Almond Cinnamon Brioche by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$6.75 for 25g
Almon Cinnamon Brioche came to me as part of the bimonthly subscription box from Dessert by Deb.
First Impressions
Almond Cinnamon Brioche came in a chocolate brown metallic pouch that’s sealed and resealable, with the familiar polka dot label. Almond Cinnamon Brioche is part of Dessert by Deb’s Bed & Breakfast Holiday Inn collection and the colours have a very end of autumn, beginning of winter feel to it.
Almond Cinnamon Brioche consists of: black tea, natural almond flavour, almonds, cinnamon, coconut, brown sugar, and calendula petals – with quite a few of the listed ingredients being organic. The dry leaf is beautiful – from the sparkle of the brown sugar, the presence of the bright yellow calendula petals and sliced almond pieces. The aroma of Almond Cinnamon Brioche is primarily the coconut, cinnamon, and almonds.
Preparation
Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Almond Cinnamon Brioche in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes and recommends having it as a tea latte. I did an initial steep for 5 minutes.
First Taste
Almond Cinnamon Brioche steeps to a golden yellow. The aroma is strong of cinnamon and coconut. The flavour is sweet, hints of molasses, warming notes of cinnamon, and the coconut. It has notes of vanilla that somehow come through, which really lend itself to having that ‘brioche’ or thoughts of baked goods. All that’s missing is the aroma of butter to really drive home that idea of brioche to the tastebuds. The black tea base provides a bold undertone with light caramel notes.
I did try adding some evaporated milk to my cup of Almond Cinnamon Brioche, to make it latte-esque. It adds a creamy quality to it, but not that buttery quality that I crave in a good brioche bun.
A Second Cup?
I attempted to resteep Almond Cinnamon Brioche, adding an additional 30 seconds to the steeping time. I found that the flavour wasn’t as enjoyable as the initial steep. The first resteep had cinnamon and coconut, but the almond and brown sugar notes were (understandably) missing.
My Overall Impression
I liked Dessert by Deb’s Almond Cinnamon Brioche. This black tea blend evokes a lot of feelings of being in a bakery, of getting to experience bites into a pastry rich with almond and cinnamon. I do wish that there were more buttery notes in it, to really drive home that feeling of brioche. That said, I would recommend following the tip of preparing Almond Cinnamon Brioche as a tea latte.
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