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My always generous and considerate wife wanted to buy me a pound of tea for my birthday while we were browsing through the local Teavana store. 99.9% of the time at this stage of my life, I buy black teas. I do this because I am still working and need a considerable amount of shock treatment in the morning to jolt my brain into multi-tasking analysis mode. One of my retirement fantasies is to drink green, white, and oolong teas throughout my day while I lounge on the beach (any beach)…but I digress.

Getting back to the tea du jour, the Teavana store had just been remodeled and only three or four black teas were on hand. I was in the market for another earl grey selection, and the “creme” bonus in the title was tantalizing enough to help me make my choice…and it was 50% off.

When I opened the official metal Teavana container that my wife purchased with the tea, the leaves were long and chocolate brown. There also was a plentiful presence of yellow flowers spread throughout them. The aroma was very strong in a sweet sort of way. It reminded me of egg nog that had a shot or three too much booze poured into the mixture.

I steeped the leaves at 195 degrees (which was recommended) for four minutes (which was not recommended – Teavana suggested three minutes). The result was a brew with a rich bright amber color. The odor was strong with fruity and flowery attributes.

From the very first sip, this tea’s flavor was robust and full-bodied but surprisingly smooth. The taste accents were fruity and flowery, with a pinch of vanilla, but not in an annoying way. There also was a honey-like sweetness left on my tongue after each gulp. My palate has been alcohol-free for 24 years but my mind hearkened back to the warm taste of a small snifter of after-dinner brandy. The aftertaste of this tea was amazingly brief and gentle after such pronounced flavors.

I have to rate this blend as one of my absolute favorite Teavana teas. I found the experience to be delightful from the top of my first cuppa to the last drop of my fourth. The brew was so entirely smooth that I had to suspend my normal disdain for teas that shout at me with flowery and fruity flavors.

This tea is definitely a winner! Although I will mostly prescribe it to myself as a morning liquid defibrillator, I will also be proud to serve it at night after one of my wife’s famously elegant dinners.