1725 Tasting Notes
Inkling Advent Day 8. I’m so lucky to get to try all these Dessert by Deb teas – I’ve seriously gone to her website a dozen times considering making an order and never have, so this is the perfect sampler. The factor that has kept me from ordering her teas is that I prefer teas with heavy flavoring, and I got the impression that that’s not how she blends tea. From the ones Inkling has generously shared with me, it seems that impression was correct. Like the others, this one tastes mostly like black tea. I also taste a bit of green banana, but no maple or baked elements. And this flavor profile would seem to call for a more baked type of banana, not green. This was still pleasant (maybe my favorite from Deb so far), just not exactly what I’m looking for.
Inkling Advent Day 7. This tea really did smell like shortbread! When I was drinking it hot, I could taste a pretty pleasant desserty flavor. Once it cooled, the main flavor I tasted was rooibos, which is surprising because it doesn’t make up that much of the blend. I taste a little bit of butteriness maybe, but I wish I could taste maple or baked elements. I’ll definitely drink the next serving of this when it’s still hot!
Inkling Advent Day 6. I received this tea in a swap many years ago before I started leaving Steepster notes, and I remember absolutely loving it at the time. I don’t enjoy it as much this time around. The flavoring is giving me more of a chocolate liqueur vibe when paired with the slightly astringent black tea. Maybe different brewing methods would help, but I don’t really find myself liking H&S teas these days, so I’m not sure. I was still glad to try this again after all these years though!
I actually prefer the regular EG matcha, which isn’t what I was expecting. I think the cream flavoring was maybe a little artificial, and since it was there, I didn’t get quite as much bergamot deliciousness. The second time I had this, I tasted a lot more bergamot, and I didn’t notice the artificial flavor from before. I noticed a hole in this packet from the 2022 matcha advent calendar, so I had to go ahead and make it. The inside of the calendar was quite coated in a matcha mess. Two other matcha packages had burst open, so I had to throw the calendar away to avoid spreading the mess. I look forward to trying the many new matcha flavors anyway!
Inkling Advent Day 5. The peach flavor is candylike and pleasant. I wouldn’t have minded even stronger peach flavoring, but it’s still nice. The black tea doesn’t show up very strongly in this blend. I also don’t taste anything cakey. It was a fun warm cup though!
Inkling Advent Day 4. I don’t usually drink white tea, but I’m happy for the opportunity to broaden my horizons! I refrigerated this one overnight, and the flavor is pretty mild and lightly fruity. I wouldn’t necessarily be able to tell which fruit this is, but it’s definitely pleasant, and it seems that the flavoring used is covering up the tea itself, which is fine for my taste preferences!
Inkling Advent Day 3 (actually this was day 2 and I accidentally drank day 7 yesterday, thinking it said 2 – whoops!) I’ve considered making orders from Dessert by Deb, but I never have, so I’m excited to try this! The flavor is mostly just plain black tea. A lot of coconut and other things are in the blend, but I don’t taste them. Maybe with different steeping parameters more of the other flavors would come out. Luckily Inkling provided enough for a second cup, so I’m eager to test! Even though I only taste the black tea, it’s a nice one, so I don’t mind.
Inkling Advent Day 2 – I keep a box of this tea at work, and this was pretty excellent timing for this to show up since the box is almost empty! I enjoy this one warm with sweetener. The lemon flavor really is like a baked good. It’s not sour, just perfectly desserty. It’s a nice one to have around!
Thanks so much to Inkling for putting together this calendar! Each tea is wrapped like a little present, and I loved unwrapping some rooibos this morning! I refrigerated this, and I’m enjoying it! The coconut is quite fresh tasting and goes really well with the rooibos. I don’t taste a lot of the fruitiness that you usually see in pina colada, but I don’t find myself missing it.
Finally finishing the last tea from last year’s advent calendars, just in time for the new season to start. This was a mini tin, but I ended up sharing all but the last serving. This smells really good, but the chai flavors didn’t turn out quite as strong as I had hoped. I can’t tell exactly what spices I taste since they’re a bit subtle. It’s okay, but I expected more.
That’s what I was trying to do too, but my English Tea Shop advent calendar from last year has scuppered my plans by being so generic and samey that I can only drink one or two cups before I get annoyed and leave it for better, more interesting teas! I’ve still got 8 or 9 to go I think. Oops!
Same here — I’ve added stuff to my cart on her site a bunch of times but have never pulled the trigger! Given the super evocative names of her blends, I’d have expected them to be far more flavorful. :(
So glad it worked out that this was a brand you wanted to try! I just placed my first order from her a couple of weeks before making your calendar, so I had a lot to share. :)