There’s a certain set of scents that I (and probably a whole lot of other people) associate with Christmas. Mighty Leaf’s Holiday Blend tastes like Christmas smells: like the decoration aisle of a craft store in winter, like candles, fireplaces, and red and green and gold glittery stuff. The dominant flavors that contribute to this overall holiday-ness are clove and cinnamon, which led my clove-obsessed cat to pester me the whole time the teapot containing the tea was on the table. (I didn’t give him any of the tea.)
Mighty Leaf’s description:
“Our holiday blend is a festive winter chai. Indian black tea converges with chai spices of clove, cinnamon, star anise, and ginger for a robust, slightly astringent cup. Apple and goji berries give it a slightly tart, mulled spice profile. Great with milk.”
The tea is good, but as the company’s description would suggest, it did not taste good black. It really, really needed sugar so I added some. It seemed like it might do well with milk also, but I didn’t have any to experiment with when I tasted the tea and I found that it was quite tasty once it was sweetened. I liked the peppery flavor of the blend, and I was relieved that it didn’t have the cloying, cheap potpourri flavor that I feared it might have. I also determined that it would have been greatly enhanced by a shot of brandy, which I also did not have on hand, sadly.
It is a very nice tea, and provided me with the unusual experience of drinking a type of tea that I would not encounter under normal circumstances. I very rarely drink flavored teas or blends or teas that need sugar, so it was really interesting to taste this particular tea. It was almost like trying a completely different cuisine, like trying something that is enjoyable, but struck me as not tea-like since it was so unlike the varieties of tea I drink. I think that for anyone who does drink spicy and aromatic blends and flavored teas the Holiday Blend would be quite enjoyable. It would be perfect for drinking in front of a fire surrounded by shreds of wrapping paper and relatives you don’t often see, which might necessitate adding the brandy, depending on your circumstances.