Decaf House Blend Black Tea

Mastress Alita’s Monthly Sipdown Challenge
June 2022 → A vanilla tea

I expected this to be a plain sort of tea with just enough vanilla to claim it as an ingredient. Not sure why those were my expectations, but that’s what I was thinking. Quite happy to find that this has great vanilla bean flavor and reminds me a lot of my favorite vanilla bean tea from Mighty Leaf. Not quite as good but very enjoyable.

This was surprisingly really good. It sounded kind of boring but it’s actually a really nice smooth creamy vanilla breakfast tea. Looking forward to drinking this one again and might buy a larger amount of it.

Sipdown (311)

I made this with all intents of drinking it and then ended up in a TikTok black hole. Specifically I was distracted by this one particular audio about girls having frizzy hair their whole lives, not realizing their hair was curly and then changing their routine to get really nice curls. I think that may be me so hours and one Amazon order later, it’s 3 am and I should be going to bed as I wait for my new curly hair products to arrive so I can test the theory. This tea is cold but from the few sips I took, it tastes like Harney’s Vanilla Comoro. A great vanilla flavor with no weirdness from the decaffeinating process. Well…now I want more and regret wasting this cup by neglecting it.

Advent Day 3

Missed drinking this yesterday. I was saving it for the evening then got too tired and went to bed early. I started thinking I’d do the same tonight, then pushed through the sleepiness in the hopes that I don’t wake up super early again tomorrow morning.

I was pleasantly surprised when I sniffed and then sipped this tea! The vanilla is very soothing with a little bit of malt behind it. Similar to my memory of Harney and Son’s decaf vanilla. It looses a little of it’s magic as it cools and takes on a flatter taste. It would be nice to have more evening decaf teas to choose from, but I’m not totally swayed on this one. Maybe I’ll make up my mind when I finish the sample.

This is a pretty robust decaf blend! It has notes of vanilla and almost a chocolatey quality. I’ve really enjoyed both decaf black teas I’ve tried from Plum Deluxe and would happily buy more (if they were cheaper). I first tried this really hot without milk, and it was lovely, though it became a little sharp as it cooled, so I added milk, and it’s back to perfection. I really like this one.

Plum Deluxe Advent Day 3
I’ve never been interested in a decaffeinated black tea, so this is definitely never something I would have tried on my own.
I love vanilla black teas, especially when they’re executed well. This one is! The vanilla is leaning towards vanilla extract, and is not artificial or cloying. The black base is a bit brisk, but not bitter or astringent. Would be lovely with some milk or cream.

Brewed this as my evening tea today (the full sample, which weighed 4.5g, in a 500ml teapot). I have been a little wary of decaf teas because I’ve always heard they taste bad, so normally I stick to herbals after my caffeine cut-off hour. But lately I’ve found myself craving black teas after work, which is past the caffeine cut-off point, especially since most of my “desserty” teas are on black bases. So I’ve been curious about looking into decaf teas…

The brewed pot has a very nice vanilla aroma… often vanilla flavorings came off with a coconut scent/flavor to me but this smells distinctly vanilla to me. The tea is malty with a slight brassy note, but otherwise this is a very smooth cup and sweet cup. I’m getting notes of cinnamon raisin bread, honey, vanilla, and cream.

If this doesn’t impact my sleep (I know decaf tea still has some small amounts present) then I would definitely be willing to stock this as a black tea that I can actually drink during the evening hours that still hits that “sweet tooth” urge as well!

Plum Deluxe Advent Calendar – Day 3

Hmm… Well this one sounds quite boring, doesn’t it. I’m also not the biggest fan of decaffeinated black tea (or at least, ones I’ve tried in the past), so that doesn’t bode well.

But actually, it’s quite good. The base tea has a nice mellow and sweet woody flavor to it, and has plenty of flavor for being decaffeinated. The vanilla tastes quite authentic to me, as if there were vanilla beans in the blend, though there are not. It’s listed as “vanilla essence”, not sure what the means really. Either way, the woodiness of the tea goes very well with the vanilla, which often has a woody note to me. There’s a nice creaminess to the vanilla as well.

For what it is, it’s really quite good. I don’t feel the need to stock a decaf black tea, but this cup has been enjoyable.

(today’s advent teas: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIVyyA6gsud/)