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Fortnum & Mason Advent Calendar 2021 – Day 8

Surprise, surprise, another straight black tea. And I love black tea, but I feel like Fortnum is shooting itself in the foot a bit here by not mixing up the teas more. It just becomes boring to have slightly different shades of the same thing every day, when I know there are other types of tea and flavored teas in this advent as well.

Anyway. This is a mix of high and low-grown Ceylon. Ceylon doesn’t tend to be my favorite, but I’ve had a few that I’ve really liked. This isn’t one of those, but it’s still fairly tasty. It does have rather a lot of acidity to it, so not something I would want to drink on an empty stomach probably.

Otherwise it’s fairly smooth, woody, a touch bready, very slightly grassy or vegetal. It does have a lot of that Lipton-esque “tea” flavor that I don’t have another word to describe. A touch of briskness but nothing major, and some musty hay. I feel like I’m tasting just a teeny hint of some sort of aromatic herbal flavor like pine or eucalyptus, but having a hard time pinning it down. Fairly standard Ceylon taste to my tongue, though I’m probably not explaining it well… :D

On to the jam! Today it’s an interesting one, and I think it’s new this year? It’s Wild Blueberry-Balm Leaves Spread. I’m assuming they mean lemon balm…? But unsure. It’s tasty though, with a very sweet and rich blueberry flavor. There is a subtle herbaceous note that’s slightly minty, so could definitely be lemon balm. It adds a nice bit of interest to an otherwise very sweet jam! :)

Flavors: Bread, Grass, Hay, Metallic, Musty, Pine, Smooth, Tea, Vegetal, Wood

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 2 min, 30 sec 2 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML
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Martin Bednář 3 years ago

That jam sounds like my jam. Ha ha. I really enjoy a true, genuine blueberry jams.

ashmanra 3 years ago

I have the jam advent, too, and I assumed since blueberry is so frequently paired with lemon that it must be lemon balm.

Evol Ving Ness 3 years ago

This jam advent is sounding very seductive. Maybe next year. Tea and jam. What could be better?

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Comments

Martin Bednář 3 years ago

That jam sounds like my jam. Ha ha. I really enjoy a true, genuine blueberry jams.

ashmanra 3 years ago

I have the jam advent, too, and I assumed since blueberry is so frequently paired with lemon that it must be lemon balm.

Evol Ving Ness 3 years ago

This jam advent is sounding very seductive. Maybe next year. Tea and jam. What could be better?

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Bio

Hi, I’m Cameron!

I’m a 30-something software engineer currently living in Austin, Texas with my husband and our two pugs, Gobo and Ume. I tend to cycle between my different hobbies, and they include piano, knitting, video games, board games, miniature painting, planners, bento, Korean skincare, and – of course – TEA! But really, what I’m best at is “collecting” hobby-related things… ;)

~ 2025 SIPDOWN CHALLENGE! ~
- March sipdowns: 6
- Total 2025 sipdowns: 45

I prefer my tea lukewarm or at room temperature and without milk or sugar. I steep Western style, and fluctuate between using big mugs or small teapots depending on the season.

I am always up for a swap! Just let me know if you’d like to try something in my cupboard.

Tea Preferences:
I enjoy both flavored and unflavored teas in many forms. These days, I drink mostly flavored teas, and I tend to gravitate most toward black, green, oolong, and herbal varieties. I do have a special fondness for straight Japanese green teas, however.

I do not sweeten my teas, and pre-sweetened teas are usually too sweet for me. I also do not enjoy stevia (or monkfruit, etc.).

I tend to reach for fruitier flavors rather than desserty ones these days, but I do have favorites from both categories. Willing to try anything once! There are a few ingredients/flavors that aren’t generally my jam, such as coconut, rose, lavender, and chocolate flavoring. But I also have teas that I love with some of those things, too! :)

Favorite Companies:
3 Leaf
Bird & Blend
Dammann Frères
Harney & Sons
Kyoto Obubu Tea Farms
Lupicia
Old Barrel Tea Co
Simpson & Vail
Taiwan Tea Crafts
TeaVivre

Tea Rating Scale:
90-100: Outstanding! Permanent cupboard resident
80-89: Great – a possible staple
70-79: Good, but I wouldn’t buy it
60-69: It’s decent
50-59: Meh… I may or may not have finished the cup
40-49: Ick. Couldn’t finish it.
00-39: Repulsive, I spat it out

I will sometimes refrain from rating a tea if I feel I’m too biased due to my personal dislikes, or if I suspect the sample has been compromised by age or scent contamination.

Cupboard Spreadsheet:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZEuKf1-ppR-VXajO4vV39zU1N3zjFJteEPAynqD2yl0/edit?usp=sharing

Location

Austin, Texas

Website

https://www.instagram.com/tea...

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