Vanilla Black

When I walked in the door of my favorite tea pub today, the first person I saw was Andy, all tan and refreshed looking…back from Cambodia and a long honeymoon!
He was wrapped with Christmas lights, tasked with decorating the shop for the Holiday’s. All the other servers were bustling about with an influx of tea patrons that had just about used up all the available teapots and tables.
I sat on my usual bar stool, waiting and watching. They all know that I don’t mind waiting when it’s busy.
Besides, I enjoy the show.

Today I came to see George (the H.L. owner). I was there to drop off two tea and spice rubs that I created with tea from Happy Lucky’s and some seasonings from Savory Spice Shop.

Eventually, the crowd in the shop thinned out and I was able to order a tea that I wanted to take to my daughter’s house for Thanksgiving Day. I already knew that Vanilla Black was pretty popular with flavored tea drinkers at Happy Lucky’s, so I gave it a try.

Joe had blended the tea with natural vanilla. This makes a big difference in the taste, and I remembered how we had discussed how even natural flavors are tricky. You have to add just the right amount of vanilla especially and not overdo it.

The base Black Tea wasn’t malty, but was a straightforward Black Tea. (I wish it was malty. This is a matter of my own taste though.) It had a full vanilla flavor. The vanilla wasn’t bitter and softened the stiffness of the Black Tea.

Without milk but sweetened, the tea was a bit brisk but good enough.
When I added some cream, I liked the tea better, creamier.

I’m sure my daughter and granddaughters will enjoy this tea on
Thanksgiving with the other tea’s I bring to share. Vanilla is, after all, comforting and enjoyed by most people.

The smell of the tea is lovely and the flavor of vanilla and the tea came through in a nice and balanced way which I found surprising. I find black tea tends to steal the show against other flavors.

Though I didn’t find the tea displeasing to the palate, it wasn’t something I would pick for myself again. Black tea is a very yes/no tea for me and this one is barely checking the “yes” box even with a bit of sugar and milk.

The next cup I brew I will steep for 2 and 1/2 minutes as 3 minutes still had me picking up on a bit of bitter aftertaste.

EDIT: 2 and 1/2 minutes at boiling and a splash of milk added gave me the best cup of tea from this offering, but did not enhance my rating.

I am still searching for my black tea and unfortunately this is not it. I can’t really put my finger on the flavors in this tea that bother me, but I don’t care for this tea. The vanilla is okay but the black tea isn’t my favorite.

I tried mixing the tea with some almond milk but the almond milk actually overpowered the black tea. I think that is because the tea isn’t actually that strong so when you combine it with sugar or milk you have to be careful.

I am not saying you shouldn’t try this tea or that you wont like this tea because you honestly might like it a lot. It simply just isn’t for me.