Santa's Secret

Santa's Secret from DavidsTea

 Ingredients : Chinese black tea, peppermint leaves, candy cane sprinkles, natural and artificial flavouring

I'll be honest, I am in no mood for writing... Myself and my family just suffered the loss of a dear pet of mine and my heart is still too broken to put much of it in to anything.

Besides that, I haven't much to say about this tea.

Yes, the little candy canes are an adorable touch to this "Christmas" tea, but it is basically a black, less creamy version of White Chocolate Frost - which I highly prefer. Peppermint, sugar and black tea... It's simple, and quite frankly, lacks the subtle elegance that I loved so much with WCF. Has a lingering taste of candy canes.

It would make an excellent stocking stuffer for a tea lover, though. Very cute.
Oh, and DT has informed my that this tea is only around until mid December (what the fuck is up with that?) so you best get your Christmas shopping done ASAP.

Happy Steeping and all that

~K

Spiced Fig

I literally nearly forgot to type this up. It's 7:50 pm on Monday the 25th, and I'm starting now. Today has been a weird day.

At least Spiced Fig has no caffeine!

It smells amazing. Exactly like spiced figs! So, basically a very traditional Christmas smell, which I do not mind. It's uplifting and makes me feel happy.






As the picture shows, I used 1 tbsp per pot. I steeped it until the pot ran out. I honestly felt no need to set a time limit on it, since the longer it steeped the better it got.

It's quite a sweet tea, yet light at the same time. Fruity and clovey. I'm not 100% sure how to describe it...



This is taking a long time to write because I keep getting distracted!

I'm not going to restock this tea after this bag runs out. 1) It has nuts and when I move in with Zach it's going to basically be a nut-free house and this tea has almonds, and 2) even steeping it for 40 minutes it's not as strong as I'd like it to be.

If you like/love light and fruity teas, this tea you will ADORE, if you like stronger teas, you'll like this tea, but it won't have enough punch for you.

Lots of love,
L

Gingerbread

My backyard

Moghrey mie! ('Good morning' in Gaelg, which is Manx Gaelic. It's pronounced "more-a-my")

It's time to review DavidsTea gingerbread tea!

I steeped one tablespoon for five minutes, in my handly beige, four cup teapot.  It smells amazing, but it doesn't smell like gingerbread. More like a mix of molasses and vanilla, which is kinda weird for a tea which is called fucking GINGERBREAD.
Seriously, the site claims you can smell a whole bunch of spices, INCLUDING GINGER. But, maybe my nose is broken because I literally can ONLY smell the rooibos, vanilla, and the molasses. Nothing else.



I am honestly not the biggest fan on this tea (if that wasn't already fairly obvious). I mean, I like it, but I'm not getting GINGERBREAD from this tea. I'm getting molasses. I even tried adding vanilla agave, and then maple agave to different glasses (which are amazingly delicious by the way) to see if it would boost the ginger flavor in any way, it didn't.

It tastes like a rooibos with molasses. Not something that is supposed to make me think of gingerbread or fill that craving. I honestly can't even place this as a flavor that makes me think of the winter season. Sugar and Spice does a better job of making me think of Christmas, which is sad because it's a fall tea!

In summary, if you're expecting a gingerbread party with this tea, you will probably be disappointed. But, if you are wanting something more molasses-y than ginger-y, then you will love it. I for one, wanted the gingerbread experience. It tasted good, but not great. Kind of one noted and bland.

I think it may have a bit too much honeybush, and not enough ginger, cinnamon, or cardamom. But, not every tea can be a hit I guess.

Stay warm!

Laura

White Chocolate Frost

White Chocolate Frost
from DavidsTea

I chose to start off the Winter/Holiday collection of posts with this tea because it smelled good, and because I wanted to save the super Christmas-y ones until it is actually December.

It looks incredibly dull... Like a mint tea, but with little ball things inside of it. But it smells like a really creamy mint. I steeped for four minutes, trudged out in to the snow for a picture for you, then scuttled back inside so I could drink it. Wow.

This tastes EXACTLY like those little Christmas chocolate candy things. Those white, pink and green white chocolates that taste like peppermint with the little balls of candy stuck to the bottoms. Do you know what I'm talking about?! They sell them during the Christmas season at a kiosk at the mall, and they kick ass. So does this tea.

