AdvenTea Days 7-9: A very busy weekend!

Day 7

Chevrons! And music!

Rooibos and Vanilla Flavour, Nerada Organics (Australia) - plus a lolly!

I do like rooibos! I never add milk to rooibos teas, though I often add honey (rather than sugar). But I don't think I've ever stumbled across flavoured rooibos before.

It did have a vanilla influence to the smell of the tea, and the flavour was enough to be noticeable - in a good way! I tried it without honey, to start off with, but I added a little bit before long. I'm not sure how to describe the taste, other than to say it tasted red, but perhaps a bit creamy with the vanilla. It is a red colour, more red than the picture shows. 

If you have read about days 4-6 you may remember that Thursday (day 6) reached 38 degrees Celsius. Friday (day 7) wasn't quite as hot, merely reaching 35. Thankfully a cool change came through and the slight breeze helped move cooler air into the house in the evening, so I had no hesitation over having a hot cup of tea! And then to enjoy the Werther's Original, softened by the heat of the two days, really topped it off!

I really liked this rooibos, and will definitely look for it, so that I can drink it again!

Day 8

A calming parcel for a busy evening. 

Lemongrass, Lime and Ginger (unknown brand) *edit: Madame Flavour

Saturday I babysat my two and a half year old niece. I'm very glad I remembered to pack the day's tea parcel to take with, as I drove to my sister's place at 2:30pm, and expected to not drink the tea until after my niece was asleep. (She likes to 'help' you drink your tea!) And then she didn't go to sleep until about 9pm... So I was pleased to see another herbal tea for this day! 

Once my niece was asleep I settled in to watch a movie, and prepared the tea about halfway through. I did forget to take a photo of the cup though - or my phone didn't keep the photo. I thought I took a photo!

Fascinating smell! I think I could smell the ginger, mostly. A greenish tinge to the colour of the tea in the cup. I rather enjoyed it - definitely a soothing pre-bed drink during an action movie while babysitting! I'd drink it again if offered it - not sure I'd go out and buy it, but as I don't know what the brand is, buying it would be difficult without my friend's assistance!

*Edit: My friend has informed me the brand is Madame Flavour. And that it is one of her favourites. So I will be buying this tea! 

Day 9

Tied up with string!

Australian Morning Blend, Madame Flavour

Would opening a morning blend keep me from drinking this in the evening? No. Absolutely not! I did consider saving it for the morning... but decided not to wait!

Sunday (day 9) included a family Christmas lunch with my sisters and their kids, my Mum, and my cousin and her kids... 13 kids, 7 adults, and a dog! So a rather noisy, active afternoon! It was rather nice to have some quiet time in the evening. I love my family, but I need some space after a busy day!

When I got the tea bag out, it had an unusual scent. Not smoky... what was that smell? It made me wish I had the ingredients list! Maybe a wood or bark kind of smell. An outdoorsy kind of smell! Like making a billy of tea over a campfire. Not sure I've ever actually done that, as I'm not a huge fan of camping! 

The tea retained this unusual but nice scent, and yes, it did affect the flavour. I tried this black tea without adding milk and sugar, but I really do prefer my black teas with milk for the texture! So, I did add milk and half a teaspoon of sugar before long, which made this a more familiar experience, but with a bit of fun added. 

If you like smoky teas, I would recommend you give this one a try if you come across it! I'll be keeping an eye out for it, as I definitely would like to drink it again!

So, a busy weekend, and three different coloured teas! I can't wait to see what the next few days bring!