321 Tasting Notes
Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 16
Alas, this one doesn’t do it for me. It has that kind of musty “stale coffee” flavoring that I dislike in tea, and then the apple sweetness is weirdly cloying. The cardamom just feels discordant. :(
Flavors: Cardamom, Coffee, Musty, Stale, Sweet
12 Teas of Christmas: Day 3
I’m always trepidatious when faced with an Earl Grey, but I should trust a 52Teas variation! This was a lovely bright citrus-y EG layered beneath a faint but noticeable tangy cheesecake base. The creamy cheesecake came through just at the end, but in a really nice way.
Flavors: Bergamot, Bright, Cheesecake, Citrus, Tangy
I generally tend to go softer with bergamot than your typical EG because just about everyone has a typical EG. But not everyone has an Earl Grey Cheesecake or an Earl Grey Cupcake! :) I love Earl Grey teas, but I rarely see a point in trying to make something that somebody else makes that I personally adore. I have my favorite EG and I don’t feel like I can do one better than that. Instead, I focus on what I can do – which is create lovely variations of EG.
Makes perfect sense to me! This is indeed a lovely variation. :)
12 Teas of Christmas: Day 2
This is nice—the perfect counterpart to my nighttime snack plate. It’s leaning a bit more gingerbread cookie than gingerbread proper; I get a bakery cookie vibe but not a heavily bready vibe… it could be a bit fuller-bodied. The figginess comes in as a mild honey-like sweetness, and the ginger is very mild and gentle, not sharp at all.
Very yum.
Flavors: Cookie, Fig, Gingerbread, Honey, Mineral, Sweet
12 Teas of Christmas: Day 1
Hooray, it’s time to start the 12 teas of Christmas! I liked this one quite a lot. It’s very cranberry-forward for me, with just a hint of cinnamon. I’m not picking up on any vanilla or cream notes, but that’s OK. I really enjoy the sharpness of the cranberry!
Flavors: Cinnamon, Cranberry, Sour
Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 14
Cold-brewed overnight and sipped as my afternoon beverage. This is pretty good cold — nice and juicy, with strong notes of pineapple and apple. I could do without the sugary sweetness from the candied mango, but that’s a minor complaint.
Flavors: Apple, Fruity, Juicy, Pineapple, Sweet
Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 13
This tea is the liquefied version of those red cinnamon heart candies I used to get for Valentine’s Day as a kid (…from my parents). It’s got strong Big Red gum energy, but with honey-like sweetness added in.
I dunno, I kinda dig it?! It’s fun and kitschy. I’m not sure I could drink more than a small cup at a time, but I could imagine it satisfying a very specific craving every so often. Arby suggested adding milk, so I’ll add a splash of oat milk next time I brew it up.
I feel like “Chai” is a bit misleading, though… this is pretty much pure cinnamon, with just a smidge of apple sweetness!
Flavors: Apple, Cinnamon, Honey, Sweet
Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 12
“Fragrant” is a bit of a stretch! This is actually one of the mildest oolongs I’ve had in a while, both in terms of scent and taste. It’s got very subtle roasted notes and a hint of something on the edge of floral, but that’s about it!
Flavors: Roasted
Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 11
This tea does not brew up scarlet! :( Sad. I admit I wasn’t paying the closest attention while drinking it, but maybe there wasn’t a ton of nuance there? It was mostly just a mildly fruity chamomile. Inoffensive but not super memorable.
Flavors: Chamomile, Fruity
