I’m in love.
One of my favorite online tea stores (fantastic service, great community and cool tea ware – though can be a bit pricey), adagio teas, has put together a section of the site that allows customers to make unique blends for thier online tea store . (As an aside – adagio teas seems to understand how to use social media for it’s business model, with Twitter-delivered coupons and updates, video tea reviews and a vibrant online tea community.) With over 3700 blends, there’s not only a lot to choose from, but ample evidence that tea lovers like to experiment with flavor.
But what really won over my geeky little heart was the set of twenty-six Signature Blends by Austin Browncoats, (a fan organization turned 501(c)(3) non-profit fundraiser organization for charities.)
How can I possibly resist Serenitea: Kaylee:
“Goin’ on a year now I ain’t had nothin’ twixt my nethers weren’t run on batteries!” Well, don’t you worry any longer about twixed nethers, because this tea is sheer happiness in a cup. A perfect combination for our favorite ship’s mechanic: a red vanilla tea with lots of wild strawberries. This is a “glass half full” kind of dessert tea, and we think Kaylee would call it “shiny!” (rooibos vanilla, wild strawberry)
Or Serenitea: River:
“You take care of me, Simon. You’ve always taken care of me. My turn.” Once River was able to make sense of the memories that weren’t hers to carry, she was able to see things with some well deserved clarity. And kick a whole lot of reaver butt! While we hope the fruity oaty bar jingle will no longer cause her to go all kick crazy on innocent bystanders, we have a feeling this brilliantly complex character is still a might unpredictable. This blend melds together black teas from different regions, allowing a deep, smoky background which is fused with the sweet, sultriness of caramel and the delightful unexpected addition of almonds. Dark, sweet and just a tad bit nutty, just like River. (ceylon sonata, peach, apple)
or even Serenitea: Jayne:
‘Sure would be nice to have some grenades right now!’ Ok, so maybe not grenades, but how about a bold tea, strong enough for the Hero of Canton? This tea is mostly Assam which gives the cup a nice reddish tinge (and as River notes ‘he looks better in red’). Throw in a bit of chestnut and the smoky, tobacco taste of lapsang souchong and we think we have Jayne figured out: always in a bit of trouble, kinda crazy and definitely an acquired taste. (assam melody, chestnut, lapsang souchong)
Shiny.
The blends seem to be thoughtful combinations that would be a delightful tour through the many varieties of tea even without the wonderfully quirky Firefly theme. I’m hoping adagio teas decides to go with my suggestion to offer 1 oz sizes of the custom blends, since I’d love to try this whole set, as well as many others by fellow tea lovers, albeit in smaller “taste-test” amounts.
P.S. You can check out the Austin Browncoat’s web site here.