Bird & Blend Tea Co.

Adventageddon Day 15 – Tea 1/4

I’ve been looking forward to this one! In my head it was a real coin flip whether this would be unpleasant and medicinal tasting or not, and in the end I was really pleasantly surprised by how rich and jammy the currant and apple notes were. It reminded me a little of Ribena and a little of the apple fruit jellies I enjoy eating around the holidays. Plus, it’s always super fun when you get to match the flavour of your tea to your teaware!

I can 100% see this not being a flavour for everyone. I totally agree with Cameron that this is more of a currant forward profile and even though I enjoyed the currant flavour a great deal I think there’s still a very realistic world in which most people interpret it as medicinal. I’d definitely buy this though, if it sticks around on the B&B website long enough to still be there by the time I finish off all these mini matcha tins…

Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C049M5QuHNI/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnQUiGJES1E

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 15

Ooooh, another of their newer matcha that I’ve been wanting to try!

This one is lovely. The blackcurrant is the stronger of the two flavors, giving that classic syrupy dark berry sort of taste. Then the apple helps to lift the flavor a bit, and similar to the pear matcha, it’s quite crisp and refreshing.

Really nice pairing, and another one I would consider buying. It’s just that their matcha is quite pricey compared to my usual (3 Leaf) and I tend to fall out of the habit of drinking matcha quite often, and I wouldn’t want it to go to waste… :P

What even is this?! There is some hibiscus in it, but not an obnoxious level. It’s sweetened with stevia, but doesn’t have the weird stevia taste that I find so distracting. It really does taste like a cherry cola! The lime leaves are an uncommon addition to a blend. I think I’ve only ever had them in an Arthur Dove tea, Fairytale of New York. This blend is so weird and I love it!

I bought this on a whim and I’m really glad I did. I wish I had gotten a bigger size. I haven’t found many tea blends from this company that I really dug, but they seem to be really good at tisanes. I hope they offer it for a while because I’m not ordering again until I go through the massive bag of Baby Spice that I got and I want more of this.

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 14

Scrumptious! This one is quite strong on the flavoring, but wonderful as an iced oat latte. Getting equals parts sweet-tart raspberry jam and rich, creamy vanilla. It makes me think of a cream puff with crème pâtissière and raspberry sauce. I do notice a bit more bitterness from the matcha than usual for some reason…

Anyway, loved it! Would consider picking some up, though I find their prices painful since I’m used to 3 Leaf… :P

Adventageddeon Day 13 – Tea 4/4

Not my favourite B&B matcha, though I totally agree with Cameron that now that it’s on a matcha base instead of a rooibos one it’s much, more more enjoyable than it was prior. I did plan of having a proper bowl of this today, but the day got away from me. Thankfully I encorpoted it into my breakfast too – I had the day’s “jam” on a bagel with some chopped up apple that I’d tossed in a little of this matcha. The jam was actually a caramel and cinnamon spread though, so it was a pretty decadent breakfast. Still, the mix of spices worked with both the apple and the caramel spread and the pop of orange was just a pleasant little citrusy brightness.

Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C0z38OLuPeM/?igshid=YzZhZTZiNWI3Nw==

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgO3VDNr-gQ

B&B Advent Tea #7

This is exactly what you mgiht expect from a mulled cider fruit tea. There’s a base of dried apples, some hibiscus and cranberry tartness, lots of spices like cinnamon. It really packs a punch with the strong ginger spiciness (which I like). So far I have enjoyed this hot and cold, but there isn’t anything remarkable about it. I love the ginger but cinnamon apple/cider is such a common combo that I’ve had so many similar blends.

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 13

Created a new entry for this, since the old version had a rooibos base. But apparently this year they reformulated it, and now it’s actually matcha! :P

This is quite nice, and very festive. The strongest flavor to me is orange zest, with some clove and other spices mixed in. I’m not super familiar with mince pies, but based on my limited knowledge, I would expect this to be more apple-forward? But that could be my own lack of experience talking ha ha.

To me, it’s a bit like an orange spice matcha, and I really like it! The zesty orange really brightens it up and makes it lovely for the morning. I can really taste the matcha itself as well, which I like. It’s smooth but still very prominent, giving it an earthy and grassy base.

