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Leave this tea to steep too long, and you’ve got a spicy cinnamon orange in liquid form. YUM.

Thanks to Bradford & Brooke, they sent me a whack of 10? 12? of their teas in little glass vials to try out. I’m enjoying them so much, I keep forgetting to review them.

Need a wake-up call? Then, this tea is for you.

A simple base of Marjoram, it’s STRONG. It’s like I’m literally having a sip of, “Wake The %$&*( Up, BONNY!” as I brew and taste it.

My partner said, “Strong? It’s nice!”

As for me, I’m ready to take on my day.

Brewed 2 tsp in 12 oz of tea for 5 minutes. Water had been boiled and then sat for 20 minutes before using it.

It was tricky to get it to steep as it really wanted to float. I had to push it down repeatedly to get it to really infuse the hot water. I suspect this will be even better re-steeped for this reason.

Also, this looks NOTHING like any marjoram I’ve ever eaten or drank. It looks like fluffy sticks and hairy leaves – white, grey and a touch of pale green in places. It’s truly stunning. Likely why this is imported from Crete.. I was asked, "Have you ever tried Cretian tea?’ Uh… no. Not until now!

Thanks to Teas and Trees for sending me copious amounts of (almost) all their teas to try and test. I didn’t get Love Potion (boo), but I suspect it was removed during the Canada Post process of receipt as the bag was open when I got it.

Very aromatic tea. Flavorful smell, like a creamy maple roasted drink. I wouldn’t have thought maple, if I’m honest – more eggnog than anything – but the description on the package gave it away.

I’ve had this a few times. Someone left it in my box for me during the holidays while living at the hostel, and I graciously accepted the gift. I prefer it without cream/milk (usually in my case this is coconut milk). I find it gets too sweet otherwise, and the creaminess is almost overkill.

Otherwise, a truly decadent eggnog tea. I’m impressed with the blending prowess of Lucas Teas, and some of their offerings.

There is CHOCOLATE in this tea, folks. White chocolate, okay… but it’s still chocolate. Thus, I’m trying it first.

Well, that’s a misnomer, because I’ve tried all of the vials of tea Brooke & Bradford sent me to try out and review. All but one – the vial that magically opened in transit and fully mingled with a few others that managed to keep most of themselves intact. (Caramel Apple, was the escape artist, if anyone’s wondering).

So, Berries and Creeeaaam.

FIrst off, I’m a bit skeptical with anything labelled “Berries”. I’m allergic to strawberries and told the folks over at Brooke & Bradford… but I’m still hesitant. I reviewed the ingredient list. Perhaps? Maybe? “Natural Flavor” can be a challenge to work around. Whatever. I’ll risk it. I won’t die.

I mean… chocolate…

The description of this tea says that Bradford loves cream and berries as his (?) favorite dessert, so this is the nod to that delectable feast.

Did it manage to do it a service? Well…. yes and no.

The cream is definitely not cream, like real whipped cream. However, it’s still creamy and full, buttery and rich.

The berries are definitely berrylicious, and so much so that I downed the first cup in one sip. Yes, this is goood..

Second time I made it, my partner almost drank the whole thing at once, too. We fought for it, he had half the cup in one gulp, and now I’m guiltly sipping the rest.

One note: oversteep this baby. You want the chocolate to melt fully (I found it took about 15 minutes both times). I didn’t get any bitterness that I normally do with rooibos – probably because this is a rooibos honeybush blend.

One more thing? It shines with sweetener. My partner hates “adulterated” tea (read: adding sugar or sweetener). I snuck in some stevia, and this really made the flavors come alive. Yum.

2.5 tsp in 12 oz of boiling water for 15 minutes.

A strong, intensely herbal tea – definitely nothing tastless here!

I have a hard time reviewing this one. It’s not a bad taste, if you like medicinal or herbal teas (I do). I’ve had quite a few friends try it, too. The consensus: “it tastes like it’s supposed to do something”, ie magick, or healing, or otherwise good for you.

Right now it’s in a batch of cold brew with some extra nettle and Throat Coat, because that’s what we need right now.

I need to sit and think a bit about how to review this accurately… the owners of the company graciously sent me two, HUGE bags of tea to review. I really want to do them, and this tea, justice.

Stonefruit, butter and grass. That’s what I get from this tea.

My partner: “c’est legerement corcé, mais c’est probablement le sweetener”. Translated: “it’s a bit heavy-handed with the flavor, but it’s probably the sweetener”. He doesn’t like his tea sweetened. Oops.

I’m not normally a huge sencha fan, but I could easily drink this one daily.

Next steep, we’ll try it dry (without sweetener) and see what happens.

First Steep: 80C, one minute, stevia sweetened, 2.5 tsp of tea, 8oz water.

MANY thanks to Yannoko Tea on Gabriola Island for sending me this, and a few other great samples to try out in exchange for a review.

Right into it – this smells like a dewy, honeyed nectarine dripping all over my face. It’s so luscious and full, I literally fell back when I stuck my nose in the bag.

Brewed it smells more like cocoa, nutty and with a hint of stonefruit.

The flavor is completely different piping hot over as it cools. Hot, (perhaps a bit too hot, I admit) it’s cloyingly sweet, like drinking pure honey from a fruit tree. As it cools, it gets multifaceted – we have honey notes, but strong nectarine still, some cocoa, straw, and back to the sweetness again. The final notes are more honeyed hay.

This is an exquisite white tea, and I’ll go out of my way to order it.

Thank you to teabento for sharing this tea with me so I could review it.

Talking too long, I oversteeped, undereafed and oversweetened this.

It’s still tasty.

I get a malty, thick mouthfeel, almost like a honeyed quality. A touch drying but not in a bad way, almost like it adds to the flavor if that makes sense. Hint of spice (might be the cayenne tea I just drank though), hint of cocoa, something floral, and… fruity?

Honeyed, malty, thinly chocolaty juicy. Yep, that’s about right. Quite spectacular if I do say so, for a severely long steep.

Whoa. This is a bold, complex green tea.

The steeped tea smells like the bagged (not fresh) roasted chestnuts that I get whenever I’m in a Chinatown around North America. This is a good thing – I love those chestnuts! I used to eat them by the bagful… uh.. moving on.

There’s also a lot of vegetal notes in this tea. I taste… peas? A bit of grassiness, and some sweet notes, too. In the description there’s also unami, and I definitely get that as the tea cools, it becomes the primary note.

A lovely tea. Not one I’d reach for every day like I did the chestnuts, although I might if it were piping pot and I needed a green tea.

A huge thanks to TeaBento for sharing this tea with me so I could review it.

This starts out so yummy smelling from the bag – chocolate roasty toastedness. Plus, cute little black sheep curls – I love the presentation of TeaBento’s teas for sale.

This is light, sweet, with a touch of chocolate. Only a small amount of malt, and it’s a thinner, buttery tea. I could drink this all day. It’s smooth and luxurious, without overpowering anything. Even though I normally like a bolder taste to my straight black teas, this one is a daily drink.