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Bird & Blend Advent Calendar 2021: Day 4!

Love the concept for this one! I don’t think I’ve ever had a peppermint/chili combination before, tea or otherwise. I enjoyed it, though—I got a nice crisp minty bite at first, followed by a gently warming spiciness afterward. Not noticing too much of the pu’erh base; I think that could be stronger to make this blend a bit more interesting and complex. It’s mostly a novelty as-is, but I’m glad I tried it.

Bird & Blend Advent Calendar 2021: Day 3!

I’m generally a fan of anything with mint and chocolate, so I was predisposed to enjoy this one. As is so often the case, the cocoa flavor is a bit muted, but the dandelion root provides a nice deep flavor base.

I guess I don’t have much to say about this blend—I enjoyed it while I was drinking it, but it wasn’t terribly memorable.

Bird & Blend Advent Calendar 2021: Day 2!

Another fruity tisane?! Color me sad. And color me vibrant purple-pink, because this blend has a LOT of hibiscus. It smells lovely and true to its name, just like a mug of hot mulled apple cider. Yet the taste is terribly weak—I’m not getting much of anything beyond a watery hibiscus with maaaybe a hint of cinnamon at the end and as it cools. I even threw the tea bag back in my mug to let it steep for longer, but it isn’t doing much. It’s making me appreciate yesterday’s blend (Christmas Cranberry Pie) a whole lot more.

I hope B&B mixes it up with something dark and caffeinated tomorrow.

(Edit: I cold-brewed my tea bag for a second steeping overnight, and now I can taste more of the mulling spices (maybe the hibiscus has been exhausted). Still, I’m leaving my rating as-is… I firmly believe a mulled cider-themed blend should be enjoyed hot!)

Bird & Blend Advent Calendar 2021: Day 1!

My first advent tea EVER! I’ll admit I wasn’t super thrilled to find a fruity tisane in the first box; I chose the caffeinated calendar for a reason! I was even less thrilled to spot hibiscus and stevia in the ingredient list. But I do love cranberry, so that’s a win.

Overall, though, this one was better than I expected it to be. The stevia and hibiscus were quite muted in my cup, with cranberry being the dominant flavor. I can dig that. I also appreciated that there’s just a subtle note of cinnamon. I would’ve liked some kind of buttery element to simulate pie crust—the tea is named for pie, after all! Still, this is a solid tea for what it is. Fruit teas will never be my first choice, but I would gladly accept another cup of this one. And my partner (who will be drinking the second bag in each box!) really liked it.

(As a side note, I’ve never had cranberry pie for Christmas but now I’m inspired to bake one! Also, this review is for yesterday’s tasting… just didn’t get around to posting on time.)

Huh. With a bunch of modifications to my brewing process, I think I’ve gotten Birthday Cake to reveal its true flavors. I made sure to aggressively shake the bag to mix all the elements in this blend and then used way more leaf than I thought I needed—like maybe two tablespoons? I used boiling water and let it steep for longer than the recommended four minutes—probably closer to five and a half.

With this preparation, the rooibos fades away behind the other flavors and I can finally taste the cake-y element, a nice almond-y marzipan with hints of sweet vanilla.

Bumping up my rating now that I’ve figured it out, although using nearly two tablespoons of tea per cup is not exactly sustainable!

Oh, yum. After being disappointed by Bird & Blend’s Birthday Cake tea, I was worried that this one would also fail to impress. Instead, I’m loving it!

Dry, the aroma is actually a bit odd—not particularly fruity, and with a strange, almost chemical after-scent. (Maybe it’s just my bag?) It’s a gorgeous, colorful blend, though, with bright red freeze-dried raspberries, black Ceylon tea leaves, and attractive pale green dried raspberry leaves. I’m not seeing the coconut, but it must be in there somewhere!

Steeped, this tea is just lovely. It smells of creamy raspberry and tastes just the same. I love that it’s not overwhelmingly flavored but instead is light and jammy and smooth. There’s barely any tartness, surprisingly. As it cools, more of the coconut comes through, but as a barely-there note rather than anything overwhelming; I think it just adds a nice background creaminess. I’m also noticing a little more tartness as it cools.