From my advent calendar. This one wasn’t bad. Not great, but not bad. The hibiscus seemed a little muted which is how I like my hibiscus. I am not a fan of hibiscus as it comes across far to sour for my taste. The Bird and Blend herbal (caffeine free?) advent calendar has had hibby in almost every tea bag so far. That’s okay. I’ve gotten to try quite a few teas I haven’t had before.

AJRimmer Advent Day 11

AJRimmer mentioned that she prefers this one cold, so I decided to cold brew it this morning and drank it this afternoon. It brewed up the most gorgeous ruby-red color…very Christmassy. :) The flavor really didn’t read melon for me. It was fruity, but also a bit tart. I was thinking cranberry, but reading the ingredients list, I think it was actually the pomegranate I was picking up on most strongly. I wish it had been more melon-like, as I haven’t ever had a good watermelon tea that I can remember. But it was still tasty!

Tea Pop Sipdown (2529)!

I’ve just been loving my matcha tea pops lately, and this is a flavour I’ve tried that way before so it was an easy one to add into my week while also getting in a sipdown. So fresh, dewy and ripe tasting – just an excellent representation of that sweet juicy green pear flavour. If I didn’t have 3 Leaf Tea’s pear matcha in my cupboard I’d probably consider buying this one again…

Matcha Tea Pop!

Whisked up a strong concentrate of this matcha and paired it with some bright and tangy seabuckthorn juice and sparkling water! Not my prettiest drink, but dannngggg it was tasty. Super zesty and tart with a refreshingly floral golden pear finish!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/C1xNBKnOPeK/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_w_h5pujmU

Adventageddon Day 11 – Tea 2/4

Finally, a new one for me! I made it iced and it was the perfect mid-afternoon refresher. Sweet, dewy and floral pear with a ripe juicy quality to go with the fresh, umami of the matcha itself. There was something so incredibly familiar about the pear flavour and I never did quite place what it was, but I really enjoyed this one regardless. Definitely my favourite of the day.

Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C0uqf7gOYTS/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGWxJo6pQ_w

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 11

Ooh, this is one of theirs that I really wanted to try! The crisp pear scent is very promising.

It’s definitely very crisp in flavor as well, perhaps a bit too much so. I feel like it makes it taste a bit artificial and also starts to lean into astringency. I might be crazy, but I taste banana here in addition to the pear? Or I should say, something is reminding me of banana.

It’s quite good overall, with a strong pear flavor and fairly smooth matcha base. It may have been my imagination, but I felt like the matcha here looked greener than some of the others? Maybe because it has no additional ground ingredients. I don’t think I would go order a whole tin of this, but I’m enjoying what I have of it.

B&B Advent Tea #6

I enjoyed this rooibos-forward blend. Some nice dried fruit sweetness, a little bit of acidity from the fruit too. Lots of tasty warming cinnamon and a sweet rooibos base. I think rooibos pairs very well here. Unfortunately I did not get any strudel flavour. I would have liked some buttery pastry and vanilla icing notes.

Sweetness: 6/10
Sourness: 2/10
Bitterness: 0/10
Flavour Potency: 7/10

B&B Advent Tea #5

I drank this one hot yesterday but did not enjoy it hot due to the hibiscus acidity. It was pretty good once it got cold. The major flavour is sour hibiscus, followed by citrus peels (dried orange rind and maybe some dried citrus fruit pieces too), clove, and cinnamon. It is quite festive, but I think it would have been much better with a rooibos base. There was also a bit of bitterness from the orange rind that I did not enjoy.

Sweetness 1.5 or 2/10
Sourness: 8/10
Bitter: 3/10
Flavour potency: 7/10

B&B Advent Tea #4

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this tea! It was very sweet (honey) and full-bodied without being bitter. I think this might be the best English breakfast I’ve ever had. The natural honey and chocolate notes were perfectly paired with a longer steep and then I added a splash of soy milk. The dry leaf is also very fragrant and faintly honeyish as well. I’m impressed by the freshness of the tea leaves.

