Festive Round Up - Bluebird Tea Co

Hello there,

We hope you're feeling tea-riffic today! Here at Tea With Me and Friends towers we've been sampling more festive tea from the latest Bluebird Tea Co collection....plus pulling a rather special cracker!

 Let's start with the tea....which is called Snowball...

Yes....you've read the box right.....there is marshmallows in there! And cacao and coconut....all blended with black tea! 

Bluebird Tea's most famous Christmas tea blend even scooped a Great Taste Award this year, so I knew I was in for a treat!

This blend includes Ceylon black tea, coconut pieces, cacao bean, cocoa shells, desiccated coconut, mini marshmallows, chocolate chips and red cornflowers and it looks sooooo cute....

Bluebird Tea Co - Snowball teabag

Just look at those mini marshmallows!!!

This tea is brewed for up to four minutes and can be enjoyed with or without milk. I went for it without milk and enjoyed a really lovely cuppa! The tea when brewed has a lovely warm amber colour and smells sweet.

The tea also has a sweet and coconutty flavour, but not too sweet....in fact it's quite hard to describe the flavour. So hard that I took some teabags into my colleagues for them to try too....they also enjoyed the tea, but couldn't describe the flavour properly either! 

It's a bit like a party in your mouth when you drink this tea....it's a bit sweet with a spark of coconut and a hint of chocolate. More than anything it's warming and makes me smile!

Bluebird Tea Co - a cup of snowmall and a dinky mince pie

Bluebird Tea Co also has a creamy Snowball latte recipe on their website at the moment, take a peek here!

This week we've also been getting ready for Christmas by pulling a tea-riffic Christmas cracker....a cracker that contains tea!

Bluebird Tea Co Cracker......yes, there is tea in there!

Each box contains six of these tea-riffic crackers - inside the crackers you'll find a paper hat, an individually sealed Bluebird tea bag and a tea related joke. Perfect for tea lovers everywhere!

Now for the important bit......the snap is great! When you pull the cracker it makes a lovely, satisfying "snap"! I was also impressed with the contents....yep....more lovely Bluebird Tea....

For more information about the crackers pop by the Bluebird Tea Co website.

We'd like to thank Bluebird Tea Co for sending us their festive tea collection - pop back soon to see more festive teas!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Time for a little festive cheer!

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends - we're feeling a bit festive over here at Tea With Me Towers!  Mainly because we've received some quite tea-riffic post recently.....

Festive tea from Bluebird Tea Co

Christmas cake in a jar from Angel's Kitchen

Yep, that's a box of Christmas tea from the Bluebird Tea Co and a scrummy little Christmas cake in a jar from Angel's Kitchen. I love post days like these!

Over the weekend I decided to sample mt first Bluebird tea from their festive range......and to tuck into that Christmas cake too (don't worry I resisted putting the Christmas music on!). I opted for the Mulled Cider tea first, as I've had a bit of a cold recently and wanted something comforting.

Tea & Cake the perfect combination!

This fruit infusion includes apple pieces, ginger, rosehip, hibiscus, cinnamon, cloves, lemon peel, flavour. The blend smells just like Christmas - it's warm and spicy and looks really pretty...

Mulled Cider tea from Bluebird Tea Co

You need to allow this blend to brew for four minutes, but it's worth the wait. Once brewed you have a really pretty cup of red tea (perfect for the festive season!), which has a wonderful cinnamon aroma.

The taste is slightly fruity, with hints of cinnamon. Its a lovely, warming cuppa - definitely perfect for the colder months. A bit like a hug in a mug! 

And I can confirm it went really well with the cake from Angel's Kitchen...

Mulled cider tea from Bluebird Tea Co and
Christmas cake from Angel's Kitchen!

The cake can be delivered to friends or family (or yourself!) as a cute little Christmas gift! It arrives at your home, well packed in a jar with a little spoon so you can tuck in straight away! 

Angel's Bakery uses local, natural and organic ingredients in all their baking. Want to know what's inside the cake....the jar comes complete with an ingredients label and best before date (just look at that date....mine will be gone long before next July!)

The cake has a generous layer of icing on top, as well as a layer of marzipan....

The fruit cake itself is lovely - it's light and moist and full of fruit. A really lovely Christmas cake! There is also plenty of cake in that little jar - definitely plenty to share if you are feeling nice!

