Day 2!
I am a big fan of 52Teas’ genmaicha flavors. They blend them with a bit of marshmallow root to take the slightly savory toasted flavors right over to marshmallow treat territory. I haven’t met a 52Teas genmaicha I didn’t like, so I was so excited to see today’s tea was Candy Cane Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha.
This tea works with their classic marshmallow treat genmaicha base and adds the vanilla mint flavors of a candy cane. This is such an unusual pairing. The roasted puffed rice in genmaicha evokes such a warm and toasty feeling in my mug, and now it is paired with the other end of the spectrum with frosty peppermint.
The mint pairs well with the green tea, and the vanilla candy flavor goes with the marshmallow root. The puffed rice adds a little bit of sweet breakfast cereal notes in the background. Another tasty genmaicha from 52Teas and a fresh take on the holiday candy cane tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
This is our first NEW tea of our 12 Teas of Christmas box (we reblend 8 teas every year, and create 4 new blends – but this year we did things just a little different . . . more on that on Day 8 of the countdown!) and this new tea is something special! Every year, I like to include at least one minty tea in the Christmas box because mint and the holidays just seem to go together, right? Last year, we didn’t have a minty tea in the Christmas box, and it wasn’t until I started working on the teas of the week for December that I realized that I hadn’t crafted ANY minty teas for the holiday season so I needed to come up with something quick and that’s when I came up with the idea for the candy cane white tea which I loved, particularly because of the candy canes that I used in that blend, an organically crafted, all natural, vegan, gluten free and allergen free candy cane. I simply fell in love with these things so when the holidays approached this year, I ordered some and then came up with the blend for which I’d be using them!
Also, I was a little surprised that this year, none of the Genmaicha blends were outstanding vote catchers in our poll especially considering that last year, we had two stand out Genmaicha vote getters – and since I do have quite a few Genmaicha fans out there, that suggested to me that people needed a new, interesting Genmaicha blend!
And here it is!
I started with organic Genmaicha and added peppermint, vanilla beans, marshmallow root and of course some bits of the aforementioned candy canes. The result: a yummy marshmallow treat-y cuppa with crisp, cool notes of peppermint! It tastes like a holiday marshmallow treat! So good!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
52Teas’ the 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 1-Spoilers!
Day 1! The 12 Teas of Christmas set from 52Teas really lets you surprise yourself, with the name of the tea hidden under a silvery scratch-off label on the pouch. It is one of the most fun and most unique daily tea surprise sets I’ve tried.
Today I tried Foggy Coconut Black Tea. In the past I tried Smoky Coconut from 52Tea and enjoyed it, but Foggy Coconut is a new one to me! As soon as I opened the pouch I was wrapped in the distinct citrus scent of earl grey. The fog in the name clearly refers to the London Fog drink, made with earl grey tea. Among the black tea leaves were big curls of white coconut.
Historically, earl grey teas are always walking that balance between crisp bergamot and creamy vanilla, so pairing an earl grey tea with smooth coconut was a winning idea. Even without milk, this tea is full bodied and has plenty of cream taste. The coconut adds a rich buttery feel and taste without causing too much of that oil slick on the top of your tea. All the vanilla creaminess is balanced with just enough of earl grey’s tried and true orange zest to make for a delicious and complex flavor experience.
This tea is also appropriately Christmassy: brew up a cup of Foggy Coconut in honor of the foggy night that Rudolph earned his place among Santa’s reindeer.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
My inspiration behind this blend is one of my favorite coffee shop drinks: a London Fog Latte! I order mine with coconut milk and half the usual amount of vanilla syrup (otherwise, it’s just too sweet!) One day as I was sipping on this drink, I found myself contemplating the beverage. I love the way the hints of coconut play with the bergamot but I found myself wishing that the coconut notes were stronger. (I do love me some coconut!) I also found myself wishing that the tea notes were stronger – which I felt would be accomplished if it didn’t have so much milk product in it – but then, the coconut notes would not be present. Then the idea hits me: why not make my own version of this drink with these improvements in mind!
And here we have it: I started with a base of Assam and Yunnan for a rich, bold, malty flavor. Something that could hold it’s own even with the strong note of creamy coconut. Then I added bergamot – I didn’t want to go too heavy on the bergamot because I didn’t want the coconut and bergamot competing with each other. I wanted enough bergamot to be tasted but not so much that it would interfere with the coconut flavor. Then I added some vanilla bean. Again, not a heavy vanilla taste – just enough to lend creaminess to the coconut and soften the edge of the bergamot and strong teas.
