Bird & Blend Tea Co’s Black Magic Matcha is a mix of activated charcoal, cocoa, and matcha. It is a mess! Seriously!
My hands? Black.
My counter? Black.
My frother? Black.
Black EV.ERY.WHERE! Just covered! But it is worth it because this is one tasty matcha. Plus, the mess is easy to wipe away with a damp cloth, so no harm done.
Sipping away at this matcha mixed in milk is like sipping on a low-cal glass of black chocolate milk. It is eerie but delicious and perfect for spooky season. No chalkiness. Just smooth, chocolate milk goodness, which is particularly surprising since the powder has definitely separated out a bit (both settling on top and at the bottom of the glass) while I have been drinking. This seems to be the case with most Bird & Blend matchas though so don’t be surprised when the powder settles.
I should note that this matcha does come with a warning (from Bird & Blend’s site): “Activated charcoal can interfere with medication. We recommend that you wait at least 3 hours after taking medication before consuming the matcha. This also applies to the contraceptive pill.” So while I definitely recommend this matcha, I do hope people consider the warning to ensure no mishaps occur as a result. Weird thing to have to say about a tea, I suppose, but better safe than sorry.
Also, if you are interested in giving this a try, I highly recommend picking up the Rainbow Matcha Collection which provides samples of five of Bird & Blend’s many matcha offerings (Black Magic Matcha, Mermaid Matcha, Pina Colada Tea Powder, Turmeric Tea Powder, and Orange & Passionfruit Matcha). You can find that available here.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Matcha
Where to Buy: Bird & Blend Tea Co.
Description
A delicious activated-charcoal matcha with creamy cocoa, this antioxidant-rich potion creates a magical black liquid once made up. Essentially flavourless, activated charcoal further boosts the antioxidant properties of our signature pure matcha rich in umami – the Japanese word for the delicious ‘fifth taste’, after salt, sweet, sour and bitter.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Fuji Apple & Ginger/Pure Leaf
Continuing with the spooky/fall theme. . .Fuji Apple & Ginger from Pure Leaf- reviewed by our amazing VariaTea. . .
I am very particular about my tea which means I don’t usually let anyone else make it for me. I don’t often drink teas in restaurants and bottled teas have never appealed to me. However, a lot of my friends have been enjoying and recommending Pure Leaf.
While in the grocery store the other day, I passed by Pure Leaf’s Tea House Collection. I decided to pick up the Fuji Apple & Ginger Green Tea, mostly because I LOVE fuji apples and that is not often the apple of choice for apple-flavored things. I got curious.
This is made up of brewed organic green tea, organic cane sugar, natural flavors, citric acid, ascorbic acid, brewed organic apple and brewed organic ginger.
Drinking it, I would not exactly call this tea. Upfront, it is all sweet, juicy fuji apple deliciousness. That gives way to a ginger flavor, without any burn. The apple-ginger then ends in a slight astringency. My guess is that could be from the ginger or the green tea. Other than that astringency, there really isn’t any sign of the green tea base.
If I am being honest, this is more like apple juice with a touch of ginger and a slight astringency. So if you want something sweet, this could be a nice option. Then again, so could regular apple juice.
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Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: Pure Leaf
Description
The delicate flavors of USDA-certified organic green tea are accented by hints of crisp Fuji apple and ginger for a refreshing iced tea experience. It’s a play on flavors that only our tea masters could achieve.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Black Shuck Earl Greay/Wendigo Tea Co
Continuing with all things Spooky. . . Black Shuck Earl Grey. . . .
I was a little afraid to try this tea, and not because of the legendary hell hound on the logo.
It was because of the bergamot.
Bergamot haters call it blergamot. I’m not a hater, but I am VERY particular about my Earls.
With a name like Black Shuck, I thought this one might run me over.
One of the worst combinations for me is bergamot on high elevation Ceylon tea, which already has loads of lemony notes. The result is SOUR. This tea promised natural bergamot orange zest on a delicate Indian black tea base. it delivered more than it promised.
I was expecting to be manhandled. It is called Black Shuck, after all. The aroma was rich and deep, and the bergamot was…mild? What’s this? Well-behaved bergamot? Not fake perfume to make my tongue curl up in despair?
It took me several minutes to figure out what the base is reminding me of. It smelled and tasted like a Yunnan Dian Hong Golden Tip tea, known for its baked sweet potato aromas. The bergamot is just perfect in this for me. I really don’t like it to be “in my face.”
