12 Days of Christmas - Day 10

On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... White Christmas Black Tea!

Dang, only two more teas left in this countdown? My, how time flies! Wasn't Thanksgiving like a week ago?

I did not know what to expect when I read the label on this tea. The name White Christmas could really go in many different directions to describe almost any blend. White chocolate, vanilla mint, holiday sprinkles are all quite plausible choices. To get to the bottom of this, I opened the package of tea to discover the wisps of marshmallow root and plenty of strong, fresh minty scent. The combination of the two instantly made me think of good old pillow mints.

The brew wafts a minty smell to my nose holes. I smelled crest toothpaste, altoids and candy canes. All of which, in my own opinion have their own distinct mint characteristics. I really enjoyed the smooth marshmallow finish. It gave the tea a crème de  menthe feel. I wish I could have gotten more of a fudge-y note with the Fijian black tea, but it was still refreshing and energizing. I've always been curious as to why cooling things like mint are so popular in the winter... when it's cold... Nevertheless, I still order a peppermint white mocha whenever I come across a Starbucks.  😞😛

12 Days of Christmas - Day 9

On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Coconut Cream Pie Black Tea!

As the days get closer and closer to Christmas, I find myself getting more and more into the spirit of the season. As Yule has passed, and the days are no longer getting shorter, all those scrooge-like curmudgeony feelings start to melt away like the week old snow on my front lawn. It's soothing as well as energizing feeling, just like a cup of brisk, hot tea in the cold.

Frustratingly, many small events prevented me from enjoying my first cup this morning. Long story long, I usually filter my own water in large glass jugs with a stick of binchotan charcoal inside. But the last few days I have been without water on account of some stupid plumbing issues involving a dishwasher, a new disposal, 12 chopsticks, and some aggressive mice. (That may be another story for another blog...) I ran out of drinking/tea water last night and forgot to fill my water filtration vessels. Woke up late the next morning to plumbers fighting off the King mouse to hook up our kitchen sink again. Once they had left and I had a mere 6 minutes to get out of the door. For some reason, my sleepy brain thought it would be okay to just use the water from the tap for my tea this morning. Since I don't live in a place that has good tap water, It made my first brew taste like garbage. I could hardly taste the tea over the metallic and chlorine taste. Granted, I'm the kind of person who won't even use tap water to boil pasta.

When the time came, I managed to brew a decent cup. I really like the combination of vanilla and coconut to compliment the black tea in this blend. It felt like a much thicker, creamy coconut element than the previous blends with coconut in them in the countdown. When brewed up properly, I could finally enjoy the richness of the coconut and even get a good velvety vanilla mid note. I am happily surprised at how sweet this blend is. The black tea even gives it the buttery and flaky crust aspect. A very vivid tea when the flavors have been extracted with good water, which if today is any kind of reminder, it would be that 99% of tea is good old H2O.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 7

On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Marshmallow Assam!

 

Happy December 20th! Yesterday was my brother in law's birthday, so we saw the new Star Wars movie. It's kind of a tradition of sorts, last year we saw episode VII on his birthday as well. Except this time, we didn't have to wait an hour and a half in line to get in. I snuck in a thermos of the last of the Coconut Flan Genmaicha from Day 3 of the Countdown just in case. But I did learn that genmaicha tastes great with movie popcorn 😛

Death Star Does Not Approve

As I scratched off today's label, I pondered on how this tea will play out, I vaguely remember some old tea friends discussing the original blend when Frank was still part of the company; yet I never tried it for myself. Marshmallow and Assam are on such different flavor levels for me, so I am curious to see if the Assam will play nice with the marshmallow.

I went by the package instructions because I know how touchy Assam can be when it's over-leafed or over-brewed. A level teaspoon for 2 1/2 minutes - another short steep time - and I was good to go. I could smell a light creamy sweetness, just as if someone had cracked open a jar of marshmallow fluff in the next room.

I hate to say this, but I may have found the one blend in this countdown that I do not like. I love marshmallows, and I think that the flavor is sublime in tea, and Assam is a comforting, almost nostalgic tea that brings back a lot of happy memories. However, the two together just don't vibe. The Assam that Anne used is a very drinkable black tea on it's own, but the robustness and the astringency of the tea itself almost completely drowns out the fluffity puffity marshmallow. There is just the slightest hint of a sweet creaminess at the end. I feel like the blend is a bit simple for what I know Anne can cook up.