The jars are available at £8.95 each plus £3.50 P&P from the Angel's Kitchen Facebook page

The team at Bluebird Tea Co also suggest adding a slug of dark rum to your mulled cider tea if you fancy something a little more warming.....I can also confirm that this is a very good suggestion! 

To find out more about the festive range at Bluebird Tea Co pop by their website......we'll be sharing more of the teas with you over the coming weeks as we work our way through that box!

We'd like to than both the Bluebird Tea Co and Angel's Kitchen for sending us their Christmas goodies! 

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

Belated Tea Review - Autumn at Bluebird Tea

Hello there,

We hope you're feeling tea-riffic today!

Recently the lovely peeps at Bluebird Tea sent us a fabulous collection of autumn teas, including the ever popular Spiced Pumpkin Pie!

Not heard of Spiced Pumpkin Pie yet? It's only Bluebird Tea's limited edition Autumn favourite, which is a spiced Pumpkin Chai. The blend includes Ceylon black tea, carrot pieces, Halloween sprinkles, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, vanilla pieces, flavour......but don't be put off by the carrot, this is a scrummy tea!

Spiced Pumpkin Pie from Bluebird Tea

This tea is light brown in colour when brewed and has an amazing sweet, vanilla aroma. It has a really refreshing flavour which is sweet and warming. A really lovely cup of tea....no wonder it's so popular! Bluebird Tea also has a Pumpkin Spiced Latte recipe that you can follow on their website.

Also in the selection was an intense and smokey Lapsang Chai....

Lapsang Chai from Bluebird Tea

Such a pretty blend! 

This is aromatic, pinewood smoked black leaf  and masala chai spices includes Indian Assam tea, lapsang souchong black tea, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, cloves, red peppercorns. 

This tea has a beautiful amber colour when brewed and has a spicy aroma. The flavour is intense and smokey, perfect for the autumn months.

Looking for something a little chocolately? Why not try the Choco Pops blend....

Choco Pops Tea from Bluebird Tea

This blend smells amazing - assuming you all love chocolate as much as I do! 

This blend includes Sri Lankan black tea, Japanese sencha green tea, cacao bean, chocolate chips, toasted rice, chocolate sprinkles, and flavour. Once brewed it loses a little of it's chocolate aroma, but has a sweet and nutty flavour. 

The final tea in this selection is the naturally caffeine free Rooibos Earl Grey...

Rooibos Earl Grey from Bluebird Tea

This decaf earl grey includes Rooibos, mallow flowers, blue cornflowers and flavouring. The leaves have a really strong aroma - the bergamot smell is very strong. This however mellows when the tea is brewed. 

The tea is a warm brown colour when brewed and actually tastes just like earl grey! It is a very warming tea, with citrus notes. A very enjoyable cuppa when you don't want to drink caffeine. 

This is a great selection of teas for the aumtun months, as the weather is getting colder. To find out more about Bluebird Teas pop by their website.

We'd like to thank the Bluebird Tea tea for sending us this scrummy teas and if you try them we hope you enjoy them as much as we have!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel & Lorna

The Friday Review - Bluebird Tea, the Summer Collection 2016

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends! We've been a little quiet on the blog recently, but never fear...we're back with lots more tea and cake!

Today we have a lovely summer tea review for you....fitting with the beautiful summer weather we're having in the UK (hmmmm...this is a bit of a fib...it's currently very wet in Surrey!!).

Bluebird Tea - Red Velvet & Jelly & Ice Cream

Yes, you've read that correctly....part of the Bluebird Tea Summer collection is Jelly & Ice Cream! The whole range includes Jelly & Ice Cream, Sangria, Strawberry Split and Red Velvet - perfect for the summer months! I was lucky enough to be sent the red velvet and jelly & ice cream teas to try!

Let's start with the red velvet tea....

Bluebird Tea - Red Velvet

This tea combines Sri Lankan black tea, cocoa shells, white chocolate sprinkles, beetroot slices (yes beetroot slices) and pomegranate flowers. The blend is very pretty with flecks of white, red and yellow mingled with the dark tea leaves and cocoa shells. It smells amazing....just like cake!

Bluebird Tea - Red Velvet

Add your boiling water and you get a very attractive, ruby red tea which has a chocolate aroma. This tea can be enjoyed with or without milk....not surprisingly I opted for no milk.

The tea has a rich, bold flavour....again very reminiscent of a slice of cake. It's a warm, soothing tea, which would satisfy a sweet tooth without being overly sweet. It's an authentic flavour, not at all artificial. A lovely cuppa!

