Julete (Christmas Tea)

Little bit of back story on this one – I was in Copenhagen, DK in November 2012 for a work trip. Because Sweden and Denmark are located so closely together, I took a train one Sunday over to Malmo, Sweden for some sightseeing. After a fairly long day of seeing the city, a colleague and I popped into a small tea shop to poke around. The tea shop, Five O’Clock teas (Handel), had a lovely display of Christmas gifts and teas, including this one. Jule = Christmas, te=tea, Julete = Christmas tea. Having sampled a bag of Christmas tea a few days earlier at a shop in Denmark, I figured I would purchase a large bag at Five O’Clock. 250g was only 10kr, a great deal. The smell upon opening the foil bag was like smelling the most festive kitchen at Christmas – notes of orange, apple, cinnamon, and my favorite, clove. I couldn’t wait to brew this one but had to wait until I returned home (I had no loose-leaf tea making supplies!) The brew was better than the smell. No one element was overpowering – the spices were the perfect blend without losing the delicate fruits. This is a wonderful tea for a cold day, actually for any day that you want a comforting, warming cup. Too bad this is a difficult one for me to buy again!