Maple Baked Pears Honeybush

This is similar to many other 52teas honeybush blends, but it’s lovely. I taste a bit of pear, but more of the usual spice blend. It’s nice with sugar and milk, but since it’s similar to other blends, I don’t feel the need to buy extra. The resteep is nice too!

The 9th Tea of Christmas . . .

Of all the teas that I’ve crafted for this year’s box, I think this one has been the most delightful to have in my tea studio. I love all the teas I craft – some more than others; I admit I’m not an impartial mom when it comes to my teas! – but this tea has been special, because every time I open the bin in which this tea is stored, my olfactory nerves are met with the most amazing scent. Sure, all of the teas smell amazing, but this one is a whole other level! It smells SO GOOD! I am truly going to miss it when it does leave the tea studio. I’m sure this one’s gonna sell out quickly!

Anyway, I’m also pleased to report that it tastes as good as it smells. This is one that also tastes amazing as a cold-brew, but I think it’s even better as a hot tea. Usually when it comes to my naturally caffeine-free blends, I tend to prefer them cold-brewed because there’s something about the process that brings out the very best in the flavors of the tisane. But this is one that I prefer as a hot tea, maybe it has something to do with the idea that a Maple Baked Pear would be better served hot (preferably with a drizzle of sweet cream over it!)

The tea has a really pleasing pear note with a luscious maple-y note & just a hint of warmth from the cinnamon & nutmeg. So good!

Day 9 of the 52teas advent calendar. Such a cozy fall/winter tea. I love this maple flavor. I find the pear soft and mellow. The base is great for this – sweet and slightly nutty. I can’t decide whether this would take oat milk well or the oat milk would drown out the flavors, but I don’t really feel like standing up to go get oat milk.

52Teas 12 Teas of Christmas: Day 9

Wow, this is so good! It’s got a super fresh pear flavor, laced with just-sweet-enough maple and a smidge of cinnamon. There are some round, creamy vanilla custard notes, too.

One of my favorites of the advent season so far!

Beautiful blend of pear and spice and the honeybush masquerading as dense pastry.

Nice but tasted all the world like a fall candle (which is not necessarily a bad thing).

I’m bumping up the rating on this because it really makes an excellent latte. I think the milk actually helped bring out the pear flavor. I’m not really sure how that works, but it does.

Can’t say I had high hopes for this one; I picked it out solely because it was caffeine-free and almost finished. However, I was pleasantly surprised at the delicious maple flavour that was still present. Didn’t really pick up on any pear, but this was certainly one of the better honeybush teas I’ve had in recent memory!

Sipdown (121)!

So, I just hit a really cool Steepster milestone… 1000 Teas Rated!

Realistically, I hit that a while ago since I have things grouped under the same tasting notes (such as the teas I drink for my Sommelier courses) but now I have the numbers to actually say “I’ve drank over 1000 different kinds of tea”. That’s pretty cool.

So this tea, number 1000, comes from OMGsrsly and is my second “Anne Era” 52Teas blend. As a Canadian, I feel like I definitely have the right to be very critical of the ‘maple’ in the blend. But honestly, the thing I’m most interested in when it comes to this blend is actually the pear. I sure do love a good pear tea!

Cold brewed, of course, and this definitely smells like both maple and pear. Probably a little more like maple though, honestly. It smells “sticky”, at least as much as one can smell a texture that is.

As for the taste? I like it! There’s both a lot going on and really a very simple flavour profile. Basically, here’s how I break it down: The initial flavour is overripe pears (Bartlett) accented with a slight taste of cinnamon, then the cinnamon fades and you just taste pear. As an “overripe” pear there’s a slight sharpness to the taste with is pleasant as is creates a note that punctuates the rest of the sip. The finish is a maple/cinnamon duo and from there the aftertaste is a long lingering sweet, sticky maple flavour. What the maple reminds me of is “Maple Taffy” which, for non Canadians, is basically just maple syrup poured over snow and rolled onto a stick. The whole drink has a faint honeybush undertone throughout.

http://www.bonappetit.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/maple-taffy-433.jpg

Only in Canada, right? The maple is getting the “Canadian Seal of Approval” though, and the pear gets the “Roswell Strange: Pear Fiend Seal of Approval”. Definitely enjoyed this tea a lot! Perfect for satisfying those after supper sugar cravings.

Really. Cinnamon chips. Huh. I didn’t pick that out at all.

So this tea. No caffeine, which is why I’m trying it. Intensely maple. INTENSE. So far, the honeybush is good. Not sour at all.

But pears? Hmm… I’m not so sure I’m getting pears. At least, I’m not getting the gross over ripe pear jelly belly pears. Just some fruityness. And then some spice at the end. So that’s a win for me because I don’t actually, umm, really like pears. I know, I know. But I looooove maple and I hoped that it would be maple >>> pear.

Again, I’m having it completely plain. And it’s nice and sweet, and feels like it would take milk and/or sugar really well.

I’m just over half way through my cup now, and the honeybush still isn’t sour (yay!) but the pear is starting to come out a bit more. Maybe the tea just had to cool a bit. Anyways, this one I also like and kinda wish I had bought more of. The rest of my sample is heading out soon to be tried by others who have more discerning palates than I do.

(2 tsp in 13 oz at 195F for 4 minutes. Maybe longer would mean more pear? IDK. I would think it’d bring out the spice more.)