The second tea is a rooibos blend called Jelly & Ice Cream....

Bluebird Tea - Jelly & Ice Cream

This blend includes rooibos, vanilla, strawberries and elderberries.....and really smells like strawberries and cream when you open the packet! The aroma made my mouth water and made me smile....surely a sign of a great beverage!

Bluebird Tea - Jelly & Ice Cream

This blend can be enjoyed hot or cold - on this occasion I opted for hot. The tea is a pretty amber colour when brewed and smells just like strawberries! It's a really fun tea, which reminds me very much of jelly and ice-cream. The flavours are strawberry and vanilla, with creamy hints. 

I can't wait to try this as a cold drink!

For more information about the Bluebird Teas pop by their website

Bluebird Teas - The Summer Collection 2016

I'd like to thank the team at Bluebird Teas for sending us these teas to try - it's always great to sample new and exciting blends. Please remember that this hasn't effected our taste buds though, and all opinions expressed in this post are our own.

Have you tried any of the summer collection yet - we'd love to hear what you think. Get in touch and leave us a comment below with your favourite!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel & Lorna

The Friday Review - BlueBird Tea....The Christmas Edition Part 2!

Hello there,

Happy Friday! Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends. This week we are bringing you another two Christmas teas from the BlueBird Tea Company. Last week we featured White Christmas and Mulled Wine....this week we have Christmas Cake and Gingerbread Chai (which were the two samples that BlueBird sent me).

Let's start with the Christmas Cake blend.....

Christmas Cake - BlueBird Tea Co

This black tea is the ultimate Christmas tea I think....just look at those leaves....there is some Christmas tree in there as well as the cute little snowflakes!

The blend includes Ceylon black tea, vanilla pieces, almond pieces, cinnamon, cloves, orange peel, spruce needles and snowflake sprinkles! 

It looks really exciting when you first see the leaves and the aroma is rich and cakey!

Christmas Cake - BlueBird Tea Co

Brew this tea for four minutes and it can be served with or without milk.....I opted for without tea.

Once brewed the aroma got stronger and the tea itself was a dark amber colour. The flavour was quite amazing....it was sweet and warming and very reminiscent of Christmas Cake! I thoroughly enjoyed this cup and was quite sad that I only had enough leaves for one cup!

Finally we have the Gingerbread Chai which is a rooibos blend....

Gingerbread Chai - BlueBird Tea Co

This blend features rooibos, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger and mallow flowers - it has a spicy aroma and is very pretty.

This tea should be served for at least four minutes and can be served with or without milk....this time I opted for milk! Once brewed this tea had an almost biscuity aroma...

Gingerbread Chai - BlueBird Tea Co

This is a very warming cup of tea and I could taste the ginger more than I could smell it. I did have a taste before I added the milk and I think I preferred the tea with milk as it had a creamier flavour.

To find out more about these Christmas blends pop by the BlueBird Tea website!

Christmas Teas from BlueBird Tea Co

I really enjoyed trying all four Christmas teas from BlueBird Tea and might have indulged in the odd mince pie during the tasting. My favourite blend was the Christmas Cake tea - tea, cake and Christmas all in one cup!

If you try any of the BlueBird Tea Christmas Teas this year we'd love to hear what you think....which is your favourite blend?

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

The Friday Review....BlueBird Tea - the Christmas Edition!

Hello there,

Welcome back to Tea With Me and Friends. Today is Friday so that means one thing....its time to share another tea or two with you!

This week we've got a little festive and tried some of the fab Christmas teas from BlueBird Tea. If you've popped by before you'll know we've featured BlueBird Tea previously and were impressed by the inventive blends on offer. So this time we decided to give their Christmas teas a try.....

Christmas Teas - BlueBird Tea Co

 BlueBird Teas have several different blends to pick from this Christmas, and I opted to buy the Mulled Wine and White Christmas varieties....and BlueBird Tea surprised me with samples of the Christmas Cake and Gingerbread Chai to try. 

This week I am going to feature the Mulled Wine and White Christmas blends....you'll have to pop back next week to see the other two teas!

Now I love a cup of Mulled Wine at Christmas time, you can't beat a warming cup on a cold winter evening.....so you can imagine how happy I was when I saw this blend!

Mulled Wine - BlueBird Tea Co

This is a fruity tea featuring Hibiscus, Rosehip, Apple pieces, Lemon pieces, Orange peel, Orange flowers, Cloves and Cinnamon. It should be brewed for at least four minutes get to get maximum flavour and should be served without milk.