I LOVE this tea. Wow. I must have more!! It is so creamy, without being sweet or overbearing, and minty. This tastes like my childhood; when I would sit with my English neighbour drinking peppermint tea with cream while we made fancy Christmas cards to sell at the local craft market. Good times. Good tea. If you love peppermint tea, get your ass over to DavidsTea and get yourself some of this before it is too late!


What a perfect way to end an evening in from the cold.



Happy Steeping!
~K

"Remember the tea kettle; although it is up to its neck in hot water it keeps on singing."

~Author Unknown, first printed in 1914 as "Optimism is a cheerful frame of mind which enables a tea kettle to whistle and sing although it is up to its neck in hot water all the time."
Above is the version made popular in the early 1930's Szczepau Anton "Tony" Wons

Rooibos de Provence

Rooibos de Provence by DavidsTea!

As soon as you open the bag, you smell the black currents. I personally really like this smell, so I'm happy here.

I'm taking a super long time to type this up, I keep getting distracted. So if this feels a little disjointed in parts, it's because I went on tumblr or Youtube then remembered I was typing this up.

I steeped it 1 tbsp to 4 cups of water, in my handy standby teapot. I steeped it for about 4 minutes, JUST LIKE THE PACKAGE TOLD ME TO.

Okay, onto flavor (this has taken me over an hour to get this far. Don't judge me.):
You can really taste the lavender and the rosehips. It has a really nice smooth flavor, that I find characteristic of rooibos teas, with a bite of black current. Overall, it's pretty delicious. Fruity and smooth and lavender-y.

It DOES leave you nice and relaxed, which is a super bonus.

I've never been to the French countryside, but it would suit the Albertan countryside just as nicely. Sitting on the front porch, wrapped in a blanket looking at the leaves change...and potentially as an iced tea in the summer! SOMEONE REMIND ME TO DO THIS

I honestly can't decide how much I like this tea. I don't DISLIKE it in the SLIGHTEST, but I don't like it enough to get 100g all at once. It IS relaxing to drink, and it tastes really nice. It would be great for a day when you are super stressed and just want to zonk out.
So, once this bag runs out, I'll order more, but 100g would be far too much.

(Good Gods it's been 3 hours and I'm finally done what the hell is wrong with me)

-Drink your tea my lovelies,
L

Updates!

As I'm sure everyone who has gone into any store, online or off, has realized is that we need to brace ourselves....

Because Christmas is coming!

Laura's backyard

And with Christmas comes the winter tea reviews. Which we are very, very excited for. We wanted to do the same thing we did for fall, and wait for the first day of winter. But that is December 21st, so that doesn't give as much time as we'd like to review teas before Christmas!
So we decided to start doing reviews after...

November 21, 2013!

**IF ANYONE HAS ANY WINTER SEASON TEAS FROM THEIR CULTURES AND/OR RELIGIONS, LET US KNOW ABOUT THEM AND WE'LL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO!**

Raspberry Vanilla Rooibos

Raspberry Vanilla Rooibos from TeaDesire

Ingredients: Redbush Tea, raspberry pieces, raspberry-vanilla flavour and taste


This tea has a little bit of everything I love. Vanilla, raspberry, and tea!! So, it was obvious that I had to try it.

I definitely recommend a high steeping time for this tea (even longer than five minutes) to get the full potential of the flavour. And it is a pretty awesome flavour.

Judging by the smell, I was expecting it to taste mostly of flavouring and gunk, but no. The flavour high-note is the natural woody-ness of the rooibos. You definitely still taste the creamy raspberry flavouring, but the tea is the centre-piece of the flavour, which is always excellent.
And vanilla just works with rooibos!

If you are a rooibos fan, it is definitely worth giving a try. 

 The only downside is that the raspberry and vanilla totally could have been natural and made this tea taste even better. More raspberry pieces, please!


Happy Steeping,

~K

"So of all the particulars of health and exercise, and git nutriment, and tonics. Some people will tell you there is a great deal of poetry and fine sentiment in a chest of tea."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson, Letters and Social Aims, "Inspiration" 

Sweet Indulgence: Read my Lips

Ingredients: Chinese black tea, peppermint,dark chocolate, red lip sprinkles,
pink peppercorns, natural/artificial flavoring

It's time to Read my Lips!

Since it's a 1.25 tsp per cup tea, I used .75 tablespoons for my 4 cup pot. Then, per directions, steeped it for 5 minutes. The kettle was just below screaming, still whistled a little, so about the 98C I was supposed to use.