I’m really wishing I bought 50g of this one and not Birthday Cake! I’m just loving this one.

I treated myself to the Bird & Blend Advent calendar and threw in a few other packets of tea when I made the purchase; the brand is new to me and I was excited to try a few things. My order arrived today (yay!), and although I’m obviously waiting until December to open the calendar, I steeped the Birthday Cake blend for my afternoon cuppa.

Color me disappointed. Although the dry leaf smells powerfully (and impressively!) like a rich vanilla cake, the tea itself is just… rooibos and not much else. I truly don’t understand how others taste vanilla, marzipan, almond, etc. Smell, yes; taste, no. If you served me this tea and told me it was plain rooibos, I’d 100% believe you. It’s a shame, too, because it’s such a cute concept, and I love that the sprinkles are vegan—that’s rare! I maaaybe get a little vanilla creaminess as it cools, but that’s pretty much it. :(

(Note: I rated this tea a 60 on my first go-round, but I’ve upped it to a 70 after figuring out a better method for brewing it.)

Sipdown!

Low Country is the one blend I repurchased when I ordered from August a second time. I dig the malty-sugary scent, although I’m glad the steeped cup has more bitter notes to cut through the sweetness. I don’t get much smoke, interestingly, and I’m not sure I’d pinpoint the flavor inspiration as bourbon if the label didn’t tell me to do so. In general, though, it’s a solid breakfast brew.

Unfortunately, I think I’ve ruined this tea for myself by drinking an over-steeped and too-strong cup while feeling sick after getting my covid booster. Now the smell (and thought!) of Low Country makes me faintly nauseated. Good thing I finished the packet this morning. So long, Low Country, and thanks for all the sips.

A friend gifted me four Lord of the Rings-themed loose-leaf blends a couple years back, from a company that no longer seems to offer teas. Ranger Brew (named for Aragorn, of course) features hōjicha blended with whole juniper berries and white pine needles. I suppose the concept is that Strider, during his rambles throughout Middle Earth, might forage for tea ingredients and enjoy a cuppa over a campfire? Sure! Why not.

I think Strider would’ve been better off crushing his juniper berries rather than leaving them whole, because I didn’t get any juniper notes in this cup. Pine? Maaaybe a tiny bit, but the hōjicha is really the dominant flavor. It’s light, earthy, and very smooth, with a back of the throat aftertaste that bizarrely reminds me of pickles?! Not in a strong vinegary way, but more like pickling spices. Maybe it’s the juniper? It’s odd but not unwelcome, and it at least brings a little interest to the cup.

Can I envision Aragorn sipping this tea? Umm… sure? Maybe while hanging out with his beloved in Rivendell.

This is a fine, inoffensive tea, but I’m not sure it really delivers on its flavor promises.

I can’t really decide how I feel about this tea! I got suckered into a purchase thanks in large part to the write-up on the August Uncommon site. (AU hires some fab copywriters!) It’s probably just my pandemic-induced wanderlust exerting its influence, but the description of a gilded café in turn-of-the-century Vienna won me over. Plus, chocolate and cherry! What’s not to love!?

The thing is, I don’t really get much of the cherry flavor. Chocolate, yes, and it’s not a bad chocolate, either — it’s rich and slightly bitter. But the cherry gets a bit lost for me, other than a whiff in the dry leaf. Like many AU teas, this one has almost overwhelmingly powerful scent before steeping, to the point where it’s almost off-putting. Thankfully, the flavor is more subdued.

Hmm… as it cools, the cherry is maybe coming out a little more. But I don’t think I’d identify it as such if I didn’t know it was in there. It’s just a round fruitiness backing up the chocolate and the slightly astringent base.

I’m definitely digging it more as it cools; the flavors come together and make this a satisfying cup. I bet it would make a good nighttime dessert tea if I weren’t sensitive to late-night caffeine.

Worth a try, I’d say, though I don’t imagine I’ll repurchase.