ETA: I made this tea into a latte at work with eggnog and some extra nutmeg sprinkled on top.good lawd, it was tasty!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 6

On the Sixth Day of Christmas my true love gave to me... Winter Cabin Chai!

Wow, we're halfway through the countdown already? It's hard to think that in less than a week it'll be Christmas. Wasn't Thanksgiving a week ago? My how time flies.

I was pretty stoked to see the name of the tea reveal itself underneath that scratch off foil. I saw the words, 'winter cabin' and 'chai' together and got a little thrill. I love chai in the wintertime, it is such a soothing, warming collection of spices. And the words winter cabin immediately put in my head visions of a smoking chimney and comforting warmth.

Upon opening the package, I was not disappointed. The menagerie of spices mingled with a strong note of spice made all more enticing to my nose. I scooped out some tea to toss into my teapot and was pleasantly surprised to find that the cardamom pods in the blend had already been popped open. Usually, whenever I make myself a cup of chai, regardless of preparation, I always use my stone grinder to slightly crush the cardamom pods. That way, all the goodness and flavor will become more prominent in my cup. I do notice that the blend itself is very fine. I take note of this and reducing my usual black tea brewing time to just 2 1/2 minutes.

Sipping the brew, I let out a sigh of comfort. I love smoky notes in tea, so the more the merrier for me. Following the smoke flavor is a combination of cloves and allspice. Rounding out the cup is that cardamom I keep going on about as well as cinnamon and a light touch of black tea astringency. A very soothing cup for a cold December Monday!

12 Days of Christmas - Day 5

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... Banana Pudding Black Tea!

Sweet freezing jeebus, it has been so goddamn cold this last couple days. Yesterday was so cold, my fat Alaskan Malamute, Kuma didn't even want to go outside. It dumped a ton of snow on our doorstep, and temperatures dropped to -5F during the middle of the day. And to think, it was in the upper 50's not two days before. Thanks Denver. So grateful for a steaming cup of black tea today!

Cold fat doge

I have had a couple of banana blends from 52Teas before, and I have enjoyed each one. I was unaware before opening the package that there would also be coconut in this blend. I can see the flakes of coconut being useful in achieving that creamy pudding feel in the tea. I also like the combination of flavors, it reminds me of a blend from Etsy seller Ami Tea created that Muse Monthly had in their box one month.

I confess, I really do not like pudding. I know, I know. Many people are surprised when I say this. It's all about the texture for me. It's thick and ultra-creamy texture makes me gag every time I put it in my mouth. I feel as if I am swallowing Crisco. I am the same way about mayonnaise. Thankfully, drinking a tea inspired by pudding does not have the same effect. This deliciously desserty blend was a good balance of banana, malty black tea, with a hint of creamy coconut. I got more of a coconut sprinkled banana bread rather than pudding. An interesting choice to have two blends with coconut in a row, but they are varied enough for me not to care. Another delicious day counting down the days till Christmas! Am I getting a bit stressed out just thinking about it? Yes. They say tea calms you down, right? *continually chugs tea* This better fucking work.

12 Days of Christmas - Day 3

On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ... Snickerdoodle - Reimagined Black Tea!

Before we begin, I gotta make a shout out to the  ladies at 52teas for the entertaining aspect of the scratch off reveal for the tea names! Can I just say, I freaking love those little silver discs. I get so much satisfaction from the simple act of scratching off the shiny shavings and brushing it off like an archeological dig. Kudos!

Upon opening the package, I get a strong note of sweet cinnamon. A twinge of trepidation crept though me as I can be pretty picking about cinnamon - I find it to be a strong flavor and tends to overpower other supporting flavors. I also catch the sweet and rich scent of gingerbread waft up to me just before I scooped out my 4 grams.

After the after the appropriate amount to brewing time as well as some time to cool, I took a big swig of my mug and almost forgot to swallow in surprise. It was as if I had taken a bite out of a freshly baked snickerdoodle with hot, slightly caramelized cinnamon sugar on top. It did a great job staying hot and comforting in my stainless steel travel mug without much affect on flavor.

The leaves from Vietnam were quite interesting. The difference in leaf size varied a lot. They came in all shapes and sizes and I even came across a large leaf with two little buds hidden inside. The flavor and texture of the tea really made the blend for me. It had a nice, smooth thickness and a prominent baked-goods note throughout.

Until the next silver scratch off!