Holiday Spiced Plum

I’ve learned that the trick with Republic of Tea teabags is to use little mugs. I actually collect (or rather, er, hoard…) mugs from Japan, which are much smaller than American or European mugs. The one I’m using for this has Teddie from Persona 4 on it! They’re perfectly sized, about the same width as the teabag and they hold enough water so that it brews up extra strong.

I’m so happy Josie Jade sent me this one because I adore it! Brewed up this way the plum is really strong and quite distinctive, like those sugar plum candies you get around Christmas. Which makes sense, it’s a holiday blend! The spice is very nice, and the base is quite forgiving—I didn’t notice this was a green and brewed it in boiling water for an insanely long time (7 minutes? I forgot about it!) and it was not bitter at all! I like that it’s a lighter base, so the plum flavor pops a lot more.

I know RoT doesn’t get a lot of love on Steepster but I have always bee a fan. And as much as I love fancy loose leaf I always have to have reliable bagged teas around because honestly, sometimes I just want no-fuss tea! This one is a keeper.

Sadly, this tea doesn’t do much for me. I love plum flavored teas, but this one is just too light. It tastes like more of water than anything, and even adding a little sweetener doesn’t bring out any stronger flavors.

-Round natural unbleached teabag.
-Teabag smells of green tea and cinnamon. Tea liquor aroma is lightly of spiced plum.
-Tea liquor is a cloudy yellow color.
-Green tea and cinnamon flavor with a sweet plum finish.
-Best with sweetener.
-Fair tea. Hardly any flavor.

Whole Foods had all of the RoT holiday teas on super clearance today, so I nabbed a couple of tins. This one I had only tried once, and it’s actually good for a fruit tea. They managed not to get the awful taste of kool-aid or awful red fruit in the resultant brew despite it being a plum tea. I’m glad they held back; the tea itself looks about the same color as an oolong. I’d definitely call the spice blend “holiday” inspired as well. It winds up tasting a bit like holiday potpourri smells, without being cloying or perfumey.

Overall, I think they did this quite well, and though it’ll never be a favorite, it’s a pleasant cup.

Cinnamony and plummy, this green tea from TRoT is delicious! Thanks Josie Jade for the samples! The flavors are nicely balanced: it does not taste overly fruity or like fake cinnamon in any way. Very smooth, perfect for after the holidays in my opinion!

For those of you who don’t know, a group of us have been reading Anna Karenina, thanks to Serenity & Josie Jade. Thanks girls!
This is a tea sample, which Serenity picked to go with the book. I’m not usually a fan of flavored green teas, but it’s really quite pleasant!

Part of saturday sampler day. Very light on the plum and spice and thankfully light on the green tea. This is ok if it were the only thing available, I would drink it.

Hmmmm. So I found this unopened canister of holiday tea in my cupboard and decided to give it a go. I am not a green tea fan, but I thought that since it is blended with cinnamon and plum what could go wrong? Well, I must say there isn’t much to brag about this tea. The aroma is fairly sweet with the green tea coming through at the end. The taste, however, is quite different. Very weak! No body, whatsoever. I didn’t even use that much water and I left the bag in the entire time. I get a slight hint of bitter plum at the end but that is all! Not sure if I will be finishing this tea….

The taste is pretty light, I can taste the plum a little but not so much any spices. Steep longer?

*I got it from book club and it got lost in my pile o stuff lol. Thanks Josie :)

This tea didn’t sound very appealing to me, but I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t overwhelmingly spicy or all high-pitched fruit, but a mellow green with cinnamon and a touch of plum for depth. Having said that, it was a little flat. Still, quite pleasant.