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Day 24 of the Plum Deluxe herbal advent calendar, finishing only… 3 months late! The good news is that this advent ends on a high note with a limited-edition seasonal blend called “Honeyed Hazelnut.” I intended to make this as a latte but it was so good straight that I just ended up drinking it that way the first time. The hazelnut flavor is on point, and there’s a wonderful sweetness to it that hits just so. The second time I made it, I did opt to try it as an oat milk latte, which was also delicious! The creaminess of the oat milk complemented the hazelnut flavor quite well. I think I might still prefer it straight, though. Tasty both ways, just my personal preference.

Overall, I really enjoyed this advent calendar and will probably get it again next year. Despite the packaging being suboptimal and a handful of teas not being to my taste, a lot of these were! The amount of leaf provided is perfect, too – enough to make several cups, so I can play around with different steeping parameters and styles of preparation. My one regret is that I didn’t finish this fast enough to pick up some of the limited-edition teas before they sold out, but that should be more doable next year when I get far fewer advent calendars.

Sipdown! I’ll admit up front that I probably didn’t do this tea justice in its last few steepings. I prepared it western style and drank it over the course of the workday. Usually I stick to my middling teas during work so I don’t feel bad for not giving them much attention, but its been rough going lately so I’ve been leaning into quality teas more to cheer up the day. On the flip side, that means good teas are not getting my full focus.

Anyway, this was a really comforting, richly roasted cup. I steeped it pretty strong, so only got three robust steeps out of it, but they were great. It paired well with chilly, gloomy weather. I could see this making a good iced tea, too, actually.

Sipdown! I’m getting strong creamy coconut notes from this today. I planned to wait until it got cool so I could have it as a fruity iced tea, but it smells too enticing, I’m thirsty, and it’s a Friday afternoon so I’ve run out of patience/the ability to self-regulate vigilantly. I wasn’t a huge fan of this the first few times I drank it – I initially found the flavors a bit flat – but it definitely grew on me once I realized that this benefits from cooling off a good deal!

Sipdown, and this has a leaf in the logo for ashmanra’s sipdown challenge.

I was shocked to find this actually in the Steepster database! I got it in Taiwan years ago, though I gather that it was perhaps sold in North American locations at some point as well. I actually really enjoyed this, more so when it was fresh but even this last, several-years-past-expiration cup too. It doesn’t resteep very well, but that first steep is floral and milky goodness. Some important caveats! I grew up on skim milk and now use dairy substitutes when making my own lattes, which is to say that I don’t like a thick, creamy texture in anything short of a milkshake. So this is the perfect amount of milkiness for me but I can imagine that being watery to someone else. Also, because I got this on a wonderful trip, I’m bound to have positive associations with it that color my experience. And relatedly, I don’t know whether the product they sell within Taiwan is identical to what’s sold abroad. So ymmv. But I rationed this and stretched it out as long as I could.

This is such a fruity delight! Different notes are prominent when it’s hot vs. as it cools, but overall I’m picking up nice creamy coconut and tart blood orange notes. It’s so refreshing – definitely lives up to its seasonal name, though I’m trying to drink it down before then to make space and avoid the coconut going bad.

Sipdown! I oversteeped this last cup, but it was still enjoyable. The front of the sip is all tart hibiscus, followed by juicy, tart lemon, and wonderful heat from the chili. This is a blend that definitely demands attention, in a good way.

A sipdown. At a literal decade old, this is probably one of the oldest green teas in my cabinet – I was doing a cleanout and found a few, apparently very old bags of various teas that I had squirrelled away. Pretty sure this is my very last Della Terra tea, alas. I still dream of those epic chiffons.

This kept more flavor than expected, though surely weaker than it originally was. Still, a pleasant cuppa! The mint is the dominant note in both the first steep and the second, with the floral jasmine coming in at the tail end. I added honey to boost the flavor a bit on the second steep, and that gave the floral jasmine note a little more oomph. It was a surprise to have a chance to revisit one of my favorite companies, and this was a really nice way to do it.

Phi introduced me to Teaism way back when, and I’m forever grateful for it. Of the teas I’ve had from there, this was one of the first and remains my favorite.

I was looking for an herbal that would really feel like I was treating myself tonight. It has been the kind of week where it’s just one thing after another. Today was about trying to take it easy, get some rest, and give myself some room to breathe. This blend was a good choice. Not only are the eponymous lavender, lemon, and mint soothing and relaxing, but there’s cinnamon in here too that gives it just the right amount of depth, warmth, and spice. It’s definitely an assertive amount of cinnamon, which I love because I love cinnamon, but if you don’t then this might not be the blend for you. Particularly in the second steep, the cinnamon gets stronger as the other flavors fade a bit – but even in the first steep, it’s definitely, deliciously noticeable. This is just easily one of my favorite herbals.

Calling this a sipdown because this is the last bag in the variety sampler I ordered with the advent calendar. I haven’t been making tasting notes for most of them, but wanted to for this one a) because it’s the last one in the sampler and b) because I wanted to remember my thoughts about it.

So this is the last bag for a reason: I thought it would be terrible and kept putting off trying it until I was out of other coffee-alternative teabags. Orange and coffee just seems like a really weird combo! While this isn’t my favorite Teeccino blend, it turned out not to be as awful as I expected, especially as an oat milk latte. The oat milk smooths out some of the sharper parts of the orange and chicory, and the end result is something not altogether unpleasant.

Day 17 of the Kiani advent calendar. It’s not a big deal, but I find it mildly annoying to call things that aren’t matcha, matcha. It’s fine to just call it dragonfruit powder, white tea powder, and pigeon wing/butterfly pea flower powder! That would be simultaneously more accurate and less confusing. But by this point in the calendar I know to look things up on the website for more detailed information and instructions (which, to be fair, I would have had to do with the DavidsTea calendar too except that those were all herbal blends and I gave them all more or less the same treatment).

I mixed this up as an iced oat milk latte. Flavor-wise, I find this a weird choice for a powder, in part because I find it a weird choice for a straight tisane. The website explains the ayurvedic health benefits, which is all well and good, but not generally why I drink tea. It’s earthy but also mild. The creaminess of the oat milk at least adds some heft and substance to the cup, but I wonder whether it’s not also drowning some of the flavor. Which is maybe not a bad thing.