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This product title doesn’t show up anywhere in Bigelow Tea’s current lineup, so either that means it has been totally discontinued, or that Bigelow has just quit putting out holiday-thematic versions of their standards. “Cinnamon Apple” still exists, and I have always suspected that the “Sweetheart Cinnamon” was just a specially boxed version of the same.

My take on it has changed a little over the years…now I’m getting the “sweet” first before detecting the apple/cinnamon. Maybe the next cups can be combined with some chamomile or real cider to tone it down a bit.

Third entry in the Yorkshire lineup that recently hit my cabinets. I think, generally speaking, Americans are just so over-sugared, we have trouble wrapping our minds and taste buds around cookies that aren’t sweet. So if you’re expecting sugar cookies here, you’re not going to get them. Instead, the scent and flavoring reminded me a little of those baby arrowroot cookies or a less sweet version of Biscoff “airplane” cookies.

The black tea base is definitely Yorkshire strong. I let it go 4:30, and it was a teeny bit bitter on its own. Even so, I had downed the entire cup before I had the chance to add milk. Maybe tomorrow.

It groppled today. The weather guy said so. Little miniature snowy-ice-balls about the size of a baby ladybug. We also had sleet, freezing fog, freezing rain, and snow within a 12-hour period. I expect either oobleck or meatballs by midnight.

Couple the frozen weather extravaganza with being out in it for a while and I’ve got tense muscles in places I forgot I had. So a comforting rocking chair brew is the RX for the evening.

…and this one was a surprise. The front of the box touts vanilla and nutmeg as the headliners, so I was expecting something like eggnog. Then I noticed the fine print…lemon balm and lemongrass are in the mix as well. Together, the additions to a reasonably deeply flavored decaf base make an unusual but tasty nightcap. (But you need to be a nutmeg fan. I am.)

Says Oliver, since days of yore, elderberry was considered “capable of restoring good health, and an aid to longevity.” Not sure I need a longevity aid tonight…it’s chill-you-to-the-core icy outside, I spent a good deal of the day out and about, and I feel about a hundred and two.

However, this little sample included with an Oliver Pluff do-over order did a lovely job of thawing me out. The recommended steep time for the sachet is 5—10 minutes, what you’d expect for an herbal, but I just left it in the cup. As a result, mint was the first thing I noticed in the flavor lineup, but the berries added an interesting flavor note.

Amazon delivered a surprise today—three boxes—the trifecta of Yorkshire toast-biscuit-bedtime brews! (A little serendipity was much needed after a very glumpy week.)

After a great deal of “which one do I want to try first?” hemming and hawing, this one called my name. One bag to an 8 oz mug, 5 minutes brewed up strong and dark, and it did smell exactly like toast (dial set to 6 on the toaster) spread with my mom’s strawberry jam.

At 5 minutes, the black tea base was actually a little strong, even for my preferences, but the strawberry jam vibe came through beautifully. A little milk toned down the toast and hepped up the jam, which was fine with me.

This is going on my “top ten best strawberry brews” list.

According to Sheldon Cooper, it is fair copyright use to quote snippets of another writer’s work in the context of a review (watch the closet reorganizing episode).
Therefore, I’m going to respectfully borrow a spot-on description from teaqueen’s review a few months ago: the flavor is not as smoke-forward as the dry leaf and the ingredients list suggest. It’s smooth, slightly sweet, with notes of honey, caramel, cocoa, pine, and earth, with a very light touch on the smoke.

Having used my first sample of lapsang years ago as compost for my zinnias, who’da thunk I’d be deliberately choosing to sip some on purpose?

I can’t remember the last time I woke up and was disappointed that it didn’t snow the predicted 6 inches…was all primed for snow day serendipity, and it turned out to be just another cloudy workday with slush. :o{

So…something heavy duty was needed to yank my eyes open and my backside out the door. I had some TeaMaze Coffee (puerh/cocoa/coffee beans) leaves left from yesterday—it’s a great second steeper—and combined it with a rollicking spoonful of Braveheart (Savoy Tea; blend of Chinese, Indian, and Sri Lankan black teas). The straight-up breakfast blend cut the cocoa sweetness and made it lean more toward an actual cup of java.

Result: I still want to go back to bed, but the home brew was tasty.

I’m almost hesitant to add yet another semi-anonymous Dong Ding to the lineup here, but it is definitely noteworthy—hands down, my husband’s favorite oolong. And, unfortunately, no longer in the TeaMaze lineup, so we are using it judiciously.

But the afternoon atmosphere was perfect for it: it’s the damp, just-above-freezing cold that soaks into your bones and makes you want to light candles and change into your jammies and watch the cats snooze while you sip earthenware cups of quality oolong. (Which we did, as well as watching the first installment of the old Shogun miniseries from the 70’s.)

What’s notable, as far as my sweetie is concerned, about this Dong Ding is its roastiness. It hits the savory/umami zones, with almost no floral hints whatsoever. You can almost feel the warmth from the charcoal.

This was part of last fall’s anniversary surprise, and I left the mini-tin sealed until now. However, the label said just plain “cacao,” so when we opened and got a whiff of peppermint, I went to the website and confirmed that they do sell a mint version—just a labeling boo-boo. (I emailed the company to see if they would consider making good on what was originally ordered…results yet unknown.)

But, all that said, let’s talk cacao mint. Oliver Pluff has done well with the blend—crunched up the cacao enough that it steeps richly and smoothly. The mint is neither too mild nor too spicy to overshadow the cacao. Not what I expected, but in an unexpectedly pleasant way.

Sample sipdown, so there wasn’t quite as much leaf for my big work mug as I wished. Even so, this is now one of my favorite chai variants. The apple and almond add a pastry quality to the chai spices that I’ve never seen in other blends. Good stuff on a cold day.