Because it's a black tea, I tasted it with milk, milk and sugar, and just sugar. As I always try to do with black teas.

With milk, well, maybe I'm super taste deficient, but I just tasted black tea that had a chocolate scent. I literally could just taste the black tea, and smelled dark chocolate. Like, oppressively strong smell.
With milk and sugar it tasted chocolatey-ish. Not enough for me to be saying "Oh, that's totally chocolate flavor". More of a "It tastes kinda like chocolate a little bit in the back ground."
With just sugar I tasted some dark chocolate, still mainly just tasted black tea, but sweeter.
When it was black I tasted mostly black tea, a little chocolate flavor, very oppressive chocolate scent.

I am not getting any more of the tea once my sample runs out. I really wasn't swept off my feet. The smell of dark chocolate didn't match the taste, there is supposed to be peppermint in this tea, but I tasted none of it.
I was looking forward to a tea that almost tasted like a piece of peppermint-chocolate (if you've had some you know what I'm talking about. And it's orgasmic.). At least even a little. It didn't even smell like peppermint-chocolate.

If you love this tea and can taste amazing things from it, then carry on, if not, you are not alone.

But DavidsTea said it would be better than dessert, and more reliable than sex. For me, It was neither.

Over and out,

-L

Remembrance Day

Take time to remember those who sacrificed for your freedom.
Seriously, it's a minute of silence, preferably to reflect.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place: and in the sky

The larks still bravely singing fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead: Short days ago,

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved: and now we lie

In Flanders fields!

Take up our quarrel with the foe

To you, from failing hands, we throw

The torch: be yours to hold it high

If ye break faith with us who die,

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields

Composed by Lt. Colonel John McCrea
at the battlefront on May 3, 1915 during
the second battle of Ypres, Belgium

Picture from here

Mountain Organic Indonesian Oolong

Mountain Org. Indonesian Oolong
From Tea at Sea

Tea at Sea. So far they haven't much to offer as for selection of teas... but who cares! They are about quality and not quantity here, that is for sure! And I absolutely love them!! Not only is this tea so gorgeous that had me ordering right after trying it, just look at what they send you with your order!!

CORK BOAT!! LOOK AT IT!! AHHHH

Two samples for one little order of 50 grams of this amazing tea (which I swear I will get to very soon) and a little cork boat you get to put together. Unfortunately, the boat does not float in your tea (of COURSE I tried! Who wouldn't?!). And the packaging is just top notch and original!

I first tried this tea two Sundays ago when Laura brought it over when we had a mini tea/pizza party (what? We're on a budget, okay?!) and we made a nice big pot of it so we could both try it for the first time.
WOW!
This organic tea has everything that I love about oolong - light, earthy taste with none of the bitterness- but with a sooth, creamy punch of honey! This is a simple tea with a twist of something different that I can drink by the pot-full, which I did!

I fell in love with this tea. You will too.
Every lover of straight tea should have this in their tea cupboard.
Go! GO!! Get yourself this to-die-for oolong from an adorable company.

Happy Steeping
~K

Around the World: Orange Pekoe

Let me preface with the fact that Orange Pekoe isn't my favorite tea. So, I enrolled my Mum to help me review it. She drinks Tetley Orange Pekoe all the time (like, at least 4 times a week). I have it maybe once every 6 months. At most. So my qualifications on judging it are a little rocky.

I got this Orange Pekoe from DavidsTea as part of the Around The World Collection.

I brewed it 1 tbsp to a 4 cup pot, as per usual, and brewed it 4 minutes as per directions.
As I'm sure you can tell by now, I am a creature of habit! And with being a creature of habit, I always drink my Orange Pekoe the same way - black.

Right off the bat it smelled earthy and clean. Very appealing. Very Orange Pekoe.












But I found it tasted a lot like Tetley; I liked it better, it was a little milder which I enjoyed. My mom also found it similar (she drinks it with steamed milk).
Overall, I enjoyed drinking it, but it really is only worth buying it if you really have something against tea bags, or can taste a difference big enough that it's worth spending the extra cash.

So, I won't be buying any more Orange Pekoe, but I'm not an Orange Pekoe person.
If you love all and any Orange Pekoe, then take this with a grain of salt.


Skål!

-Laura


IF YOU HAVE ANY TEA YOU WOULD LIKE REVIEWED, LEAVE A COMMENT AND WE WILL SEE WHAT WE CAN DO.