Tea Sparrow February 2016 Review

So I'm a little behind. . . there's a lot to do besides blogging when you're a mommy and a full-time career woman, let me tell you (upcoming post perhaps?).  Anyway, this is really only a few weeks late since Tea Sparrow ships mid-month.  I'm working on catching up!

What is Tea Sparrow?  A fave sub in my house!  For $20 CAD per month (including shipping), Tea Sparrow sends 4 different types of loose leaf tea (so yes, you need some way to brew loose leaf  - tea balls are an inexpensive option) - usually a green, a black, a rooibos and an herbal but sometimes they mix it up.  The teas are separately packaged and are each approximately 0.6oz for a total of about 35 cups of tea per month (less if you use a lot of tea in brewing, maybe more if you're willing to brew twice using the same tea).

If you want to try Tea Sparrow, check out this 60% off offer and get your first month for only $8!  When you click the above link, you will be taken to a password-protected page.  Enter "teas" as your password and you will be offered the promotional discount.  Please be aware that this will start a recurring monthly subscription but Tea Sparrow allows you to skip any month through their website (although why would you want to?) and you can cancel at any time.  Enjoy!

It's all Valentine's-appropriate :)

Cacao Mint Organic Tea
Organic cacao tea and organic Egyptian mint

Cacao and mint.  That's it.  And it's pretty tasty too :) This is a bit like drinking warm mint-chocolates, especially with a little milk and sweetening.  I'm often on the fence about cacao teas as they never seem to taste quite as chocolatey as I expect but this one was pretty good.  And who doesn't want chocolates on Valentine's Day?

Market Spice Sweet Cinnamon
Rooibos, cinnamon and natural aroma

Hands down, this was my favourite this month! It's like drinking warm cinnamon hearts. . . and cinnamon hearts are the best thing about Valentine's Day, imho.  Again, Tea Sparrow is pushing me to like rooibos more and more. . . one of these days, I'll stop being surprised!

Cherry Rose Green
Japanese sencha green tea, rose petals and cherries

Roses are a nice Valentine's gift too. . . although I usually prefer them in a vase instead of my tea cup.  Tea Sparrow has sent a few rose teas over the past year and they've been hit or miss for me.  I like lavender in tea but roses can be a little to floral for my tastes.  This one is great though! I think the balance of fruit and floral, combined with delicious green tea is what makes it work for me.  Delicious warm but also tasty iced.

Snowflake
Ceylon and China black tea, coconut rasps, natural almond flavour and almond flakes

Mmmm. . . marzipan? Almond Joy? This is awesome! Especially with a bit of milk and a little sweetening.  This could be dessert for me :)

And here's what they look like out of the packaging:

Clockwise from top left:  Cacao Mint Organic Tea, Market Spice Sweet Cinnamon, Cherry Rose Green and Snowflake

Overall Verdict:

I really enjoy Tea Sparrow! And I really enjoyed the theme this month - they stuck to it really well and everything was delicious as well as thematically appropriate.  Spoiler alert:  March's St. Paddy's Day box does an equally good job at this.  If this is the new vibe Tea Sparrow is going with, I love it!  While some might find this a little pricey for tea, quality loose-leaf isn't the cheapest option to begin with - add in the fantastic selection delivered to my door. . . and I think Tea Sparrow is doing wonderfully when it comes to value!