Bonfire Toffee/Bird and Blend Tea Co.

When it’s raining cats and dogs out, the sky is dark, and the lightening is bright, there is nothing quite like a latte made with a warming dessert tea. Normally, that warmth comes from a spice like cinnamon or clove but this time I decided to go a different way and picked out Bonfire Coffee by Bird and Blend Tea Co., a smokey black tea with caramel and apple.

I brewed up the tea rather strongly, steeping 4 perfect teaspoons in 8 ounces of boiling water for 4 minutes. I topped the steeped tea with 8 ounces of frothed 1% milk.

The first thing I noticed when drinking the tea was the smoke from the Lapsang Souchong black tea. No surprise there given that Lapsang is always one strong tea.With that said, the milk sat atop the smokiness making for a smooth and creamy smokey flavor, as opposed to a more harsh smoke, until the end of the sip when the smoke just broke free and lingered in the aftertaste. The aftertaste is also where I most noticed the presence of a caramelized sugar/burnt caramel quality that was intermingled with the milk and Lapsang throughout the sip but came through more clearly in the aftertaste. Apple was missing in the latte but my guess it was drowned out by the more prominent flavors of the milk and the Lapsang.

It’s a nice tea but definitely not for the faint of heart. If you are not one for smoke, stay away from the Bonfire.


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy: Bird and Blend Tea Co.

Description

Travelling tea merchants used to carry tea from east to west,all the way across Russia… well, their horses did anyway! It’s said the campfire smoke would infuse into the loose tea leaves at night creating smoked teas. Add some caramel, apple and toasted cinnamon and you get a spectacular Bonfire Night treat!

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Terry’s Tea/Bird & Blend

Confusingly, the outside of my container for Terry’s Tea says “It’s not Terry’s…”

But, like, whose is it?

Apparently it’s named after Uncle Terry, but he did not come up with it. Is the story. Which is confusing. I’m not a fan of this advertising scheme.

Anyway, this is a chocolate orange tea.

I’ve had some in the past that tasted like one of those chocolate oranges you smash against the wall at Easter.

But this one tastes more like a hot chocolate/cocoa that someone squeezed an orange and some hibiscus into. It has more of a mellow sweetness that comes from cocoa shells than the dark chocolate bite. They each have their time and place, and this one’s a gentler approach.

I haven’t met Terry, but I imagine, from the flavor of this, that he wears a lot of cardigans. He has a self-effacing style of humor. He’s more of a “teach you to take photographs of nature” uncle than a “fix your car” uncle. Animals like his gentle, affable nature. He and his wife like to tend their garden together, their quiet laughter whistling through the acres of fields surrounding their home.

If this is NOT who Terry is, please don’t tell me, Bird & Blend. I like my personal Terry. And this tea.

 


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type:  Black Tea

Where to Buy:  Bird & Blend

Description

We named our amazing chocolate orange tea after our uncle Terry because it’s his favourite. He’s so fond of it he keeps telling people it’s his. So we have to remind people it’s not actually Terry’s, it’s ours! But with chocolatey cacao and fruity orange peel we can’t really blame him!

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Cherry Bakewell/Bird & Blend Tea Co

This Cherry Bakewell tea by Bird and Blend Co. has been sitting in my stash since January and I keep looking past it and grabbing other options. I am not sure why but this isn’t a flavor that makes me stop in my tracks to brew it. However, when I saw it posted on Instagram with the caption “This is dessert in a cup without being too sweet or artificial tasting”, it definitely piqued my interest. Now I don’t actually know what a cherry bakewell tart is but dessert in a cup sounds good to me.

The tea, which is made of Chinese white tea, almond, cranberries, hibiscus, rosehip, apple, currants, blackcurrant, and red and blue cornflowers, brews up a shade of pink that makes me worry that the hibiscus and rosehips might be in charge.

Though there is a that typical tartness from the hibiscus and rosehips, that is not the main flavor component but rather a topnote. The strongest flavor in my opinion is the almond. The almond and the white tea which makes for a nutty/buttery combo that does help create the idea of a tart shell. That tart shell transitions into a red fruit quality from the cranberries and currants, not a distinctly cherry flavor but alright nonetheless. However, that hibby/rosehip tartness then pops at the back of your throat and really takes you out of the the whole idea of a tart.

It definitely pushes towards dessert but it is not overly sweet or fake tasting. So, in that sense, the instagram posted that inspired me to take this out of the drawer was definitely correct. However, I just wish there was less tart and more cherry. Personally, I could also do with a little more sweetness since the blending of the tart shell and filling can be slightly one-note at times.


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type:  White

Where to Buy:  Bird & Blend Tea Co.

Description

Bakewell Tart is the classic tea time treat with juicy cherries and sweet almond. This luxury white tea blend is bursting with the same fruit juices and hints of sweet almond nuts, making it the perfect afternoon tea choice.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Earl’s Paradise/Bird & Blend Tea

Strawberry and papaya punch up Earl Grey in this tea by Bird & Blend!

Now that it’s the end of summer, I’ve been looking for the Perfect Fruity Morning Blend, and this one’s definitely a contender. If you’re tired of the same-old-same-old Earl Grey, there are plenty of other ones out there with additional flavors. Like this one.

I’m not sure I’d know a papaya if it hit me in the face, honestly. But I imagine it’s tropical. This tea tastes like eating a strawberry and then running under a sprinkler. It tastes like an afternoon in Disney World. It tastes like someone took sunshine, ground it up, and tossed it into a wishing fountain.

I feel like my clothes are going to disappear and I will be left in a yellow polka dot bikini. Which is awkward, because I’m at work.

Send clothes.


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy:  Bird & Blend Tea

Description

No one at The Nest (Bird & Blend HQ!) can start the day without a cup of this fruity, refreshing tea. Didn’t think you could improve the classic? We will happily prove you wrong! No words are gong to do it justice, it simply is paradise! Insiders tip: try it without milk for perfection.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Vicky’s Sponge Cake/Bird & Blend Tea Co. . . .

According to Bird & Blend, Queen Victoria started the trend of adding a snack to mid-afternoon tea. WHAT A HUMANITARIAN. BLESS THAT WOMAN.

Apparently Vicky really liked sponge cake, so Bird & Blend re-created its vibe with this black blend featuring coconut, vanilla, & raspberry.

I don’t really eat sponge cake (I don’t think? DO I?), but I like whatever’s happening here, which is a lot like having a berry-flavored cupcake with cream cheese/vanilla icing. I’m definitely getting “berry”, “creamy,” and “confection” here. A soothing Ceylon tea serves as the blanket upon which these airy, sweet flavors rest. It’s basically holding the door open and saying “after YOU, ladies.”

I’m sipping this tea at the end of a hilariously rough day (spreadsheets were in play), and it’s making me feel so much better. It’s SO calming. It’s like when a parent or pal pets your hair.

“There there,” the tea whispers. “Enjoy this. You deserve the finest.”


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Bird & Blend Tea Co.

Description

There is nothing better than a cuppa and cake (except perhaps a cake flavoured cuppa!) and did you know it was our good old queenie Victoria who invented the Vicky Sponge? Guess the name gives it away a bit! She loved taking afternoon tea with her home girls but decided they needed some extra nourishment to last until dinner. Cake it is then! We like your thinking QV!

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!