Deep Breaths (formerly Liquor-licious/Pandalicious Liquorice)

Had this sample from bluebird last night. It was pretty good. It kind of reminded me of mother’s little helper. The peppermint definitely dominated, but it was also soothing (maybe due to the chamomile?) I haven’t had straight chamomile tea, so I’m not sure. I would have liked a little more liquorice flavor, though. Overall, It’s a good night-time tea.

I was on the fence about this one last time I tried it, which makes sense to me since liquorice root is basically my nemesis. For the record, I didn’t buy this bag (and it’s a big ‘un – 50g!) I _wouldn’t_ buy a bag of tea this big when the word “liquorice” is right there in the name. No. It was a gift. Because it’s the thought that counts, I’m going to give this one another go. It’s been sitting in my cupboard for nearly a year now, so it’s definitely time.

On opening the bag, I was pretty pleased to see a lot of chamomile. And I mean a lot. Like, loads. Whole flowers, too. There’s also a significant amount of peppermint. And then there are the cubes of liquorice root, but the less said about those the better. It smells nice – like chamomile and mint. Sweet, creamy, like a candy cane. I know what you’re thinking – how seasonally appropriate!

To taste, it’s actually okay. The liquorice is very much in the background, and the main flavours are chamomile (honey, hay, sweet), and mint (cooling, refreshing). I can taste a sticky sweetness at the back of my throat, and it builds with successive sips, but at least it’s not too apparent overall. Still, not a favourite. I’ve left my rating as it was, because it reflects pretty accurately how I feel about this one. I don’t mind chamomile and mint, but I’d like it a lot more without the liquorice.

This was in my caffeine free advent calendar last night. I was surprised I liked it. Chamomile is not a fave. It brewed up very pale, so much so that I let it steep a minute longer than I normally would. The flavor was oddly sweet, but not fake sweet like from stevia. I don’t have a sense of smell, so I don’t taste much, but I could swear that sweetness tasted like black licorice. There is no list of ingredients with this advent calendar, only a brief description. I come here and see it was previously named Liquor-licious. Ah-ha!
I don’t plan on ordering 50 grams of this, but I am quite happy with it. And quite pleased with myself for identifying an actual flavor!

B&B Advent 2021 Day 18 (caffeine-free)

I was thinking this would just be a chamomile tea when I opened it and that was all I smelled and most of what I saw — which would’ve been fine. The initial taste is chamomile, but then the liquorice kicks in. The taste is so weirdly sweet, I almost thought there was also spearmint. I love a liquorice candy, but I don’t love it in tea.

A sample from B&B, thank you!  I never really wanted to try this one, the ingredients don’t thrill my particular tastebuds:  chamomile, ginger, licorice root, peppermint.  I just don’t really gravitate to the first three ingredients, especially ginger and licorice root.  But the overall flavor isn’t bad.  The first steep tastes of noticeable licorice root.  The second steep is surprisingly sweet and somehow almost tasted like lavender.  Maybe I just expect lavender to be in a blend like this at this point. I will say the filled teabag definitely had more than a teaspoon of tea in there, which I can appreciate.  This isn’t bad.. it’s an agreeable nighttime blend… but there are other types of blends like this that I like more, that don’t contain ginger or licorice root.
2021 sipdowns: 122

Oh boy, placing my Boxing Day order on B&B’s overburdened website late last night was a nightmare, as is tradition.

This was a free sample from my summer order. It doesn’t need any sugar due to the natural sweetness of the licorice. I enjoy licorice teas, and this one is pretty good. Not much to say about it since it doesn’t distinguish itself too much from others. I’ll say it’s not an overbearing amount of licorice. It’s pleasant as a nice cold cup. I might like regular grocery store versions a little more, so I’d probably choose them first, especially since they’re much cheaper.

Looks like this tea got a name makeover! I wonder why. At first it seems like another chamomile tisane, but the more I sip, the more I appreciate it. The sip is dominated by chamomile, then licorice comes in with a hint of sweetness, then the mint and they all dance together. I like this more than I initially thought I would.

I’m sipping on this right now. It’s been a while since I tried it. In fact, I may have only had this the once, and that was probably on the day it landed through my letterbox. I seem to have accumulated a whole bunch of liquorice based teas since I purchased this one and I think maybe it’s accidentally become overlooked.

But this is really nice. In the packet I get mostly chamomile, with the hint that both liquorice and peppermint are lurking around, just waiting to pounce. Once brewed, the competition is on! There’s a strong aroma of chamomile to begin with… but no, wait, now I can mostly smell liquorice… no, hang on, it’s all peppermint. Seriously, all three ingredients battle for top spot, and it’s no different when I taste it.

I get a hay-like, honey taste from the chamomile, swiftly followed by a sweet tang from the liquorice, and then I’m left with a tingly, mintyness on my tongue. I should definitely drink this more often. Especially in the evenings – the chamomile is certainly relaxing me.

Once steeped it bares a mint and chamomile scent with no licorice to speak of.

The first few sip reveal a sweet and refreshing peppermint flavour that fills my mouth and softens into a mild (and I stress mild) yet very refreshing licorice flavour. In fact there is more refreshing factor of the licorice than actual licorice flavour. Like when someone walks down the hall and you didn’t see them but you can smell their perfume lingering near by. It’s actually a sigh of relief for me that it’s not too licorice thick or heavy, more of an after taste.

It sort of tastes like I’m chewing gum and sipping chamomile tea. I can’t say if that is good or bad really, just unusual, but that is what it reminds me of.

As it cools the mint becomes a little stronger and the refreshing aftertaste slightly weaker, or well at least my mouth has adapted for it so it’s not as noticeable. So really after a while it’s a creamy peppermint with a slight herbal finish. Now it’s minty enough to be like candy cane.

I could finish this cup but I don’t think this blend is for me. It was nicer than I expected being only mild on the licorice side but it was refreshing enough to be a little off putting. Again I stress that’s because I hate licorice. If you happen to love chamomile, peppermint and licorice then this is probably something you should look up.

https://kittylovestea.com/2016/12/07/bluebird-tea-co-advent-calendar-of-tea-day-7/