Winter Frost

I received this as part of a Christmas present to myself (I deserve it, right?!), in a cute stocking with other selections from Rachel’s Adagio blends.

Immediately opening the sample bag I am transported to San Diego, my early childhood years, making cinnamon and candy cane treats for the tree – and for our bellies. :)

This reminds me of HOME – which is so comforting and wonderful. Another sip and I’m transported to Brockport, NY, home of my beloved grandparents, another spot for holiday happiness.

The vanilla flavor is on the edge of the cinnamon and candy cane flavors – which is perfect. It’s subtle and sweet, rounding out the edges of typical holiday spices.

This is a true gem. I will be ordering more – around the holidays or in the midst of summer when I crave holiday memories.

Yums yums! :)

Another Rachel tea!!!
This one tastes like Cinnamon and Candy Cane. I can’t really tastes much of the vanilla…but then again, I wasn’t really looking?!?!? LOL I guess I can smell it tho! :)

This is ok!

Thank you to Rachel for sending me a sampling of this one!

As per Rachel’s request, I’m tasting this one now on the heels of tasting the other Winter Frost blend.

Ahh… much better! This one smells so much like Christmas! It’s especially enjoyable to inhale the aroma when I hold the cup to my nose… it smells so good.

I can taste the vanilla, the minty candy cane, and the cinnamon. I like that the cinnamon is a softer, sweeter version of cinnamon here and doesn’t overpower the sweet vanilla and candy cane flavors. And… BONUS! I’m not getting that icky decaffeinated flavor. (probably because this one isn’t decaffeinated LOL) The Adagio black tea base is not overwhelming with this either.

It’s quite nice.

Oh, I mades a boo-boo.

See, there’s two Winter Frosts by Adagio on here…and I thought this was the decaf one. So I’m drinking it now…and will likely be awake for half the night. Woops!

Regardless, this is a rather tasty blend by the lovely Rachel. Cinnamon, candy cane, and just the barest hint of vanilla. There’s more candy cane than anything else, but cinnamon is definitely there to. It really does taste like Christmas…and it looks like I’ll be staying up late knitting some more presents!

I have been saving my sample of this for December time, particularly when I wanted to feel more Christmassy. Now is the time, I did some cleaning yesterday and wrapped some presents and I can begin to feel it drawing closer but the only thing that can get me into the festive mood is candy canes. I love candy canes! This one says it contains candy cane which is beyond amazing!

This blend is a mixture of finely chopped black tea leaves with some sort of finely chopped green/brown leaf and red candy looking pieces. It smells sweet and creamy :)

Once brewed this tea forms a dark brown liquid that smells sweetly of cinnamon.

My first few sips reveal earthy cinnamon with a sweet vanilla flourish followed by a breeze of refreshing mint. It’s a rather subtle blend overall but the ingredients compliment each other well.

If I was to say anything negative about this blend it would be that there is not enough candy cane in there for me and I was hoping it would be a little mintier.

Not sure if I feel more Christmassy but I’m certainly more happy at any rate. :)

As of late I have been on a cold brewing kick and I feel like a kid in a candy store. It is as if I am tasting all of my teas all over again. It is so much fun primarily because of all the different flavor profiles I am getting from a tea I have had hot. It is just so exciting having the first sip and falling in love with it all over again. Especially this one that I never imagined would be so good cold brewed. I made this blend for winter and it just shocks me how refreshing it actually is. The peppermint candy is most noticeable and it just sparkles. The cinnamon is there holding it together and giving it a bit of mellow feel. The vanilla shows at the end giving you a slightly smooth creamy finish, but just a hint. I will be making this again. I won’t rate it since I made this signature blend but if I did I would give it a 90.

This is the first of a few tealogs I owe the lovely Rachel (who is currently and bravely without tea, keep up the spirit!) for the beautiful .5 oz samples she sent me after I won her blog give away last month.

I reached for this one this morning for my first latte of the day. Brewed it up with a bit of aguave and some frothed milk on top. And all I can say is, yum! Such a great idea mixing cinnamon with mint. I made sure not to oversteep so I can’t say how astringent the base was, but this is such a great Christmas tea. It reminded me of the flavors I like in the winter, and I can see the bite of this one being the perfect thing to enjoy on a cold day. I’m glad I tried this now when I still have an appetite for these flavors. Yum :)