Teaberry's Vanilla Cookie

This morning we enjoyed a brisk and breezy patio breakfast. We felt like celebrating such fine weather, and what better way than to drink a tea that is almost like dessert? Teaberry is our favorite tea room of all time, and we bought this sample on our last visit there. We can't recommend Teaberry's Tea Room highly enough--delicious food, delicious tea, and gorgeous venue.

Vanilla cookie is a sweet black tea blend, with hints of vanilla, that rolls across the palate. Not an everyday tea for us, because it is a bit on the sweet side, but a lovely scent and a smooth flavor.

Steve Smith Teamaster Churchmouse Winter No. 512

We were very excited to visit Churchmouse Yarn and Tea on Bainbridge Island a few months ago, and yes, we bought both yarn and tea. Yesterday, in honor of the winter solstice and the arrival of winter--finally--in the desert, and our 27 degrees Farenheit temperature, we celebrated with Churchmouse Winter No. 512, blended by Steve Smith Teamaster.

We loved this tea: strong yet smooth, a perfect blend of Yunnan. Assam, and Ceylon. The marketing describes it as having a hint of summer fruit, which we found to be an extremely subtle tinge of sweetness--delightful. No. 512 is one of our favorite teas, and one of our best recent tea discoveries. The perfect tea to warm up with on a blustery winter's morning or after a tromp through frosty fields. This will be a permanent addition to the pantry shelf.

Adagio Brigadoon Breakfast

We love old movies here in the parlor, and are especially fond of musicals, and especially musicals with Gene Kelly or Fred Astaire. Imagine our delight to find a tea last year named after one of our favorite movie musicals, "Brigadoon."

We purchased some Adagio Brigadoon Breakfast in 2016, but like the town itself, our review disappeared. Like the fictional town, it's reappeared when least expected. Adagio has created it's own niche with marketing gimmicks like fandom blends and Earl Grey Bella Luna, only sold on full moon days. Brigadoon Breakfast is the ultimate example of these gimmick teas, available only on Leap Day. And dang, if we didn't fall for the gimmick, and dang, if it we didn't like the tea.

Despite the gimmick, it is a lovely blend of Assam and Keemun teas, two of our favorites here in the parlor, made more aesthetic by the addition of Silver Needle. We were very fond of Brigadoon Breakfast and were very sad when it disappeared into the mists. We are Tommy, wandering the heather and missing what we had so briefly. We will definitely procure a larger amount of tea come 2020 so we can stash some for movie viewing and early mornings when the mist seeps around the heather. Or as close as we can get to that daydream in the desert.

Yes, we fell for the gimmick because in this instance, the tea was very good. If you like a strong, hearty tea, you'll like this one. Sip it while watching Brigadoon and humming "Bonnie Jean."

Peet's Breakfast Blend Tea and Specialty's Coffee Shop

Some coffee shops do tea better than others, and Specialty's in Seattle is one of them. They serve Peet's Coffees, well known in the northwest and now available even in the desert, and their own tea. The Breakfast Blend was strong yet smooth, and a perfect way to kickstart a long day. Best part--they put two tea bags in my medium-sized tea so it was good and strong. And I loved the urban decor--open, accessible, modern.

Minor quibble: why do so many baristas insist on filling a tea all the way to the top of the cup, so the hapless tea lover has to pour off water into the garbage bin if they want to put milk and sweetener in it? I spilled tea all over the counter and myself trying to close the lid after adding honey and skim. What a waste of deliciousness.

Twining's Organic Breakfast Blend

Twining's Organic Breakfast Blend is a lovely, mild, and very smooth black tea blend that is perfect for both the first cuppa the day or a mid-day pick-me-up. The blend of Assam and Kenyan teas (which I realize I really like) is perfect for milk and sugar lovers but robust enough to drink black. And for those who are concerned with how their tea is grown and processed--organic, which we love.

Timothy's Irish Breakfast Tea

This hot holiday morning we are sampling Timothy's Irish Breakfast Tea. It's fairly robust, although not as robust as PG Tips, with fewer tannins. It's smooth, and holds up to milk and honey. We're serving it with spinach and onion mini quiches and turkey bacon.