Then I went coconuts! This is a strongly coconut flavored tea but there’s enough bergamot there to give the cup the flavor that I was going for – this cuppa is my ideal London Fog! It’s got lots of coconut flavor without the milk drowning out the flavor of the tea. No “latte” required here, there’s enough creaminess to the flavor. Of course, if you want to go latte, that’s OK – but I’d recommend trying it without first!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Christmas in September: Winter Cheer from Virginia Tea Company
I’m a bit out of season to review Winter Cheer from Virginia Tea Company, but today is a grey and dreary day so a cup of tea with “cheer” in the name feels like a good fit.
This blend features black tea, peppermint, and cinnamon. Even in the dry leaf you can smell all three distinct flavors.
Having peppermint and cinnamon in the same blend is like sitting in a snowbank next to a campfire: there are both cooling and warming elements happening at the same time. I enjoy blends that make use of these flavors. Beyond their flavor profiles, both peppermint and cinnamon bring their own type of sweetness.
Peppermint has a creaminess beneath all its icy mint, almost tasting like vanilla. Cinnamon has a more earthy, herbal sweetness, more in line with cloves or licorice.
With both of these flavors set against the robust backdrop of black tea, you get a full-bodied brew with a very tactile mouthfeel, both cooling and warming. This is a fresh take on the “spiced black tea” trend that pops up every fall and winter. The mint and cinnamon together really make this unique and festive.
I’m feeling full of cheer already!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Virginia Tea Co.
Description:
Sit back and relax with your family this holiday season while sharing this delicious, guilt-free tea.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Orange Spice from PaperBoxGoodies. . . .
One of my favorite things with the cold weather is being able to add spice to everything: cinnamon, cloves, ginger, the more the merrier! One of the best partners to all this spice, is juicy orange and citrus flavors. I love the idea of decorating my home with clove-studded oranges for the holidays to release their sweet and spicy aromas throughout the house. Not to mention, a nice slice of orange is the perfect garnish for a chai-based hot-toddy, with honey and lemon.
These are all the delicious orange and spice combinations I think of when brewing a cup of Orange Spice from PaperBoxGoodies. I’m not entirely sure what all is in this brew, since it’s not currently active on the PBG Etsy shop, but I believe it is an herbal blend from its amber color and sweet taste.
The best part of this blend is that the dry leaf does not contain hibiscus, so the tangy, pink herb can’t take over the blend. The orange is the main ingredient, adding plenty of sweet and tart flavor. This fruity, juiciness is balanced by a large helping of cinnamon, adding its warm, herbal tones. I think I see bits of ginger in the dry leaf, but the flavor is very gentle in the actual brew.
Juicy orange is the main flavor, closely followed by warm cinnamon. Neither ingredient gets too tart or too spicy, and they don’t overpower each other. It’s hard to go wrong with a classic taste combination like orange and cinnamon, so support a special tea Etsy shop and give one of the PaperBoxGoodies teas a try today.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: PaperBoxGoodies Etsy shop
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
White Christmas from 52Teas. . . .
Imagine a jar of rainbow gumdrops. These sweets could go one of two ways: fruity, gumdrops, or seasonal spice drops. Is the dark purple candy grape or anise? Are the red ones cinnamon or cherry? Peppermint or pineapple? Orange or clove? If you’re not into these herbal-flavored treats, spice drops must be the bane of your existence. Sassafras instead of lemon?! Fooled again!
I like both kinds of candy drops, for different reasons. But the one reason I love White Christmas Tea from 52Teas is that it smells and tastes just like a sweet spearmint spice drop. The dry leaves are strongly fragrant with mint and vanilla, and the tea brews up with the same scents. The blend smells so sweet and perfectly creamy and minty, you can almost feel the spice drop sugar crystals on your tongue already.
This blend doesn’t feature the icy harshness of pure peppermint, but the gentler more herbal tone of spearmint. The natural creaminess of the spearmint is complimented by the vanilla notes from marshmallow root, bringing additional sweetness to the blend. A touch of cocoa and the black tea leaves add robustness to these candy-cane flavors, making the blend strong enough for any cold winter night.
52Teas is known to change their inventory on a regular basis, so I am not sure if this blend is in stock at the moment, but keep an eye out if it pops up in the future.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
Here’s our premium black teas blended with peppermint, marshmallow root and organic flavors. I know we’ve done a few marshmallow/mint blends this year, but this might just be the crowning jewel. As a few of our 12 Teas of Christmas sampler purchasers have already commented, the black tea lends a faint chocolate note to the mixture of mint and marshmallow.