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This is my favorite tea of the Plum Deluxe advent so far. It’s mostly jasmine flower in scent and flavor. The strawberry, noticeable in the dry leaf, is subtle in the steeped cup. I divided this sample into two small cups; the second had almost no discernable strawberry at all. But I prefer the slight hint here, because it goes so well with the jasmine without overwhelming me with the strawberry flavor I tend to find so artificial. The green tea base is perfect for these flavors overall.

If you don’t care for floral tea, this would not be a good fit, but if you do love jasmine, this is a great way to go.

Plum Deluxe Caffeine Advent, Day 18

This was my very first chai, a while ago, and while I don’t like it quite as much as I did originally, I was still excited to see it in the box. The spices are present, but fairly subtle; my favorite part is the peppercorns that I notice mostly in the aftertaste. I would love it if it were punched up a bit more. Still, it’s solid, and I’m glad I have more waiting for me after advents are done.

DAVIDsTEA Around the World Advent, Day 19

Well.

My rule has been that I have to try every blend that shows up in these advents and give them a fair shake, but really, I have my limits. And a pure rooibos is all the way up there at the top.

So this doesn’t get a rating, or a taste, or anything; I don’t even know if it needs a tasting note because I feel like I’ll remember not to go near this, but I’m here.

I will say that the tin has a nostalgic scent going for it – it reminds me of walking by the cabins after a fresh rainfall at summer camp. But I can’t say I’ve ever wanted to taste the cabins, so.

DAVIDsTEA Around the World Advent, Day 18

Rooibos is determined to ruin my tea fun today.

This smells pleasant enough! It seems like a sweet, nutty, butter cookie. I don’t really like a sugar cookie, a shortbread, or anything similar, but I feel like this tea could have its place if not for all the rooibos. I managed about half of my cup with a square of chocolate and salted caramel fudge I was enjoying. As soon as the fudge was over though, I couldn’t manage the rest of the cup.

BrutaliTeas Advent, Day 17

Black tea is listed first here, but all I get is rooibos. I suspected I was in some trouble by the scent. The flavor was pretty much what I expected. It’s a shame I really can’t distinguish caramel or almond here at all. It’s a tiny bit sweet, and I can get hints of cinnamon in the smell and aftertaste, but mostly rooibos.

I’m at the point where every time I see rooibos as an ingredient I turn into a villain hearing the name of their nemesis. And with most of these ill-advised encounters, the rooibos wins.

Plum Deluxe Caffeine Advent, Day 17

Today I learned that Orange Pekoe is not orange flavored, and it gets its name from some Dutch royalty convention – I really didn’t feel like getting further into that rabbit hole, so that’s where my exploration ends. After getting over that disappointment, I went ahead and made a cup.

I was surprised by this. There was something distinctly vegetal about it in a way that reminded me more of green tea. I didn’t get the usual acidity or bitterness I expect from black tea. This feels like it could be a good tea to help bridge me from my love of green tea to appreciating black tea – something to consider for the future.

Now a confession: I wanted this to be orange so badly that I finally just gave in and added some fresh orange to my cup. Absolutely delightful; would recommend.

DAVIDsTEA Around the World Advent, Day 17

I was quite excited for this on scent and early in the cup. In the initial sips, this seemed like it would be a solid black tea with a subtle mango candy aftertaste. But the more I drank and the more it cooled, the less subtle the mango candy became, and it was striking how artificial it tasted. It reminded me a lot of the spicy mango gummies from Vidal that our Universal Yums subscription box seems obsessed with, minus the heat.

Shame, because if it had maintained that flavor from the first few hot sips, it would have been a winner.

BrutaliTeas Advent, Day 16

After the success of Snickerdoodle I was excited for this one; I was up for a sweeter take or a heavy ginger. It went in neither direction. All I’m getting is the chicory.

There’s nothing wrong with it – it’s got the qualities of the darker chicory tea I’m enjoying a lot from teeccino – but it doesn’t have any element that makes me think ginger, bread, gingerbread, dessert, or anything the name might suggest.

sipsby bagged advent, day 14

Hello again, Miracle Tree. I’ve reached the point where I flinch a little just seeing the brand name because it often sounds so promising and just doesn’t meet expectations.

This one has a clear artificial apple cider flavor, like when fall hits and the companies that aren’t 100% in on pumpkin spice decide we need some kind of fall flavor, and they all kind of start to taste the same. I’d love if we actually had some apple or cinnamon in here, but just “natural flavoring” and a lot of moringa. Yeah, not for me.

sipsby bagged advent, day 13

I am genuinely baffled by the love for this in the other tasting notes and wondering if I did something horribly wrong to my particular bag.

The smell is lovely! It’s exactly what I would expect from a tangerine tea or candy. It seems like it’s going to be mostly tart, a touch sweet – very much like the fruit.

I took an excited sip and was horrified. How is this both terribly bitter and awfully sweet?! I assumed licorice root must be involved, but despite the giant ingredient list with plenty of other roots, that one wasn’t listed. I may have been able to get past the unnamed earthy herb taste if not for the horrendous artificially sweet flavor that hit immediately after. Ah, stevia is here – this is clearly a problem ingredient for me.

I wanted to try for a more descriptive review and sipped it a couple more times, but I could not take it.

I kind of feel like I should go adjust all the other 1s I’ve ever given a tea because I actually gagged on this one.

sipsby bagged advent, day 12