The aroma from the blend is mouth watering and immediately made me think of Christmas time!

Mulled Wine - BlueBird Tea Co

Once brewed the tea is a pretty ruby red colour...again just like Mulled Wine and the aroma was still strong.

The taste however wasn't as strong as I had hoped. It's a really lovely cup of tea, warming and spicy, but it lacked some of the punch of a traditional cup of mulled wine (although the kick is probably from the alcohol!).

The White Christmas blend is a white tea which has been blended with chocolate and cherries....

White Christmas - BlueBird Tea Co

This limited edition Christmas tea features Chinese white tea, Apple pieces, Hibiscus, Rosehip, White chocolate vermicelli, Cocoa shells, Morello cherries and Rose petals. It should be brewed for three minutes and served without milk.

The leaves have a very distinct cherry aroma and I love that you can see the white chocolate sprinkles. I couldn't wait to try this tea!

White Christmas - BlueBird Tea Co

Once brewed this tea is a light red colour and has a shimmery finish......just like snow!

The aroma of cherries intensifies once the tea has brewed and the tea has a wonderful creamy, cherry flavour. It's a very light and delicate tea.

To find out more about these teas pop by the BlueBird Tea website, and don't forget to pop back next week to see the Christmas Cake and Gingerbread Chai blends!

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel

The Friday Review - Bluebird Tea

Hello there,

It's Friday....that means you must be here for one thing....it's time for another Friday Review!

If you remember a couple of weeks ago we tried some rather cakey blends from the Bluebird Tea Company....well this week we have another three of their teas....and these are all rather different!

So, this time from Bluebird Tea we have....Smoky Russian, Candy Floss and Hot Cross Buns....(yep, you read that right...candy floss!).....

Bluebird Tea

So let's begin with the Smoky Russian, which is a Lapsang Souchong tea, the blend includes  Formosa oolong tea, Lapsang Souchong tea, Mao Feng Keemun tea and as the name suggests...is smoked....

Bluebird Tea - Smoky Russian

To be honest I'm not that great with smoky things....I have a sweeter taste palate and naturally veer away from anything smoked normally - so it was good to step outside of my comfort zone. 

The aroma from both the leaves and the brewed tea is definitely smoky, but don't let this put you off if you prefer more mellow brews like me. The tea has a really refreshing taste with a light smoky aftertaste, definitely not as smoky as I thought it might be.

The next one I tried was the limited edition Hot Cross Bun tea....

Bluebird Tea - Hot Cross Bun

A very pretty bag of leaves, this is a Rooibos and black tea blend, combined with lots of fruity pieces and cinnamon. The aroma really reminded me of baking hot cross buns...with lots of cinnamon and fruit....it actually made my mouth water!

Bluebird Tea - Hot Cross Bun

This blend included Rooibos, Sri Lankan black tea, Cinnamon, Hibiscus, Apple pieces, Rosehip, Orange peel, Lapsang Souchong tea, Vanilla pieces, Cranberry pieces, Flavour.

It was a real delight to both brew and drink, leaving my kitchen with a lovely fruity aroma. Even the colour of the tea reminded me of hot cross buns! As for the taste....well it was warming, fruity and thoroughly enjoyable! It reminded me a little of Christmas time!

Finally we have the most unusual tea...Candy Floss...which believe it or not is a white tea....

Bluebird Tea - Candy Floss

Yep, there are hundreds and thousands sprinkles in there....so pretty!

This blend is quite impressive in it's ingredient list....including....White Chinese tea, Hibiscus, Apple pieces, Elderberries, Rosehip, Pineapple pieces, Red cornflowers, Stevia, Strawberry pieces, Blue cornflowers, Hundreds and Thousands Sprinkles, Flavour.

The tea smells like sweets....very different for a cup of tea, and it produces a beautiful ruby tea when brewed.....

Bluebird Tea - Candy Floss

I'm not sure I can describe the taste of this tea...it's sweet and kinda fruity...you really need to try it for yourself to see what I mean...it's definitely like no other tea I have tried before! I think I will try this as a cool brew next, as I think it might make a lovely summer drink.

All three cups were enjoyable in their own unique ways. Bluebird Tea has an impressive collection of teas on offer, I will definitely be trying some more.

We would like to thank Bluebird Tea for sending us these teas to try....however please remember that although we have received these teas for free, it has not affected my taste buds and all opinions expressed are our own!

