It’s a flavor straight out of my childhood – one of my favorite cereals: Chocolate Malt o Meal! It tastes like the chocolate malt that I used to drink at my favorite soda shop/ice cream shop. So good!
The malt is so strong. A nice creamy note along with the chocolate. Yummy.
I love this tea. I have discovered that as good as it is served without additions, it’s even more amazing as a latte! I’ve tried it with oat milk and whipping cream – it’s good with either but I preferred the whipping cream. So amazing! The flavors are not obscured by the milk, it just enhances the creaminess. So it tastes even more like butter pecan ice cream when I add the dairy.
YUM! A perfect first cuppa – this is just what I needed this morning.
