Day 10: Bubbie’s Baklava

Hello Tea Drinkers!

This morning Brooke overslept but hurried into the kitchen after hearing the calling of the kettle then immediately punched open door #10, much to Stacey’s alarm.

Stacey: AhhhooooOo!!
Brooke: Yay!! This is one I was really looking forward to.
Stacey: I’m so excited!
Brooke: Wow, there’s a lot of fruit in this little tin. A pineapple, papaya, some apple… I can hardly fit it into a teaspoon!
Stacey: Yeah, reading these ingredients it looks like this tea is jam-packed full of tastes. I’ll get the mugs!

Tea: Bubbie’s Baklava

Description: Just about every grandma has a secret recipe for special occasions. For David’s Bubbie, it’s baklava – studded with walnuts, almonds and pistachios and scented with honey and rose. And no family get-together is complete without it. This honey-scented oolong is an homage to that deliciously nutty treat. With candied fruit, nuts and spices, it’s rich enough to make any occasion feel special.

Ingredients: Oolong tea, roasted chicory root, pineapple, papaya, cinnamon, walnuts, apple, ginger, roasted almonds, cardamom, rose pepper, pistachios, rose blossom, artificial flavouring.

Steeping Instructions: 1.25 tsp, 85°C, 4-7 minutes

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Stacey: It definitely smells good.
Brooke: Smells spicy, like something we’ve already had, you know? It doesn’t smell as unique as its description paints it…

*sip*

Brooke: Oh, but THAT is a new flavour. It doesn’t taste like anything I’ve ever had. Yummy!
Stacey: It tastes like baklava to me! It’s like a liquid dessert!
Brooke: Never had this combination of flavours before, wow!
Stacey: Weirdly, I think I taste the pineapple… and I think it works.
Brooke: Ah, you get where they’re going with their strange flavour additions, do you? We’re growing up!
Stacey: Yum, I’m glad we have a bit left!
Brooke: I wish I had a bubbie who would make me baklava. I can just imagine a sweet little lady making desserts for her big Hanukkah family get together. This is a really special tea- I love it!

Unfortunately time was against our two roomies today and they both had to leave for work before finishing off their brews. Rest assured though, this is definitely a tea for the cupboards, with its rich nutty and fruit blend of flavours, it satisfies the taste buds and the heart!

Tea vibes:

Once again we played with Stacey’s voice-type feature on her phone and here’s what we got:

Stacey: This is such a rush of flavours! You can get there pineapple, the apple, the cinema, mccrimmon; its all real time together. That you remind me so much about a while ago, I feel like I’m taking a bike as a drink 9 and 10.

Brooke:  Totally trade direct. Sometimes weird, but this time is it in the ghetto hand. It brought us um. But it back of that, I am glad we had a couple left in there. It’s mine!

Well folks, that brings us to the end of Day 10! Phew! December is just flying by! We’ll see you again tomorrow (which we are secretly hoping is a snow day).

Until next tea,
Stacey and Brooke

Go have a tea with your bubbie for us! Gut Yontiff!

 

Day 6: Coco Chai Rooibos

Stacey: Oh, we’ve done this one before. That’s not as exciting.
Brooke: Ah come on, it’s been so long! Let’s do it again.
Stacey: It does smell AMAZING. Alright, I’m in.

We made crepes to go along with our Saturday tea, topped with brown sugar, cinnamon and pure maple syrup (sometimes our Canadian roots take over). We also discussed the joys of rock climbing, soup making and making big life choices. A regular morning here in the Market.

Tea: Coco Chai Rooibos

Description: A spicy adventure. If you’re into spice-based chais, this one is for you. It’s got a smooth base of caffeine-free rooibos, and a satisfying kick of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and piquant red peppercorns. Plus there’s a strong hint of coconut, for a slightly exotic twist. Try it straight up or infused in hot milk for a truly fabulous chai latte. It’s the kind of thing you get addicted to.

Ingredients: Cardamom, Cinnamon, Clove, Coconut, Ginger, Natural And Artificial Flavouring, Pink Peppercorn, Rooibos

—

Brooke: Oooh, that smells just lovely!
Stacey: Yes, it’s spicy! Those peppercorns really come out.
Brooke: Oh wait, are you sipping it?
Stacey: It was… it was.. lovely. Just, so warm. And just… envelops my throat.
Brooke: Oh my!
Stacey: It’s lovely.
Brooke: Yes, you said that. *sip* Oh, oh that IS lovely. You get a bit nervous when you take your first whiff of it because of the potent smell of peppercorn and cinnamon but when you taste it, it’s SO subtle and perfect.
Stacey: It definitely one-ups the regular Chai experience. I love that it’s a rooibos, too. It’d be one we could have before bed; it’s exciting but it doesn’t prevent you from going to sleep. Mmmm oh yes.
Brooke: Coco-chai, though? Nope. No coconut. We’ve got another misnomer on our hands!