Don't forget to take a peek at the Bluebird Tea website to see more of the teas on offer!

So, over to you....have you tried any of the Bluebird Teas? Which is your favourite?

Thanks for popping by today,

Rachel

The Friday Review....Bluebird Tea

Hello there,

It's Friday again and that means one thing here at Tea With Me and Friends.....yes it's time to share our latest tea tasting. This time we have something rather special to share with you from the lovely people at the Bluebird Tea Co.

The Bluebird Tea Co had been recommended to us by some lovely people Twitter and when I heard their teas had names like Strawberry Lemonade Tea and Honey Bee Beautiful Tea I knew we had to try these teas for ourselves!

Krisi and Mike set up and run the company, and they are clearly passionate about how innovative, fun and versatile tea can be - their motto is ‘spreading happiness, one cupful at a time.’ The Bluebird Tea Co  specialises in developing unique and creative flavours of tea.

We were sent a lovely variety of teas...including some perfect for an afternoon tea blog....take a look at these....

Bluebird Tea Co

Yes, that is Black Forest, Vicky's Sponge Cake and Cherry Bakewell! I couldn't wait to try these three! So I got some of my pretty teacups out and got ready for a cakey tea experience!

I began with the Black Forest tea....

Bluebird Tea Co - Black Forest

Now I have spent quite a bit of time in Germany, visiting the Black Forest a couple of times and yes enjoying real Black Forest gateaux and so I was really keen to try this tea out. So, whats in this blend I hear you say....well it has a black tea base but also features.... Cocoa shells, Hibiscus, Apple pieces, Elderberies, Raspberry pieces,Strawberry pieces, Blackberries, Cranberry pieces (cranberry, sugar, rice flour, vegetable oil (sunflower) Vanilla pieces, Sunflower and calendula petals, Blackberry leaves.

As you open the packet you are immediately hit by the mouth watering aroma of cherries....honestly my mouth watered! I allowed about a teaspoon of this pretty blend to brew for about four minutes and then I enjoyed the tea without milk.....

Bluebird Tea Co - Black Forest

Once brewed I had a lovely reddy-brown coloured tea that smelt of chocolate and cherries - the boiling water really brought out cocoa shells. Each mouthful is full of flavour - it's a sweet, chocolaty, fruity tea...in fact I forgot that it is actually a black tea at heart!

Next I moved onto Vicky's Sponge Cake....

Bluebird Tea Co - Vicky's Sponge Cake

Inspired by a good old fashioned Victoria Sponge cake this blend includes Ceylon black tea, Coconut, Strawberry granules, Freeze dried raspberries, Raspberry leaves. When you first open this packet you can smell the delicate aroma of vanilla and coconut...again my mouth watered!

Again I used a teaspoon of leaves and drank the tea black (I'm not a fan of milky tea)....

Bluebird Tea Co - Vicky's Sponge Cake

I love this tea...there I've said it out loud...this light golden brown brew was sweet and refreshing, with a light coconut aftertaste. 

There was nothing overpowering or artificial about this cuppa and I found it to be a really comforting cup of tea.

Finally it was time for the Cherry Bakewell...

Bluebird Tea Co - Cherry Bakewell

Just look at that pretty blend - the colours are just lovely and the aroma is sweet - full of almonds and cherries!

Now this is slight different to the first two as it's a white tea which has been combined with Apple, Rosehip, Hibiscus, Cornflowers (red + blue), Almond pieces, Currants, Cranberry pieces, Flavour.

I brewed this for slightly less time and ended up with a rather pink cuppa....

Bluebird Tea Co - Cherry Bakewell

Once brewed I could still smell the almonds, but the taste was much more fruity. There was almost a sweet and sour taste to this cuppa, I think this might have been the apples. It definitely reminded me of a lovely cherry bakewell and I would like to try this as a cold brew.

Bluebird Tea Company tea tasting

What a wonderful selection of teas to try! Plus we have three more to share with you in another Friday Review in a couple of weeks time! If you'd like to know more about these teas or discover some of the other 50+ blends that they have created please visit the Bluebird Tea Co website. If you are feeling really inspired and fancy having a go at creating your own mix you could try a mixology class!

A huge thank you to Bluebird Tea Co for sending us these scrummy samples. Please note that although we have received complimentary samples, they have not affected our taste buds and all opinions expressed here are our own.

So, over to you....have you tried any of the Bluebird Teas? Which is your favourite?

Thank you for popping by today,

Rachel