Tea-Riffic! I have found my new favorite, custom-blend tea that's SCIENCE FICTION THEMED!

Two of my favorite things are Tea and Science Fiction. There's this amazing tea company that combines the best of both. I was fortunate enough to have been given a gift card to choose what I wanted to sample, but honestly, after getting my first order, I immediately ordered more because it was THAT AWESOME. 

I'll tell you, when this big ol' box arrived at my door, I was over the moon estatic! 

Look at all of these awesome goodies in this box! Mmmmmmm! I had so much fun taking everything out and examining them.

I am just amazed at how many different flavors and blends this company has! I have tried several samplers: 

Sweet Tooth: 

chocolate chip - Dark chocolate chips melt into our citrusy Ceylon black tea for the ultimate treat. Dense and soft chocolate flavor.

tiger eye - Our tiger eye blend will tickle your palate with rich notes of chocolate and caramel. Enjoy it in lieu of or with your favorite indulgence.

cream - Classic Ceylon tea touched with the flavor of fresh cream. Sweet and warm, pleasantly brisk, delicately creamy.

caramel - Bright Ceylon black tea accented with caramel. Rich dark aroma, molasses notes. Decadent cup and brown sugar finish.

Orchard Herbals:

blood orange - Deep vibrant color and sweet flavor. Hearty with a good balance of orange peel dryness and fruit juiciness.

raspberry patch - Like fresh homemade jam: juicy and tart, slightly sweet, not overwhelmingly tangy and a lovely fragrance.

berry blast - A delicious blend of natural fruits and spices. Bold and slightly tart flavor, with a juicy clean finish.

wild strawberry - Sweet strawberry and sugared rhubarb aroma, beautiful warm color, pleasantly aromatic and not super sweet.

and the Nuts and Spice

almond - Plush mouthfeel, creamy marzipan notes, nutty sweet, balanced astringency.

hazelnut - Ceylon tea with cozy, creamy hazelnuts. Aromatic, slightly roasty with a rounded, sweet flavor and toasty dryness.

vanilla - Bright Ceylon tea with pure vanilla. Soothing and cozy, like warm sugar cookies made with fresh vanilla beans.

oriental spice - A great introduction to spiced teas. Tangy Ceylon tea blended with fresh, herby-sweet spices. Balanced and warming.

All of these flavors are available individually as well. Just click the names of the flavors.

Of the sweet tooth sampler teas, the chocolate chip is my favorite. It actually has CHOCOLATE CHIPS in the tea. CHOCOLATE! in TEA! It's simply amazing. The Tiger Eye is also VERY good. It sort of tastes like candy. The caramel and the cream flavors were also very enjoyable. 

The orchard herbals not only smell amazing, but they taste amazing too. All four of these taste just like their namesakes. The wild strawberry was my favorite, but I loved all four of them. The raspberry flavor lingered for awhile too. 

Finally, of the nuts and spice sampler, the hazlenut is possibly the best hazelnut beverage I've ever tasted. It is so smooth, so clean. The almond smelled as good as it tasted, and the vanilla was extremely relaxing and uplifting. I did not care for the oriental spice as much as the others, but my husband absolutely loved it. His palate is more "toned" for the flavors and spices in this tea. 

I also picked several of the fandom blends to try. It's incredible how many different fandoms they have to choose from! There's Anime, Christmas, Comics, Doctor Who, Food, Game of Thrones, Halloween, Harry Potter, Mythology, Sherlock Holmes, Star Wars, and so much more. I even found some Star Trek blends by using the search function. 

I also got some other samples. I got white grapefruit which is ABSOLUTELY amazing. Tangy grapefruit is paired with delicate, naturally sweet white tea from China to create a wonderfully sour-sweet tasting cup. Zesty citrus flavor, slightly dry, refreshing finish. I loved this tea. The grapefruit was definitely NOT subtle and it was good with a pinch of Stevia. 

I really wanted to try the coconut. It's DELICIOUS! Few things can pull off sweet and savory quite like coconut. And few teas can play with other flavors quite as seamlessly as a classic Ceylon. In one cup, you'll get the dense, creamy texture of fresh coconut with the balanced brightness and tang of Ceylon black tea. This Coconut blend showcases a perfectly sweet, warm and aroma, as well as a soft finish. Such a well-blended flavor, it's like they never existed without each other. I like to add a little bit of coconut milk to it for even more coconut flavor. Oh, it was so good. So creamy and smooth and bright. 

I picked out the mocha nut mate as well. It is one of my absolute favorite teas I have EVER tasted. The mellow chicory-like character of their Brazilian toasted mate is a perfect platform for a favorite indulgence: chocolate! Add a bit of hazelnut and you have the perfect treat. Great straight up or enhanced with cream and sugar. I do recommend adding some sort of cream and sugar to it. I put vanilla almond milk in it and it was the perfect mid afternoon drink. I will be ordering more when I run out. 

I also got Leo as a free sample of their Zodiac teas. It is Oolong tea mixed with rooibos and orange peels. Chamomile and vanilla smooth this zesty blend, while the red safflower is an eye-popping touch of color that Leos can show off to their friends. This was a very interesting tea. It was herby and fruity and actually very good with a splash of vanilla almond milk. 

