Spiced Winter

I was worried about this one when I smelled it thinking it was going to be all spicy and nothing else but it’s not too shabby! Yes, there are spices present…but…There is a smoothness and sweetness that punch thru that make it really nice. The aftertaste is almost wine-like. Glad I got to try this!

Over the last couple of days I have been experiencing an unnatural burst of energy and willingness to clean. I’m not saying I live in a pig sty but my house is clean yet untidy but with method to my madness I know where my things are. Perhaps it’s Christmas on the horizon that is boosting me to make it special this year, last year my husband was undergoing chemotherapy for testicular cancer and he finished just in time for Christmas (which I see as a miracle) but he was still left feeling nauseous and unwell. :(
So this year I am going to try my very best to give him a Christmas that he deserves.

I tell this story because it will hopefully show you all how I am slowly feeling the Christmas spirit. First it started with the winter frost tea and now with this spiced winter tea. I have two teabags left and could do with drinking as much as I can to clear my already overfull cupboards.

This one is noticeably rooibos based in look, smell and brewed appearance. It smells of cinnamon and clove.

Taste wise this is like a rooibos chai, it’s very rooibos heavy with cinnamon, clove and subtle almost herbal orange. I have a drop of milk to to ease some of the sweetness from rooibos and it worked well.

It’s too rooibos and too chai for my liking, I’m not a fan of either. :( Plus it doesn’t make me feel Christmassy. I will finish this one off and it leaves a small space on my tea shelves so at least there is a positive side.

From one extreme to the other. This is another tea I’ve tried before, although not for a couple of years now. Dry, it does indeed smell like Christmas. I can pick out cinnamon, ginger, orange, maybe a hint of clove. It’s warming and spicy.

This one has a rooibos base, so I gave it about 4 minutes. I want to taste the spices, rather than have the rooibos overpower everything else. Brewed, this is a deep red-brown and smells strongly spicy. I suppose it’s a little like mulled wine, only sadly without the alcohol. I’m actually tempted to add a bit of brandy, but I’ll refrain for now. It also reminds me, interestingly enough, of the Lush shower gel I’m using at the moment — Glogg. I think it’s because it’s almost the same colour, and shares the same cinnamon scent. Thankfully, they don’t have soap in common.

Anyway, this tea doesn’t taste as “heavy” as I thought it was going to. The colour of the liquor is deceptive in that way. The rooibos really complements the spices — it’s earthy and slightly muddy tasting under the cinnamon and clove, which seem to come out most strongly of all once infused.

This is certainly a pleasant, hearty tea for this time of year, and a little different too, in not having a black tea base. I don’t usually go for gimmicky Christmas team because they’re generally spice-based, and they’re not flavours I particularly feel like drinking at any other time of year. This one is probably much the same in that respect, but I can be Christmassy when called upon. And when I am, this isn’t a tea I’d mind drinking.