The Jane Austen Mafia

hello, who are you? certainly neither mr. darcy nor elizabeth bennet…. not that that matters, i will strive to evaluate sensibly and without prejudice (just too many opportunities, sorry, well kinda).

Cavocorax has sent me a mystery! dry scent: a blue hued black tea with notes of mallow. twisty mallow though…! very cool. jane austen would be horrified…. i have images of booberry cereal floating through my brain!

i like this! i want a longer steep, and i want to try it with cream…. then i will will add numbers.

i really do get blueberry marshmallow….. let’s see what happens when i break some rules….. =0)

So! My alernator died in my car Wednesday (which was just a horrible day for me in general, but this was kind of the cherry on top). I had just finished up a really awful consulting job that ended up taking far longer than it needed too because of repeated hang ups, and I stopped at my parents’ house. My dad’s on business, so it was just my mom and the dogs and almost 9 pm, so I left after maybe 60-90 minutes.

I get in my car and it seems to start okay, and I get about 2 miles from my house and everything just goes south. First my ABS brakes disable, and at this point I’m like. ‘Well. That sucks.’ Then my dash lights start dimming just little by little. Then my airbags disable and my air conditioning flips off. Then the radio. And at this point I’m not quite panicking, but I am bargaining with my car. “Rememeber all the fun drives we’ve had together? Just a little further, baby.” “I’ll get you that fancy oil you wanted if you get me home. I know you can do it.” Then the headlights just die. From there I’m driving down a county highway, no headlights, keeping my fingers crossed I both don’t get pulled over, and make it home.

I didn’t realise I was holding my breath until I was parked and the car was off. Needless to say, it won’t start now.

I’ve been on an iced tea kick since Wednesday now for whatever reason. I probably have about six thermoses lined up in my fridge right now. It’s pretty awesome.

So, backlogging from yesterday.

I finished off the sample shmiracles sent me of this as a cold brew. And I think I like it better this way. I added a few points onto the score, as well, because I didn’t expect to enjoy this cup as much as I did

I really liked how strongly the vanilla and cream came though. It had a definitely vanilla flavor with almost a milky-flavor quality. The blackberry is really syrupy and it didn’t need any sweetener.

I could definitely see myself picking this up down the road.

My first cuppa The Mafia….. I had been wanting to give this tea a try, as did a friend over the border, so we worked out a swap. There is just something about the juxtapositon of Jane Austen and the Mafia that makes me wonder how Jane would have handled herself in the time of Al Capone…… This one just arrived today. I have to say, it is pretty good. The flavor blends do work, and it almost doesn’t need additions. I do normally sweeten a bit, and this one just tasted better with a touch of sweet. It is mostly blackberry with a light amount of vanilla, even though I could smell some cream in the dry tea. The tea base has a slight bitter edge, but just enough to add interest.

I really will enjoy finishing this one. (They did send a little more than I was expecting, so I have some to share.) However, after sampling at other tea companies, Adagio in general seems kind of average. I do so appreciate their variety, ease of ordering, and that they were my gateway into the vast world of tea.
ETA: I have shared all I can this round…..

If Jane Austen Mafia were a band I’d buy every song in their catalog, and I’d wear my band tee long after they sell out and go mainstream. That’s the kind of dedicated fan I’d be!

Jane Austen Mafia isn’t a band even though it is the best band name ever. Jane Austen Mafia is a tea. A pretty damn fantastically grand flavored black tea! Vanilla and blackberry combine with black tea for a marriage built on equality and true love worthy of a 19th century novel penned by an idealistic forward thinker.

This tea sample tasted particularly sweet because it was given to me with sacrifice in the spirit of true tea-friendship. Teawing sent me the very last bit of Jane Austen Mafia that he had left and it’s one of his favorite teas. Who other than a true gentleman would do such a thing? I owe him a huge debt of gratitude!

Thanks to the awesome JoeCool (Nichole) for sending me some of this tribute to Jane Austen. I am in LOVE with this blend! I’m a nut for anything Jane Austen (well, maybe not the movie adaptations of some of her works), plus I go crazy for blackberry so this blend will always have a place in my heart – and in my cupboard!

