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75
drank Pizzelle Cookie by Louisville Tea Company
437 tasting notes

2025 Steepster Advent Swap: Day 1

Iiiiit’s advent season! And this year it’s already bringing me a lot of joy. We had to say goodbye to our nearly-16-year-old pup the week before Thanksgiving, and the grief has been tough. We’re riding it out, but yeah… tough. She was my first dog as an adult and had been with me since I was 24 (I’m 38 now). Life without her is just not as bright.

Anyway, I’ve been looking forward to the festive fun of advent season. Michelle was my homemade calendar swap partner this year, and rather than label/number her teas, she suggested a random pull — with the instruction to choose another if the randomly selected tea didn’t bring joy. Well, I love that approach! Happily, my first random pull did bring joy: this lovely cookie-flavored black blend.

I am not Italian, but I did grow up in a state with a large Italian-American population, so pizzelle cookies were a staple of the holidays for me! My Portuguese grandma had a pizzelle iron and always made them for her annual Christmas party. I bet she still has the iron, actually — maybe I could veganize the recipe.

Pizzelles are very delicately flavored, in my recollection, but this blend does them justice, thanks largely to the anise and vanilla. It would’ve been easy to be heavy-handed with the anise seeds, but the blend has just the right amount. I’m not getting much orange, but that’s OK — I actually don’t remember tasting orange in the pizzelles I’ve had.

All in all, this is a tasty, simple, gently holiday-inspired blend that brought back some lovely childhood memories for me. A good way to start the advent season. :) Thank you, Michelle!

Flavors: Anise, Vanilla

9 comments
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Cameron B.
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I’m so sorry for the loss of your pup, and I’m glad advent season is bringing you some much-needed comfort and joy. <3

Courtney
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I’m so sorry for your loss. Losing a pet is so incredibly difficult. I hope the advent season can bring some extra joy. <3

AJRimmer
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Teared up reading this note during a Zoom meeting, glad you can find a little bit of comfort in other places <3

Michelle
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Fur babies can bring such comfort, I hope you have good memories of your pup!

Maddy Barone
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I’m so sorry to hear about you fur baby. It’s so hard to say good bye. Hugs.

Kelmishka
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Thank you all for the kind thoughts; I really appreciate them! <3 My girl was so special and I have many years of beautiful memories with her.

ashmanra
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I am so sorry to hear about your loss! What joy is brought into our lives by our pets, and how hard it is to lose them! A big, tearful hug from afar…

Kaylee
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Such unfortunate news! I hope your memories of her bring you comfort and your grief eases over time.

tea-sipper
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I’m so sorry you lost your pup bud. It’s never easy.

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Comments

Cameron B.
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I’m so sorry for the loss of your pup, and I’m glad advent season is bringing you some much-needed comfort and joy. <3

Courtney
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I’m so sorry for your loss. Losing a pet is so incredibly difficult. I hope the advent season can bring some extra joy. <3

AJRimmer
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Teared up reading this note during a Zoom meeting, glad you can find a little bit of comfort in other places <3

Michelle
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Fur babies can bring such comfort, I hope you have good memories of your pup!

Maddy Barone
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I’m so sorry to hear about you fur baby. It’s so hard to say good bye. Hugs.

Kelmishka
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Thank you all for the kind thoughts; I really appreciate them! <3 My girl was so special and I have many years of beautiful memories with her.

ashmanra
Delete

I am so sorry to hear about your loss! What joy is brought into our lives by our pets, and how hard it is to lose them! A big, tearful hug from afar…

Kaylee
Delete

Such unfortunate news! I hope your memories of her bring you comfort and your grief eases over time.

tea-sipper
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I’m so sorry you lost your pup bud. It’s never easy.

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Profile

Bio

(she/her)

I was an anxious child who didn’t like change, so when my parents flew across the country for my grandfather’s wedding and left us kids with my aunt and uncle, I was a nervous wreck. Our first night at their house was tough. I couldn’t sleep, so I got up and padded into the kitchen, where my aunt was puttering around. She could tell I was distressed and offered to make me a cup of tea. It was just Celestial Seasonings’ peppermint tea, but it was exactly what I needed. The tea itself, the comfort it represented, the ritual of making it… I was enchanted. I’ve loved tea ever since.

I’m partial to strong, intense flavors and prefer loose-leaf to bagged, but I also appreciate the convenience of bags and sachets. I mostly drink my tea straight but once in a blue moon I’ll add a little plant-based milk, generally oat.

I live in Maryland, USA, with my partner, three dogs, and one cat. I’ve actually been a Steepster reader for years and years, but only started posting in late 2021. :)

When I’m not drinking tea (or sometimes WHILE I’m drinking tea!) I’m reading, rewatching comfort shows, going for a run, knitting, embroidering, hiking, or puttering in the garden. You can find me on Instagram at @kelmishka. (My account is private, but feel free to send a request!)

Favorite ingredients, flavors, etc.

Maple (all-time fave flavor!), vanilla, caramel, and all things dessert-y

Jasmine, lavender, violet, and most floral flavors

Most spices, although I go through phases and sometimes get bored of generic-feeling winter spice blends

Most fruity flavors

Matcha and other vegetal flavors

Not-so-favorite ingredients, flavors, etc.

Bergamot (…although it’s been growing on me lately!)

Hibiscus

Overly artificial flavors (banana, coconut, mango)

Overly herbacious blends, although this varies!

Stevia, monkfruit, and other sugar-alternative sweeteners — blech

Chocolate — it’s hard to get it right in tea, though I love real chocolate!

Animal products, including honey (long-time vegan checking in!)

My ratings

90-100: The best! Will almost definitely repurchase.

75-90: Really good, and potentially worthy of a restock.

60-75: Decent, if not terribly memorable.

50-60: In the “meh” range, but possibly for personal taste reasons.

35-50: I’m not a fan, and this is not very good tea.

20-35: Varying degrees of bad.

1-20: Actively bad. Like really bad. I can’t imagine anyone disagreeing.

Location

Maryland, USA

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