Adagio Custom Blends, Cara McGee

Oh honey, no. Just noooooo.

I do not like this. It tastes like dusty, musty black licorice.

This is too awful to finish. I will save the rest of this tin for the wife, who likes it, and stay far, far away.

This tea was slid under my door in a bag etched with eldrich symbols and the longer I took to try it the more what was behind the door grew agitated.

Unfortunately, I brewed a cup to take with me to work and then promptly forgot to take it with me. I wandered through the desert while strange lights passed overhead. I lost all track of time. Finally I emerged from the desert that was no desert and made myself another cup.

This was . . . interesting. The aniseed burnt a little, but the tea itself was dark and earthy. Usually I would be all over it for that darker flavour profile, but I just can’t get over the cloying aftertaste from the aniseed. I would have to be in the mood for it.

I have no idea how I feel about this one. On one sip, it’s “blegh” but on the next it’s “mmmm”. I actually let this cup get cold and I like it a lot, lot more. Hmm. It’s very creamy and the earl grey is kind of calm and quiet in the background. Every time I go to look into my cup, I’m compelled to look away, and as I think about this tea, my head fills with a loud buzzing static…what was I talking about again?

The last of Perfect Carlos. Not a bad chocolate tea, but I’m not crazy about chocolate tea.

I’m 77% of the way through Dune and I really want to finish it today. But I’m at work, boo!

A nice chocolate chip tea for the afternoon! I spent lunch time reading in the sun – Linpatootie’s Night Vale fics: http://archiveofourown.org/users/Linpatootie/pseuds/Linpatootie/works?fandom_id=933501

Her Sherlock stuff is great too.

Oh, Perfect Carlos… you are part of the first canonical slash pairing I know of. Also, an oxymoron.

I was just saying this morning how I’m not a fan of chocolate or vanilla teas, but the chocolate chips in this one looked so yummy. But yeah, kind of meh, because choco vanilla teas aren’t my thing.

I started reading this at lunch. Looking forward to finishing it later! http://archiveofourown.org/works/1035300

This is so good. So fruity and light and yummy. Peach is the predominant flavor, with white tea in a close second. I don’t taste hibiscus (thank God), and the other flavors are slowly coming out. Citrus and then green tea…maybe a touch of pu-erh, but I’m not sure. Regardless, this is a delicious tea. Well rounded and always surprising.

As I reach the bottom of the cup, I realize I have forgotten all things regarding this blend and my cup doesn’t have the usual stray dust at the bottom. It is completely blank and smelling faintly of vanilla…

Mmmmmm Cecil. Bless you for your ethnically-ambiguous queer-representin’ smooth-talkin’ self.

Listeners, I am in love. I am in love with this tea. I find that chais tend, for me, to be hit or miss because I only like maybe 75% of the chai spices, and loathe the other 25%, so whether I like or hate a chai depends entirely on the balance in the blend.

So I wouldn’t even call this a chai. I’d say it’s a light, faintly floral white that tastes like a cup of gingerbread cookie. Not like crunchy gingerbread snaps, but the thick soft gingerbread like the faceless old woman who lives in my house used to make. I don’t think I’d go out of my way to restock (as I’m finding with most of the fandom blends) but this was very tasty.

Yay my wife is home so now I don’t have to make my own teas!

“Regret nothing. Until it is too late. Then, regret everything”

Am I going to regret you, Feral Dogs? I hope not…

This smells oddly of Cecil, which my wife is having. So much so that I had to ask her if I had gotten the right cup, but she assures me this is Feral Dogs. Or perhaps it’s just a plastic bag caught in the breeze. One thing I do know is that it is not mostly mutts, possibly pit bull mixes, and their leader is not three-headed and wearing a great many “service medals and chevrons.”

Seriously, no one let me do fandom reviews ever again.

I see where the other reviewers get a damp flavor, it’s definitely musty in a good way. Earthy. Damp may not be a normal flavor, but what about Night Vale is normal, really?

I love the cinnamon. Love love love it. It’s cinnamon with a sweet undertone. More like a feral puppy.

However, I just bought a ton of Cinnamon Crackle, so while this is a good tea, it’s not one I feel the need to restock.

Coldbrewed and amazing. Seriously, I should not enjoy this blend, but I dooooo. So much. It’s a creamy vanilla chai that isn’t backed by an astringent black, instead it has a light green and white in the background. This is lovely and I think I will finish off the sample iced.

Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to this one. I’m not a ginger fan or a green tea fan. However, I’m not a huge fan of podcasts either, but I love me some Night Vale. Cecil made me a believer so hopefully this tea will do the same.

I love Cecil. Especially when he gushes about Carlos. But the way he presents the weirdness of Night Vale as if it is nothing out of the ordinary never fails to make me grin. Cecil is awesome.

Welp, Cecil has done it again. This tea is very, very good. It’s like a light, creamy chai that doesn’t really attack you like some chais. Instead it slowly seduces you with a smooth sip that leaves you with just a touch of ginger on your tongue. It tastes like tea, a cookie, and a hug all in one. It presents me with flavors I don’t enjoy and responds with “Of course you like it. You’ve always liked it.” and I forget I ever thought of not liking this tea.