I brewed this up longer than I should have the first time around, so I ended up with more blackberry than vanilla. (What a shame.) 2nd infusion/cup I carefully brewed for about four minutes and now the flavor is the perfect balance…although I still taste slightly more blackberry. Whatevs. It’s delish regardless. A must for blackberry fans. An essential for Jane Austen tea drinkers. This one rocks!

Another winner from the Traveling Tea Box! I think I’ve been fond of every tea so far from this box with the exception of the Butter Truffle, and even that one wasn’t too terrible! I wasn’t sure what was in this Jane Austen Mafia blend, but I had read many favorable reviews of it, and decided to give it a go. I was happy to discover that it is blackberry, vanilla and cream. Adagio’s cream is one of my all-time favorites. The dry leaves smelled like maple syrup to me, but the tea itself is all heavy cream with a hint of berry sweetness. The flavor of this one is absolutely perfect – juicy blackberry with a sweet cream finish. The strong aftertaste is of blackberry and vanilla and it lingers nicely. There are also delicious malty undertones that keep me wanting to take just one more sip! This one is definitely going on the to-order list. Thank you, Traveling Tea Box, for making my wish list that much longer! :)

-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves and twigs with pieces of green blackberry leaves.
-Dry leaves smell of cream and maple syrup. Tea liquor aroma is of heavy cream with a hint of berry sweetness.
-Tea liquor is a clear dark reddish brown color.
-Juicy blackberry flavor with a sweet cream finish. Strong blackberry and vanilla aftertaste that lingers. Delicious malty undertones.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Excellent tea. Perfect blackberry and cream flavor with a note of maltiness.

i feel tired and nervous and wrong. off and wrong and i want to go lay in bed and be sullen. i oversteeped this tea but the berries and vanilla are still there. thank you thank you. i want this tea to comfort me. but it might be too tall of an order on such an overcast and drizzly day.
(i think i’m just too hungry and tired and it’s making me feel wrong. i ran 14 miles this weekend,didn’t eat enough last night to fuel my tired muscles, and stayed up until 1:30am because i made lunches for the week and tried to paint our renovated bathroom too late. also i’m out of my protein powder.)

Beware! This tea will give you an uncontrollable urge to read Little Women!

(Just kidding. Sorta. I’m itching to go blow dust off my copy right now.)

Thanks to SimplyJen, I have just been introduced to what could be one of my favorite fruit teas ever! I’m getting more of a blueberry scent and taste than blackberry, but the cream/vanilla punctuation makes this really outstanding.

Hoping I can muster up the self-control to ration enough of this to try a small batch chilled.

Backlogging from yesterday.

Hubby stayed home yesterday, so I used the free babysitting to do my grocery shopping in peace. Coming home I knew I needed a cup of tea, and offered to make some for him as well. I’m determined to get him to a point of asking for tea, rather than me needing to ask him. He said he wanted “something fruity or sweet.” This fit the bill. I made three cups’ worth and we had the first two, but I made myself wait until I finished cleaning the kitchen before I let myself have the last cup. Now there’s some motivation!

I realize I might be in the minority here. This particular blend did not make it into my home because I love, like or even really know much of the work Jane Austen has produced. I’m not a literary buff, let alone much of a novel-reader. Sadly, I just don’t have the attention span. I do love a good blend and if it combines vanilla, cream and some kind of fruit, I’m in!

Second tea of the day and I’m hoping for better results.

The leaf smells promising – My nose is quite happy with the blackberry and creaminess of vanilla. Yum! I already have plans to dirty up this blend, latte style.

Brewed up the regular black tea route (boiling, 3 minute steep), using 4 tsp. for 8oz. I know I used quite a bit of leaf, but I do plan on putting half and half and simple syrup in it. I did taste it pre additives. It’s quite bitter, but not in a spine-tingling way. The blackberry is less noticeable, but the creaminess is still there. I imagine I’d like this without the additions, but with less leaf.

Post additives, it’s decent. I lost some of the blackberry. It’s still there, but more subtle. The creamer and sweetener added to the creaminess of the tea. This version is really comforting.

Next time I’ll try this a little less dirty…

EDIT: As my latte cools, the blackberry is peeking out more! :D