Homemade Advent Calendar from Arby: Day 8

Drinking this while eating an actual piece of (very sweet) cake was not the smartest idea! The real cake was wholly overwhelming. Now I’m drinking it with a cleaner palate, though, and I like it. It’s similar to B&B’s Birthday Cake, but the coconut makes it just a bit heavier and oilier on the tongue than that one. I can just pick up the toasted rice, too… I’m not sure quite how that fits into the flavor profile! I actually think it’s making the whole thing lean a bit more toward caramel than cake. It’s good, though!

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 10

I’m surprised they put this one 10 days into the calendar. If it were me, I would’ve placed it very early since really it’s more of a fall flavor.

It’s quite a nice matcha though, and true to its name, it does taste like pumpkin pie. I prepared mine as an iced latte (as always) so I’m sure that helps to emulate the creamy texture. Tasting the allspice and nutmeg up front, backed by clove and cinnamon. (Actually, clove isn’t in the ingredients, so I guess that’s just the allspice still!) Ginger adds an earthiness which goes well with the already earthy matcha.

Speaking of which, I don’t taste a ton of matcha here, maybe because it’s a bit diluted by the ground spices. Still, it makes for a nice, creamy pumpkin pie sort of latte with a dash of matcha flavor.

Bird & Blend Matcha Advent Calendar 2023 – Day 9

This is an interesting one. It’s quite orange-y, which I don’t think is normal for carrot cake? To be fair, it’s been a while since I’ve had one ha ha.

Normal or not, the orange does go very well with the mild spices – mostly cinnamon and nutmeg. There is something a little cakey about it. Not sure whether I’m picking up on the frosting or not, but since I prepare these with oat milk, it’s a bit difficult to judge the level of creaminess.

Very enjoyable, like a spice cake + orange spice mashup. And now I’m thinking that carrot cake would probably be very tasty with orange, or perhaps with orange-infused frosting… :)

AJRimmer Advent Day 8

I didn’t realize this was supposed to be a pumpkin spice tea until getting on Steepster to review it and I honestly didn’t taste any pumpkin in my cup this morning. What I did get was a well-balanced blend of warming spices: clove and cinnamon for sure and I loved the hint of nutmeg, as that’s a personal favorite. There’s some creamy vanilla flavor going on in the background as well that’s quite pleasant. I think I would have personally enjoyed this even more on a black tea base, but it’s still quite delicious!

Iced Latte Sipdown (2517)!

Made this into a super fancy iced latte with whipped cream and even a chocolate syrup drizzle. It was delicious and my very extra toppings added just enough sweetness since this is definitely not a very sweet matcha at all despite the cocoa in it. Kind of an overall hot chocolate vibe to the drink minus, of course, the “hot” part. Very smooth, nice and decadent and also kind of fresh and umami from the matcha itself.

Adventageddon Day 7 – Tea 1/4(ish)

Latte!

Honestly can’t remember if I’ve tried this matcha before, but I thought it was pretty enjoyable! I made it as a latte to drink while reading a new issue of a graphic novel that I like this morning and it was smooth, a little indulgent but ultimately not too sweet/rich. Like a matcha and hot chocolate hybrid sans the sugar.

Also went really well the the raspberry and chocolate jam of the day.

Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C0kaEKuO5Du/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnxM7weSeWs

Advent Calendar 2022 Day 12
Last one, from last year, though I have started my 2023 calendar already. I get why this one has been just hanging out in my tea bin though. It’s not super flavorful. Green Tea and Jasmine are there but I don’t get much sense of the pear. I describe it as a grassy green tea with a hint of jasmine.
The Bird and Blend calendar was a fun one to do last year. I managed to drink each tea each day but didn’t necessarily log them in order (obviously). After a while, I just decided that I would log them with the second tea tasting. Now to get back in the swing with the 2023 calendar!

AJRimmer Advent Day 6

My whole kitchen smelled amazing while this tea was brewing! It has the most mouthwatering buttery-sweet aroma, just like cookies baking in the oven. And the flavor is nearly is good as the scent: sweet and rich with notes of caramel and butter and baked goods all on a nice robust black tea base. I would be completely in love with this one if it weren’t for the stevia the popped out in the aftertaste…a disappointing finish to an otherwise lovely tea.