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Fortnum Advent sipdown 24/24

This was a decent Green Earl Grey. We usually drank it with food. Not soapy, decent green base.

This morning was foggy and chilly so when three sisters arrived for lessons, I asked the eldest if she would like to make a pot of tea for them to share. (I always set out a cookie plate for them because the girls all have to wait for each other at the dining table throughout the lessons. They bring books, art supplies, and tablets to entertain themselves while they wait.)

They seemed to like it, and when I offered to send the remaining three teaspoons home with them for their other sisters to try they gladly accepted. Thus ends the 2021 Fortnum advent calendar! It was fun! And now it is time to move on to other things!

Fortnum Advent sipdown 23/24

One of my favorites from the advent, and now it is gone! Finished it at breakfast this morning, but determined to try mixing some Russian Caravan I have on hand with some plain Earl Grey to see if I can replicate.

Not too terribly smoky and the bergamot was not heavy or perfumey. It made a nice breakfast tea.

This was a sipdown, and was actually in my cupboard so I got to remove! I have way too many teas that just never got listed…

There used to be a deli nearby that sold caramel apples that were out of this world. The apples were HUGE and they had many varieties, my favorite being the Turtle Apple, covered in caramel, then chocolate, then rolled in chopped pecans, and drizzled with more chocolate. A single apple would feed four. Well, in theory they did but who listens to serving size advice for something as good as this?

This tea is caramel and apple, and I forgive it for having clove. Ha ha! It was delish with a bit of caramel Milka bar and some fresh pecans for my snack between students.

Not even listed in my cupboard? This is one of my older teas and it was a sipdown today. (Yay! But also, boooo, because we really like it.) This will serve as my “tea gifted to you” because I am pretty sure Superanna gave me this for Christmas one year. Probably 1/4 of my tea is a gift from Superanna!

This is lovely at breakfast, and as much as I like Tung Ting from Tin Roof Teas, this one might nudge ahead. It is a little less roasty toasty but has cocoa in the aroma. I have had some DHP that smells like a cup of hot chocolate, and while this one doesn’t go that far, it definitely send little teasers of chocolate scent up while steeping.

A mineral, rocky tingle excites the tongue and makes this tea feel so multi-layered even though the body is rather thin. It resteeps well.

After the cupboard is under a bit more control, I want to re-order this one or something very similar.

This is my “periodic table abbreviation” tea, HE, and we are celebrating helium, the fabulous party gas that makes all your friends sound like chipmunks.

I was so sure that Ashman liked the tea and made a giant pot for breakfast. After breakfast, he said it was too floral for him as it cooled although it had been okay hot with food. I told him it had no floral elements and he usually loves white tea. He decided it was because he doesn’t like pears or pear flavor. Ah well, he loves cinnamon but it wasn’t enough to win him over. He says he will drink it hot and doesn’t HATE it, but it isn’t a favorite and he dislikes it as it cools.

I actually like this one rather more than I ever thought I would. I do see (taste) how the pear can seem floral but I like both pear and floral flavors so….And the cinnamon is really good here and not strong like in Hot Cinnamon Spice. This is more like a baked pear dessert seasoned with cinnamon. I find it nice to sip on by itself and good with food, a versatile tea.
Guests generally enjoy it, too.

I have not been enjoying my tea as much as I could have because I was staying so focused on finishing all the Fortnum Advent tea. (Two to go, if you are wondering. One of them is close to finished.)

With relief and defiance I decided to take up Mastress Alita’s Scavenger Hunt and drink what I wanted. This was my first, and it was really hard to decide whether to use it as my black tea or tea that I would drink every day. But I don’t really drink flavored tea every day so black tea prompt it is.

I was undecided at first what to drink but one sniff was all it took to settle me on this one. The aroma is pure, rich caramel that is so heady, so thick, so strong that I had to have it. I know it is cream and vanilla but it smells like caramel to me.

Then the fruitiness kicks in and makes another layer of bergamot and orange goodness singing soprano over the top of that rich bass line. The lavender is a sweet, soft harmony. The bergamot here doesn’t turn off the Earl Grey haters who have tried this at my house.

I really like this one. Thank goodness this is not yet close to a sipdown. I stocked up on it because it is so good. It is similar to Paris by Harney, but honestly I like this one more.

Three steeps, all combined up front.

My first cup of this was hot and really surprised me with how floral it tasted. I drink jasmine tea with food often, so I don’t know why it seemed to clash so. I decided to have it as a stand-alone cup from then on or iced and sweet, and have been enjoying it that way.

Today was an odd day. I got a phone call mid-morning from my nephew, telling me that my sister had died of Covid. Only my brother and myself left now, and I had to call and tell him. It was an odd feeling. (Our eldest brother died decades ago.)

Somehow I feel shocked, numb, but also very quietly peaceful and very aware that I am glad to be alive. The sunshine was especially sweet, the wind chimes were particularly beautiful, and the tea was so keenly cold and sweet and enjoyable. I don’t think I will ever stop associating this tea with how I felt today.

Fortnum Advent Sipdown #21

I liked this one better these last two times drinking it. I thought Ashman might dislike it since he doesn’t love bergamot, but he drank it happily. He added milk and sugar, I took mine plain.

Yesterday on the after breakfast cup, I felt like the lavender was more prominent than the bergamot, although it wasn’t overwhelmingly floral. Today for the first time, I was able to really detect the licorice root on the last cup, which was definitely cooling and was also taken after breakfast. It is probable that I didn’t notice the licorice root that much before because I was drinking the tea both days with Belgian waffles topped with cooked diced apples seasoned with cinnamon and brown sugar. That much sweetness likely overwhelmed the licorice root, which wasn’t the strongest I have ever had in a tea.

Overall, an enjoyable one from the advent!

Fortnum Advent Sipdown #20

Glad to have another sipdown. This one was easy to do, as it has a Keemun base and I really enjoyed it. The bergamot was a good strength for me. I have Earl Grey Green, Victoria Gray, Elderflower Green, and Smoky Earl Grey to go. That last one will be a sad goodbye.

Fortnum Advent Sipdown #19

Sweet from licorice root, rich with coconut, this one was better iced than hot to me. Finished it off as a big carafe of iced tea to go with dinner and to refresh in the afternoons.

I forgot it had licorice root in it when I made the iced tea and I added sugar as normal. Ashman asked if this had been sweetened and I realized my mistake. Yeh, it was super sweet…but good! I made another carafe when we finished that one and put less sugar than usual so it wouldn’t overwhelm.

All that remains are the Earl Grey blends (four types) and the green tea with elderflower. I am likely on my own to sip these down as Ashman doesn’t love floral other than jasmine and is not an EG fan.