Um, I am trying this iced, and chocolate iced tea is not the best idea. What was I thinking with that one?

I woke up this morning and Shmiracles gave me a Hannicure – what’s that you ask? Why, it’s a Hannibal manicure. No flesh eating involved, just fandom-themed nails, like a little knife and fork decal, or crazy plaid, or extreme paisley, or super gorgeous light peach paint with antler decals. She is so talented. I love them so. Fandom nails, it’s a thing! Sorry I can’t post pics at work, but we’ll have to get pics up somewhere. Because it’s awesome.

Finally, can someone send me Kenyan Tinderet from David’s Tea so I can make the Hong Kong Milk Tea recipe from this page: http://www.davidstea.com/recipes?&currid=usd&LN=EN
How good does that sound? So very very good. I’m joking, I can find some on my own, but has anyone tried any good Thai iced tea style recipes???

I thought this tea would be appropriate for my people paranoia this week. Total overload, seriously – all the hot sake I drank with dinner couldn’t help that much. It’s only Kindle fics and conspiracy theory rewatches of True Detective, folks, that is keeping away the vomity migraines that threaten to engulf.

I bring you, random TeWo fic recs for today:
this: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1207363
and this I will read tonight: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1137711

Oh all the feels. I’m thinking I need this tea next: http://www.adagio.com/signature_blend/blend.html?blend=24587

Oh right! The tea I’m actually drinking… Very creamy earl grey is creamy. Shmiracles mentioned earl grey moonlight to me the other day, and I’ve probably had it with other Adagio teas, but now I’m actually paying attention. I prefer my earl grey more sweet, less cream, but I’m very much not picky about earl greys. Hmm, I haven’t had a duchess earl in awhile…

On to Night Vale. Once again, I’m going in alphabetical order, so that means I’m starting with the Apache Tracker.

“Can you believe this guy said he used ‘Indian magics’? What an asshole.”

For those unfamiliar with the Apache Tracker, he was a white man (apparently Slavic in origin) who wore a huge and cartoonishly inaccurate, horribly offensive Native American headdress. (thank you Night Vale wiki!)

This brew is dark. Dark, dark, dark. I can really only taste the toasted mate, everything else fades away. Okay, maybe there’s the hint of chocolate and maybe a nut or two, but…this is MATE. Ah well. I enjoy mate, but much like its namesake, this tea pretends to be something it isn’t.

Before we begin, this is a friendly reminder that there are no dogs allowed in the dog park.

Of course the first Nightvale blend I reached for was the creamy vanilla Earl. I don’t know why this one is the Hooded Figures – it isn’t dark and mysterious at all. Creamy and light. A very tasty Earl, but the black base is very dry and a little bitter. A shorter steep time may be in order.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go enjoy this cuppa with some wheat by-products.

This one is always so light. It’s sunny outside, so that’s okay. Probably one of my faves from the box, though I am partial to the glow cloud… Hey, I’m not sitting in a bathroom stall at work, drinking this, and crying this afternoon! Plus plus.

Glow Cloud tea, reading in the sun, multiple spiders. That’s about right.

I don’t have any fic links to share, since all I read at lunch were babyfics, and so I won’t subject you to any of that. No no! But hey, werebabies.

All hail!

This is a nice, light green tea with very faint floral and fruity notes, but is overall very subtle.

I also have a cold that’s not really going away. Here’s my fic rec of the day: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1183982
It’s always fun, after 16 years of slash fic reading, to come across a kink I’m not quite sure I’ve read before (it’s in the tags)

All American apple pie. That is seriously what this tea is.

Sweet without being overwhelmingly or deceivingly so (none of that fake sweetness but instead a robust sweetness from spice and the lighter sweetness of apples).

Takes strength and body from the black tea base.

This is a tea you can both depend on and enjoy…a perfect representation of Captain America :)

Smells like apple pie <3

Old fashioned all american apple pie. Vivid spice, strength from the tea, subtle sweetness of apple.

This tea is appropriate today, because it snowed on the way to work this morning.

Really? Really.

I have 340 things on my Kindle, and now, post-lunch break, I have, oooh, 338. It’s been stagnant for awhile, but now that I’m broke again until payday, it’s time for some quality Kindle time. I just have to avoid those 80-100K word AU TeWo fics… now that the season is over and all… until June.

Hmm, it’s now firmly Springtime. I forget every year how things start getting crazy right about now… with May and June being the absolute worst/best.

Now we bring you….

Ooh light thai chai with roses – it’s lovely. And I got to sit outside today and read a knitting!Stiles fic – http://archiveofourown.org/works/1057876 – and enjoy the sunshine.

Smells light in chai spice, interestingly smoky or maybe it’s malty (still not sure what that is) and stronger in ginger than I would have expected in a tea that has a chocolate chai(I did not taste chocolate). When it cools it taste and smells like spiced apple cider. My husband loves chai and I meant to make this and share with him. That didn’t happen. I’m so confused, I finished my surprise sample from MissB because I keep trying to figure it out(about a month ago). I saved less than half a teaspoon so I could try it later and hopefully figure it out and later was tonight and I still have not figured it out. I like it, I think I just made it harder than it needed to be. Thanks MissB!