Category: Review

Earl’s Sugar Cookie by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$6.00 for 25g

First Impressions

I am a sucker for trying all things Earl Grey and Earl Grey inspired. This is not a secret and I’m perfectly okay embracing the fact that sometimes this means I try weird Earl Grey flavoured things. But when I opened my subscription box from Dessert by Deb and saw a black tea blend called Earl’s Sugar Cookie, I got excited. And I was even more excited when I saw the pink cornflower petals because hello, gorgeous. Earl’s Sugar Cookie comes in a bright metallic magenta pouch that’s resealable. A nice little label across the front. No steeping instructions on this tea sample, but that information was readily available off of the Dessert by Deb website.

Earl’s Sugar Cookie smells very much like what I would expect an Earl Grey to smell like – black tea with the bright notes of bergamot, but I do also smell the cinnamon and the molasses from the brown sugar. It’s quite inviting and I’m eager to dive into a cup of this because I adore a good Earl Grey tea blend with a twist. Earl’s Sugar Cookie consists of organic: black tea, natural bergamot, Canadian maple, coconut, cinnamon, brown sugar, and pink cornflower petals. I don’t really smell the coconut, which is a bit surprising considering how fragrant that ingredient generally is. I do love how pretty the blend is though, I love pink cornflowers.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommended steeping Earl’s Sugar Cookie in 100°C (212°F) water for 4 to 6 minutes. I opted to do an initial steep of 5 minutes.

First Taste

Earl’s Sugar Cookie steeps to a nice deep orange. The aroma is very much that of the bergamot, with the black tea as well. I found that I couldn’t really smell the coconut or brown sugar, but I was pretty alright with that. The tea itself is quite nice – I found the black tea was fairly neutral in the background with some hints of astringency. The bergamot, cinnamon and brown sugar all play really well together – especially the bergamot with the brown sugar. I couldn’t really taste the maple or coconut, but the bergamot is just so lovely and really brightens up the whole cup. I found the cinnamon and brown sugar really made me think of freshly baked cookies.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Earl’s Sugar Cookie twice and had added an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found the flavour to be alright with the first resteep, but really lacking in bergamot in the second resteep. I would recommend Earl’s Sugar Cookie for just the one resteep.

My Overall Impression

I loved Dessert by Deb’s Earl’s Sugar Cookie. There’s just something nice about a cup of Earl Grey tea and the bergamot in this black tea blend is quite nice. I enjoyed the addition of cinnamon and brown sugar and found that it really made me think of freshly baked cookies, so I think that is a job well down in terms of the blending of the tea itself. I will likely have the rest in the form of a tea latte, because that’s my preferred method of having an Earl Grey blend – as a London Fog.

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Cookie Butter by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$6.00 for 25g

First Impressions

Cookie Butter came as part of my Dessert by Deb subscription box, which is just a little gift that keeps on giving (as in, I bought it as a gift to myself and I get it throughout the year). This is an organic tea sample that comes in a shiny gold pouch that’s resealable and has a nice little label across the front. No steeping instructions, but I was easily able to find that information on the Dessert by Deb website. For those who aren’t familiar with cookie butter as an actual product, it’s a spread (much like peanut butter) made from speculoos cookies which has a heavy amount of spice (nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, pepper, cloves) – and Cookie Butter (the tea blend) really does remind me a lot of the cookie butter product itself. It has a lot of cinnamon aroma to it, which I like and appreciate.

Cookie Butter consists of organic: black tea, caramel, cinnamon, toasted coconut, Canadian maple, brown sugar, honeybush, and calendula petals. It’s such a pretty tea – I love the calendula petals in the blend because they’re such a bright, sunshine yellow colour and it’s just so happy and smile inducing. Definitely a pretty tea and the aroma reminds me so much of the cookie butter product despite the lack of nutmeg and ginger. I don’t smell the coconut too much, which is surprising because it’s usually such a strong aroma when it’s present in a tea blend.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Cookie Butter in 100°C (212°F) water for 4 to 6 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions and went for the middle-of-the-road 5 minutes steeping time.

First Taste

Cookie Butter steeps to a nice golden orange colour. There is a bit of an oil slick across the top, but that’s likely from the natural oils of the coconut. The aroma is primarily cinnamon and brown sugar, a sweet molasses note. The flavour reminds me a lot of cookie butter! It has a nice sweetness to it – I can taste the caramel, cinnamon, the toasted coconut has a nice flavour to it, and the brown sugar really rounds out the flavour of the tea by making it taste like a cookie. I would very much think this is a liquid dessert in a cup if nobody told me otherwise.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Cookie Butter, but found that the flavour did not compare to the initial steep. I found the second steep of the same leaves to be lacking in the cinnamon and molasse notes from the brown sugar, so I would recommend Cookie Butter for just the one steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved Dessert by Deb’s Cookie Butter. I think the aroma of the dry leaf and the flavour was very much spot-on in comparison to what I remember cookie butter to taste like. It has some great notes within the flavour profile that really make me think of a baked good – the brown sugar is always a nice touch. I think what would really make it stellar would be just a hint of ginger or nutmeg, and perhaps a heavier hand with the brown sugar or even a touch of vanilla. But that’s just nit-picking and I really want to head south of the border now to get my hands on another jar of cookie butter.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.