I caved and bought a bunch of the winter blends yesterday, all but sleigh ride, coffee cake (had a sample in store, too much like RVC) and chocolate chili chai. I already tried 2 yesterday that I will backlog, but Santa’s secret is my first test this morning, perfect for a lightly snowing day.
The dry smell is nice and sweet, peppermint and vanilla. I steeped for around 5 minutes. Steeped, also minty and sweet. The flavor is very good, a light vanilla melding with a mild peppermint to make for a cozy, warming brew. I don’t liken this to candycanes lol, to me those are a harsher mint and honestly not my favorite. The team I’ve had closest to this is shamrocks and shenanigans by Della terra (now minty cow tea it looks like, but haven’t tried that blend) and while initially i thought this one was a weaker and not as good version of it, I am realizing it might like this one just as much because it’s not as sweet. Della terras also has chocolate added, so that’s probably where the extra sweetness comes from.
Regardless, both of those mint teas have their pros. But as of don’t need to pay shipping for this one, it’s more likely to be in my cupboard this year. I might keep this one restocked even, we’ll see how I feel after I finish my 20g of it. A lovely tea, and a nice surprise, given I haven’t considered trying this tea in the past. Maybe I was scared it would taste like actual candycanes lol. Rate 85 (I’m on my phone, so slider doesn’t work well lol).
I swear the mint in this smells a lot weaker this year.