Thai Chai was also included as a free sample. It's a blend of Black Tea, Cinnamon Bark, Ginger Root, Dried Coconut, Cardamom, Lemon Grass And Natural Coconut Flavor. Woo. It's incredibly strong! It's very tropical though and very good. I liked it better with plain almond milk. If you like lemongrass, you'll love this one. 

After much deliberation, I picked out several of the fandom blends: 

TARDIS blend: earl grey and enchanting black berry with notes of vanilla. YUM! I couldn't get enough of this one when I tried it. Soooooo good. I think it may have been the best tea of the bunch.

TEN blend: Black Tea blend with Natural Coconut Flavor, Cocoa Nibs, Natural Chocolate Flavor, Natural Creme Flavor, Dried Coconut. I love this blend too. It tastes just like you'd think the Tenth Doctor would (okay, that came out wrong). Sweet and a little zany. 

Sonic Screwdriver: This blend is fruity, sweet, and has a touch of caramel. This tea was very unique. It's sort of like eating a lifesaver and a caramel candy at the same time. You've got to try it. 

Allons-y: This black tea is dense with soft chocolate, as well creamy sweet coconut, lemongrass and spice. A touch of more coconut with an accent of pineapple compliment this tea. I wasn't quite sure what to think of this one. I loved the chocolatey notes and the fruity notes, but it was a little too lemongrassy for me. 

Exterminate: Assam Melody, Black Tea, Natural Chestnut Flavor, Natural Hazelnut Flavor. Mmmmmm. This one was really good too. It was nutty and bold, just like the Daleks. 

Yellow Shirts: A nice blend of "yellow" ingredients-Ceylon Sonata, Black Tea, Natural Caramel Flavor, Natural Grapefruit Flavor, Orange Peels, Marigold Flowers. It's pretty good. The marigold is a flavor I haven't tried before and I can't believe I've missed out for all these years. 

Blue Shirts: A fruity blend of Black Tea, Rose Hips, Hibiscus, Apple Pieces, Natural Blackberry Flavor, Natural Hazelnut Flavor, Natural Blueberry Flavor, Raspberry Leaves, Blueberries. This one is nice and fruity. It's really good. 

Red Shirts: A blend of "red" ingredients including Black Tea, Rose Hips, Hibiscus, Cranberries, Cinnamon Bark, Raspberry Leaves, Natural Cranberry Flavor, Natural Cinnamon Flavor, Natural Forest Berries Flavor, Blueberries. This one is a little different, but the heat from the cinnamon is pretty good with the the berry flavors. It takes about half a cup to "get used" to it, but then it's totally worth it. 

What a Night: Black Tea, Natural Raspberry Flavor, Raspberries, Natural Vanilla Flavor, Raspberry Leaves, Natural Hazelnut Flavor. This is from the show Sherlock, and it's my mother-in-law's favorite episode. She said it was VERY good and she drank it while rewatching this episode. It smelled amazing when she brewed it. 

I think my favorite part about this company is the ability to create, order, and share your own blends!. You get to make a custom blend with up to any three of their teas in any percentage (obviously, all of the teas you choose have to add up to 100%) and then add an accent of something such as candy cane or fruit or herbs. I've created several different blends: 

A Fall Evening: 30% orange, 40% candy apple, 30% spiced apple chai, with a scoop of apple pieces

Aw Nuts: 20% almond, 60% mocha nut mate, 20% honeybush hazelnut, with an addition of cinnamon

Beddy Bye Basket: 40% chamomile, 40% decaf orange, 20% white tangerine, with a scoop of lavender

Birthday Cake: 50% rooibos vanilla chai, 20% pina colada, 30% honeybush vanilla with sprinkles.

Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate: 20% chocolate, 70% chocolate chip, 
10% chocolate chai with cocoa nibs added in

Coffee Shop Blend: 30% chocolate, 40% hazelnut, 30% honeybush vanilla with chocolate chips

Deep in the Heart of Texas: 30% grapefruit oolong, 40% white strawberry, 30% peach oolong with lavender buds

Ooh! Oolong: 20% grapefruit oolong, 30% peach oolong, 50% vanilla oolong with pineapple pieces

Romance: 40% chocolate, 30% white strawberry, 30% passionfruit with rose petals

Sensual: 40% rooibos jasmine, 40% rooibos vanilla, 20% earl grey lavender with rose petals

Straw-MangOrange: 50% wild strawberry, 30% mango melange, 20% blood orange with a scoop of blueberries

Watermelon Cooler: 50% watermelon cooler, 10% lemon soleil, 40% rooibos lemon cloud with hibiscus add in. 

They also included an awesome book with my first order. It was very fascinating and very informative. 

Overall, this tea is amazing and it is SUCH a good price for the quality! I definitely will be buying more. 

Here's some tips for great tea in 3 easy steps!

Don't use boiling water for green and white teas. Avoid a bitter taste by following the temperature suggestions on our packaging. 

Leaves: The rule of thumb is one teaspoon of leaves per cup of water. Use slightly more with lighter herbals or white teas.

Time: Steeping tea too long will make it taste bitter, whereas understeeping tea will lack flavor. For best results, time it just right.