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Makes an easy cup of black breakfast tea. I tend to prefer straight unsweetened black teas on ice, but this wasn’t bad hot with some honey. It’s something I’d buy to have on hand for my partner, even though I wouldn’t choose it – “I could definitely drink this everyday” was the strongest endorsement he’s given any of these flavors.

(If anyone has suggestions on how I can learn more about distinguishing different varieties of black teas or figuring out the subtler notes of teas, I’d love to hear them!)

teapigs advent, day 9 and day 24

Peach and jasmine are two of my favorite things in tea. I saw all the reviews about how temperamental this blend can be though, and since I’m a chronic over-steeper, I decided to be very careful about both temperature and time. Unfortunately, it meant that I could still smell the peach/jasmine combo but could barely taste it. I’d like to play with this a little more and see if I can get the taste to get anywhere close to the smell another time, because this blend is screaming my name if I can!

DAVIDsTEA advent, day 9

I tend to go heavy on the tea I use for a brew in general, but especially these fruit/hibiscus blends. I think it pays off for Sunny C, as I got a lovely cup of orange and hibiscus that didn’t taste watery at all. The dominant flavors I noticed are hibiscus/orange peel, lending a bitterness to the tea, but it works while it’s hot. This is one I want to play with some more in the future!

DAVIDsTEA caffeine free advent, day 8

Agh, a double miss! Starting to wonder if I should try any more tea tonight or if I should cut my losses and try again tomorrow.

I thought cacao sounded lovely. It smelled lovely! But the flavor was… my partner described it as, “you know when you mix up a cup and a gallon and accidentally add a gallon of water to the hot chocolate instead of a cup? But you burned the hot chocolate first? And then you stir it with something that’s kind of meat but not really like a slim jim?”

While I’m not sure what he’s on about with the meat part, I think the rest of it is pretty spot-on.

sipsby advent, day 8*
(sipsby packages this in no particular order, so your order may be different than mine)

This one let me down in a big way.

I don’t know if I’ve ever tasted a chestnut, so I didn’t exactly have expectations. I knew from the smell it wasn’t going to be good. The sip was shocking though, because immediately you’re hit with a ton of sweetness, followed by a bitter burnt, astringent flavor. Is that what a chestnut tastes like? Is there something else going on? I couldn’t tell you, but I’m getting less patient about trying to drink teas I don’t enjoy, and since I couldn’t find a nice thing to say about it, it went down the drain.

DAVIDsTEA advent, day 8

This was a fun way to start the morning! A green tea with strong toasted rice flavor that lingers a while after each sip. I even liked it as it got cold. I was skeptical, but I could buy more of this.

teapigs advent, day 8

Pumpkin seems like one of those that’s so hard to get right. I haven’t been much into the pumpkin spice craze, despite liking pumpkin pies and breads and baked goods, because so little of it tastes like pumpkin. So I’m not surprised I get no pumpkin from this. Some spices that feel vaguely reminiscent of pumpkin pie, but mostly that strong artificial sweetness.

I drank this one yesterday. I steeped it, sipped it a couple times, thought “this isn’t very good” and went back to work. This lasted throughout the morning until the tea was cold, where a bit of fruitiness comes out. I got about halfway through before I decided to call it quits.

DAVIDsTEA caffeine free advent, day 7

My advents have been a lot of chais and heavily flavored herbals, so I was excited this morning for a strong green tea. It has taken me all day to get through the tiny container though. Green tea with this kind of strong grass/vegetal quality always feels a bit like a health food and I have to be in the mood to keep drinking it. It’s also bitter, and I definitely get the seaweed as an aftertaste. Fun to drink, probably not a future purchase.

DAVIDsTEA advent, day 7

If you like warm chai spices and enjoy rooibos, this tea is worth trying.

I struggle with rooibos. I wanted to like this tea! The cinnamon/clove/cardamom combination was on point. I even liked the way the spice left a bit of a lingering tingle. I didn’t necessarily get almond from this, but I could have overlooked that too – it’s just that I can’t do the rooibos base.

sipsby advent, day 7*
(sipsby packages this in no particular order, so your order may be different than mine)

I enjoyed the simplicity of this tea after so many wild flavors recently. I notice cinnamon most, followed by ginger in both the smell and taste. It would be an easy one to add to my rotation for an everyday drink.

teapigs advent, day 7