While they call this a delicate Indian base, I am inclined to call it an elegant Indian base with exactly the right amount of the right kind of natural bergamot.
Now who’s afraid of the big Black Shuck? Not me. Bring it on.
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Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Wendigo Tea Co.
Description
am Black Shuck, and I haunt the graveyard of English Prime Minister Earl Grey. I am the bloodthirsty beast that dwells in the shadows. I am a legendary hell hound, and I’m ready to pounce.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pumpkin Gingerbread Black Tea/52Teas
Continuing on the theme of Spooky Season. . . Pumpkin Gingerbread seemed to be a good fit. Of course pumpkins are a huge part of spooky season but there is also a horror franchise about a Gingerbread that comes to life so when I saw this tea in my stash, it was just meant to be.
If you aren’t familiar with 52Teas, I highly recommend you check them out. Readers of this blog know that the current owner of 52Teas is one of the co-founders of the SororiTea Sisters and to be honest- a personal friend of mine. But, even if that wasn’t the case, I would still highly recommend 52Teas.
52Teas blends up new teas each and every week- providing an amazing array of new high quality tea blends to check out. The only issue is that if you fall in love with one of these blends, you need to get yourself to the site and quickly pick up a few more because once these teas sell out, they typically are not reblended.
Pumpkin Gingerbread Black Tea is a black and honeybush tea blend with pumpkin, ginger root, cinnamon and a variety of other spices and natural flavors. The aroma of the blend reminds me very much of a chai tea. Since the weather is becoming very fall like, I thought this tea would be best enjoyed hot so I brewed up water at 212F, allowed the tea to brew for right around 3 minutes and allowed the cuppa to cool for about 5 minutes.
First sip in and you are greeted with all of the fall flavors- pumpkin, ginger, vanilla, cinnamon, clove. . .simply delicious. The ginger is the flavor I am picking up the most but the flavoring doesn’t come off as overpowering. I’m not the biggest fan of ginger but I easily drank down a few cuppas of this blend and finished off the package with ease. I do wish that the pumpkin shone through a bit more but I did love the gingerbread with a dash of pumpkin vibes I was getting and the black tea finish to end each sip was lovely. This is one of those teas that would be amazing as a latte enjoyed during my morning commutes.
This tea was the perfect companion to my spooky viewing of As Above So Below- one of my favorite spooky movies to enjoy to get the Spooky Season officially underway.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
Our handcrafted teas are vegan, Gluten-free & Allergen-friendly because you deserve tea you can sip with confidence.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Russian Caravan/Grace Tea Company
I am a fan of smoky teas, whether they are smoked over a fire like lapsang teas often are, or whether they are teas with natural smoky notes like some Keemun teas.
Russian Caravan teas are usually less smoky than lapsangs. As tea traveled the great distance from China, India, and Ceylon to Russia in camel trains, the evening campfires of the caravans would gradually scent the teas with a light smoky flavor, and this flavor was so delectable and such a part of the tea that it is recreated today.
Too often, tea companies use inferior leaf for teas that are going to be flavored or scented. I find many lapsangs to be weak and watery as far as the base goes, for instance. While I love my smoke, I don’t want to sacrifice quality in the base. Russian Caravan by Grace Tea delivers with this pure China blend, consisting of mostly Keemun with a bit of Lapsang.
Normally I would review this as a fall tea because I always reach for smoky tea on the first chilly or darkish days of autumn. The campfire/fireplace vibe is so comforting. But I made quite the discovery a couple of weeks ago.
SMOKY TEA IS AN AWESOME PAIRING WITH ICE CREAM! Granted, the first ice cream I tried it with was a s’mores flavor one, so there you already have the suggestion of campfires. It was the power of suggestion when eating the ice cream that made me jump up and make a pot of Russian Caravan to have with it. But I have now tried it with other flavors of ice cream and must declare it to be an awesome foil for the rich, cold sweetness. One bite of freezing sugary decadence, one big sip of smoky, hot comfort.
Alas, I have emptied my tea tin before I ran out of ice cream, so tomorrow night I will be trying a nice, strong lapsang with my vanilla chocolate chip.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Grace Tea Company
Description
Being a pure China tea blend, our Russian Caravan black loose leaf tea comes close to the luxury teas that were transported by camel train from the tea-producing areas of India, Ceylon and China to Europe, via Russia during the 18th century.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!