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My sweet wife took a trip to the Washington, D.C., area this weekend and I was unable to go. To make me feel better and missed, she picked up some teas by The Spice and Tea Exchange for me while she was in Annapolis, Maryland. Due to my insatiable sweet teeth (a whole mouth full of them), I naturally reached first for the Black Chocolate tea pouch this morning.

The moment I opened the small zip-lock pouch, a powerful and sweet dark chocolate aroma drifted from it. It smelled so good that I was ready to munch on the short black tea leaves without brewing them!

Finding some restraint, I steeped the leaves at 212 degrees for four minutes (no brewing instructions were on the pouch). A dark amber-colored brew was the result. A strong and inviting chocolate aroma floated from the tea pot.

The very first sip produced a full, sweet, and rich dark chocolate flavor. There was no need to search for the chocolate flavor. It exploded against my taste buds like Fourth of July fireworks.

All sips (and then gulps) after the first one remained consistent, smooth, and steady. The flavor was always sweet, chocolate, and delightful. There was no bitterness lurking in the taste, not even a hint of it in the dark chocolate. The black tea flavor was quiet and in the background. Chocolate was the indisputable star of the show.

The hot chocolate flavor of this tea was so luscious that I was tempted to drop a few marshmallows into it. I thoroughly enjoyed this selection at breakfast, but this blend must also be incredible at lunch or dinner for dessert.

This was my first experience with The Spice and Tea Exchange and it was a terrifically memorable one. If you love chocolate (and who doesn’t?) and are a sweet-a-holic like I am, you won’t be able to drink this tea fast enough…or just enough!