Tea vibes:

Voice-type feature on Stacey’s phone had its way with our words, and this is the result:

Stacey: I am really enjoying this city on a Saturday morning. Crepes and Brooke and yeah. It has Zachary Novack. I taste it. Call in a house on 10!

Brooke:  This city is spicy yet soft and it will make an extradition to our getting ready for bed routine, which we don’t have. Iphone 10.

After reviewing our previous blog post about this tea, we both agreed that our reviews may be getting sloppy. But Stacey isn’t worried. “We’re having fun as people now”.

Until next tea,

Brooke and Stacey (and Zachary)

Good things grow….

Hot Lips

Hello friends!

Well, after a hard morning of spinning down serum and dissecting fish gonads, Brooke came home wanting tea. I already drank a cup this morning but as I’m not one to turn down tea, I’m living on the edge and having another (I know, I’m pretty wild).

We opened door number #8 to discover that it was a black tea. Opting to save that one for a day where caffeine was needed, we opened door #9 to find our first green tea: Organic Hot Lips!

Tea: Organic Hot Lips

Ingredients: Green tea, cinnamon, safflower, pink peppercorn, chilli pepper.

DAVIDsTEA description: Some like it hot….and some like it REALLY hot. If you’re the kind of person who keeps a bottle of hot sauce on them at all times, this little number will be right up your alley. It’s a fiery green tea blend with a big hit of cinnamon, spiked with hot chilli peppers and pink peppercorns. Think of your favourite cinnamon candy, only all grown up. Mama mia – that’s-a spicy tea ball!

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After giving the tea a whiff, we knew we were in for a doozy. The smell of cinnamon hit us like a ton of bricks:

Stacey: This tea just looks like a scary mash-up of hot things…just look at the colours, so much red!
Brooke: You haven’t even poured in the tea yet silly.
Stacey: But the tea leaves, Brooke! Look at them!

The water for green tea is not meant to be too hot because it will burn the delicate tea leaves, so we boiled our water and let it settle for down to a ripe 82 °C. We steeped 1.25tsp of tea into each of our mugs for 4 minutes.

Brooke: It doesn’t look that scary…does it?
Stacey: It just looks so red and angry!
Brooke: I’m nervous…
Stacey: I don’t think I want to drink it…
Brooke: Stacey!

*sip*

Brooke: Hmm, cool. I think I was expecting a smack in the face of cinnamon hearts but what I get is a simple green tea base with a bit of a kick.
Stacey: The first sip I got was quite spicy, but I think it was because the description made me a bit scared.
Brooke: I haven’t had a green tea in a while, and wow I forgot how nice the taste is! DAVIDsTEA’s description is a bit over the top though. They might be scaring away a few customers who don’t want to have a crazy tea.
Stacey:  The tea is a nice green tea that has that hint of spice when it hits the back of your throat. Actually, it’s like it kisses the back of your throat. Get it?
Brooke: Yes.

With the introduction of a new kind of tea, now is a good time to pause and provide more information about the leaves from the famous Camellia sinensis plant (you know, because we want you to be educated, as well as entertained). Green tea is primarily from the Asian countries of China and Japan and can be prepared in a variety of different ways, even powdered (say what?!). Traditionally green tea is less oxidized than black tea, contains less caffeine (wahoo!), and is packed with antioxidants. Green tea has also been found to help prevent cancer, boosts brain cells, and help prevent glucose spikes (and there are even more benefits found here). No wonder we love green tea!

Tea Vibes

Stacey: It’s hard to write something that we haven’t already said. Honestly, it’s just nice to have a green tea; I was beginning to forget what they tasted like. Hot Lips is a pretty solid tea; I like the little bit of heat if gives you at the end. I probably wouldn’t have it every day because it does have a lot of cinnamon but if I’m in the mood for a kick won’t be afraid to give it another go. I give it 7/10.

Brooke:  The very day we bought the 24 Days of Tea box set, I had Mango Diablo, and THAT was a hot tea, phew. I don’t know if I steeped the mango tea for too long but wow, it smacked my mouth at each sip. With Hot Lips, you taste the green tea part first and then zing- a nice little kick.  I’d steep this tea for longer next time to get a bit more of the spicy because what I got, I liked. If you’re a green tea fan and you want to switch it up a bit, this tea is for you. 7.5/10.

Well, there you have it ladies and gents, another tea in the books. Phew, we’re a third of the way in now, and we’re  excited to see where our tea journey will whisk us off to next. Hope you continue to join us, because we love the company.

Until next tea,
Stacey and Brooke