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It’s Halloween so a pumpkin-flavored tea seemed to be the perfect choice today. As is expected with this blend (and some others from Teavana) there was an oily sheen that rose to the top. There were also pieces of tea and/or spice floating in my cup and lots of tea bits in the bottom of my mug. It may be time to find a new tea ball. I steeped this a little too long but with a little honey it was still good.

My stomach has been a little sensitive today so I needed something light and mild this morning. This tea always seems to do the trick. I used a slight amount of honey to sweeten and sipped for a couple of hours. It was cold by the time I made it through half the cup, but I finished it all the same.

Backlog from October 29th:

This is my first time trying green tea pearls, and I am amazed at how beautiful they are – like miniature brussels sprouts, compact and perfectly round. Alongside the pearls were bits of unidentifiable fruit – I’m guessing peach. The dry mix smells just like the peach gummy rings my grandmother used to eat when I was a kid so I was a little worried about the way this would taste. Those were never my favorite and I couldn’t imagine that flavor working in a hot tea. As it began steeping, the color moved from a steely grey to a berry red as bits of pink started seeping out to color the tea. The aroma also changed, going from sweet peach candy to fragrant blossoms. I’ve never before experienced a floral tea so I was quite surprised (and delighted) to find that the flavor matched the floral scent I caught while steeping.

This is a unique tea, at least compared to those I’ve tried. I am really enjoying it. Since it’s also one of my husband’s favorite teas we’ll likely be keeping this one well stocked in the pantry.

This tea is dark and fragrant. It smells wonderful. I tried adding sugar after steeping, but it just doesn’t give the taste I’m looking for. Just a bit of honey really brought out the creaminess and the flavor of the tea itself. Unfortunately, I added too much water. AGAIN. I really need to start bringing my own mug from home to use at work. I never can measure properly in those cups they give us.

This is always a favorite. I might be having another cup later on this morning.

*Note to Self – The honey settles – that last swig was SWEET!

I love the smell of this one. The dry mix has bits of chocolate and spices (cloves, maybe?) as well as some pumpkin seeds. After steeping, the tea left a film on the inside of my cup. (I’ve noticed that a few of Teavana’s teas do this. Perhaps it’s the fat from the chocolate?)

I sweetened this one with honey, but the taste just wasn’t right. I think I may have added too much water. Once I finished the cup, I noticed that there were bits of tea settled at the bottom of my mug. I may need to invest in a new tea ball soon.

My brother came over to snap some pictures for our Christmas cards so I made several cups of this in our cast iron teapot. We sweetened it with honey and had steaming mugs of it ready to sip between photos. It’s so fragrant and full of warming spices – the perfect tea for a cool autumn afternoon.

This tea would have been simple and good if I hadn’t tried to experiment! I love black teas and almost always add cream but realized after I brewed this one that I had run out. I did, however, have some evaporated milk in the fridge and thought it would be a good substitution for the thicker cream. I added sugar and a bit of the cold milk. The evaporated milk has such a distinct flavor that it really overwhelmed the tea. It wasn’t great, or even good, but it was okay. I sipped it until it got cold then tossed the rest. I’ll be trying this tea again, with my standard cream, and expect it will be much better.

I love this tea. It is just so comforting. I started off using sugar to sweeten, but it was really lacking something for me. I added a bit of honey and the flavor just popped. It was perfect. This one is still, by far, my favorite so I’m raising the rating a bit.

I tried this again with the Almond Plum Perfection blend from Teavana. There were large pieces of citrus, small berries of some sort, and what looked like sugared raisins in the mix. The brew was dark, like red wine. The end result was tart and bitter with an astringent and drying effect. I’m still not a fan, but this is much better when mixed with other teas.

I don’t enjoy this tea on its own so I mixed it with equal parts Almond Plum Perfection (also from Teavana) to bring out more of the fruit. I still detect mint in the dry mix, but I’m getting much more fruitness now. After steeping, the color is deep berry. I added sugar for sweetness, but the liquid still tastes a little tart. There is also a slight hint of mint.

I let this one sit on my desk too long but enjoyed the flavor once it cooled. This blend would probably be really great iced.