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Simpson & Vail Advent Calendar: Day 16

Someone over at S&V must’ve been so pleased to realize that Jane Austen’s birthday is in December!

I’m a huge Austen fan and reread the canon every few years, and I was also lucky enough to take an Austen-centric class during undergrad (English major reporting for duty!). Her dry, understated humor and boundless wit always delight me, and I love how keenly (and often mercilessly) she captures the foibles of human nature.

Anyway, I was happy to see this one yesterday, although I only steeped it up this morning (while reading some Ursula K. Le Guin, haha). It’s a pretty sedate black base with bright, cooling spearmint predominating, and then some and creamy, pillowy notes from the vanilla — it’s more marshmallow-y than vanilla-y, in my opinion! I get a smidge of lavender on the back of a sip, but I could honestly do with more.

This is somehow refreshing and cozy, which I appreciate. I might consider purchasing it and adding some additional lavender from my own garden.

52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas: Day 3

Sipped on this zesty lil number during my final [online] class of the semester! It evokes an effervescent lemon-lime soda to me, with lovely cranberry notes. It’s tart, but also a little syrupy, but also a little saline? I bet it would be absolutely smashing cold-brewed, maybe with a bit of seltzer added.

So good!

Simpson & Vail Advent Calendar: Day 15

I’m getting behind on my advents… I blame my long internship days without a kettle, plus the surfeit of caffeinated teas that have popped up lately. But I’ve got a home day tomorrow, and I plan to be VERY well caffeinated as I work through the backlog (which isn’t actually THAT large, but we all know how these things snowball).

Anyway, this was yesterday’s S&V tea, but I had it this morning on my commute. I really enjoy both this one and its French toast counterpart. I stocked up on the latter when I purchased the advent, but now I’m kind of wishing I’d bought some of this one, too! I think a blend of both teas would actually be lovely… you’d get the maple sweetness of the French toast blend with the pastry, cake-y notes of this one.

All to say that this blend is solid as hell! It’s true to its name and is just so tasty.

52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas: Day 2

Sipped this one on a morning drive to attend an open house that wasn’t actually happening. I misread the listing… XD

At least I had good tea en route! This is very cozy and comforting, with clove and cinnamon predominating over a bright base. I didn’t really pick up on any cookie elements, but that’s OK. Still a very seasonally appropriate blend, especially with the super festive sprinkles!

Homemade Advent Calendar from AJRimmer: Day 15

So many black teas in my advents today! I feel like the days have been feast or famine when it comes to caffeine… either everything’s caffeinated or nothing is. I’ve been trying to be smarter about my caffeine intake this year, because I’m pretty sensitive to it, but all that restraint has gone out the window this month. Oh well!

Anyway, here we have a fun pancake-inspired blend with toasted rice. Were you to transmute this tea into actual pancakes, I think they would be far too sweet for my tastes. Like… I’m not sure I actually want pancakes drizzled with salted caramel?! But as a tea, it works. There’s some definite caramel, and some sweet maple, plus lovely toasted rice notes. What I’m not getting is much salt, which is a shame — I think it would help balance this blend. A stronger black base might help, too.

Fun to try, and I bet it would be nice as a latte with some oat milk!

52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas: Day 1

Logging from yesterday, when this countdown began!

I feel like it’s pretty rare to have this flavor profile on a green base! It lets the deep, baked gingerbread flavor stand out a little more by contrast against the brighter green base.

I didn’t get a ton of cake-y vibes, but the gingerbread is definitely there. A fun start to the countdown!

Homemade Advent Calendar from AJRimmer: Day 14

I really enjoy these kinds of coffee replacements, but I rarely buy them because I do drink regular coffee and they’re not top of mind for me. Which is a shame, because, again… I really enjoy them.

Anyway, it was fun to try this one. It’s a pretty classic flavor profile with the base ingredients, but in a more “sweet coffee drink” kind of way — there’s some sweetness from the dates and monkfruit and some kind of vanilla creaminess from the natural flavors.

I definitely prefer Teeccino because of its cleaner, simpler, and more coffee-like taste, but I think this is a great option for folks who are trying to transition from sweeter coffee drinks. I enjoyed trying it!

2024 Sipdown Challenge | December | A tea you don’t drink in summer

Logging this one for the sipdown. I’ve been holding onto this last teabag for a while and finally drank it last night. So cozy and warming… gonna up my rating by a few points.

2024 sipdown count: 44

Simpson & Vail Advent Calendar: Day 14

I wish S&V included just a liiittle more tea in each packet, because I think some of the blends I’ve tried so far would really benefit from overleafing. I had a feeling that would be the case with this one, so I brewed it up with less water than usual. It still feels weak, though!

I’m mostly getting a zippy raspberry, with a noticeable tang coming from the hibiscus. I can pick up the scent of chocolate, but I don’t taste it… which is probably a good thing, because I suspect it would be that awful faux chocolate flavoring.

Meh, this isn’t doing much for me! The raspberry is verging on too sour without chocolate to balance it.

Homemade Advent Calendar from AJRimmer: Day 12

There’s a hint of creaminess here, but it’s mostly a smooth, almost lemongrassy cup. I also get a little pithy bitterness toward the end of the sip, or maybe a lemon extract/oil sort of thing.

Not my personal favorite, but interesting!