Happy Tuesday, tea friends! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are settling into this fall weather that is beginning! I don't know about you all, but I am loving the highs during the day of about 65 and the lows at night in the 50s. It is perfect weather to cuddle up in and it's not too hot to wear a light sweater!
I am sure you have all heard via your social media, or what have you, but recently it has become "Pumpkin Spice" season. Our friends at all your favorite watering holes, whether it be Starbucks, Dunkin, the Dalai Java, etc have released their personal version of their fall menus. While these are definitely delicious, they sometimes are unbelievably high in calories and sugars. We thought a good topic for a blog today would be teas that you could substitute for these drinks that are not so high in calories or sugar, but still taste just like fall!
My first recommendation would, of course, be our Hot Cinnamon Spice. Our Hot Cinnamon Spice is the epitome of fall. It also is, and for good reason, by far our most popular tea! The flavors in our Hot Cinnamon Spice remind me of curling up fireside next to my dog with a warm blanket and delving into a great book as the leaves start to fall outside the window. Who doesn't love the sound of that? These flavors include classic black tea, clove, citrus, and, of course, cinnamon! We also have this tea available in decaf or caffeine free! (Didn't realize there was a difference? Don't worry! I didn't at first either! Check out this blog post to learn more about caffeine free vs. decaf!)
Next, another one of my fall favorites is our Canandaigua Chill tisane tea. This tea is truly what I think of as fall in a cup. It combines what Upstate New York is famous for this time of year, apples, of course, with a variety of spices that mixed together remind me of a mulled apple cider. I personally love this tea hot but so many of our regular customers tell me that it is just as delicious and wonderful over ice! I also hear frequently that this is great for kids! They love it as an alternative to juices or kool-aids, and, just as exciting, like all our tisane teas, it is completely caffeine free so you can enjoy it all day long!
The last tea I'll mention for this post that sometimes gets overlooked is our black Maple tea. When I think of fall I think of the leaves on trees falling and all of the maple sap beginning to flow to be harvested later. Our Maple tea is a black based tea that is highlighted with very evident maple flavors. It is absolutely delicious and the perfect cup to be brewed on a chilly morning or afternoon. The combination of the black tea and the maple notes will warm your soul while the chill of fall and the mild caffeine content in this tea help wake you up! One of our customers that has fallen in love with our Maple tea wrote this review:
"One day I accidentally over brewed this tea by about 3 minutes, and a smoky flavor began to reveal itself. I added some vanilla almond milk to this smoky maple tea and I literally cried because it was the best cup of tea that I have ever tasted. It was absolutely life changing."
After reading this, I had to try it for myself, and I completely concur with this review and highly recommend trying it!
What's so wonderful about all these teas is that if you so choose not to add anything, they are significantly lower in calories and sugar free! I hope you try them all and keep me posted on what you thought! If you have any other recommendations for fall teas or tips on fun drinks like the review above, please let us know! We, at the tea shop, absolutely LOVE your feedback! Stay warm out there! - Kaytea :)