Bird & Blend Tea : Advent Calendar Revew

I don’t think it’s a secret that I whole heartedly love the Bird & Blend brand. 

I love their flavours. I love their commitment to making reusable or recyclable packaging. I love how they market for everyone from the newbie to the experienced tea lover. 

What I don’t love is how they are located on another continent. 

Last fall I began seeing their marketing on Instagram and Facebook about their Halloween countdown but then they starting promoting their Christmas advent boxes and I KNEW I had to order. I got both the Halloween countdown and their special Tea Lovers Advent. 

The shipping was very fast through DHL. The original price of the Christmas advent was $49 USD plus conversion to CAD plus duty and import fees. 😵‍💫 Yikes, I started thinking maybe I shouldn’t have done that. But I did, and there was no turning back and as soon as I’d received them I knew I treated myself well. 

The Halloween countdown was GLORIOUS and if you’d like a review of that on its own let me know. 

What I always feel is important that with a lot of European brands they curate in smaller amounts than what we’ve come to expect in North America.  For instance, one B&B tea bag makes 6-8 ounces of tea so if you use a large mug which is often the case in my house you need at least two tea bags for one cup and then you have to prepare yourself that it still may not be as strong as you are accustomed. There were 2 teabags behind every door of the 24 day Christmas advent calendar. Sometimes I used both and sometimes I only used one, depending on the cup I was using. So…the cup makes all the difference!

It’s a dream to visit the UK so it was very special that the Tea Lovers version of their calendar included blends that are curated especially for their different Bird & Blend locations and what their best sellers are. At first it seemed weird to have a tea from the seaside in something Christmas themed but I soon appreciated it because these boxes are so carefully curated with everything in mind so the holiday flavours soon followed. My favourite may have been the Christmas Cake or Mince Pie flavours.  I don’t know how they do that but they taste EXACTLY like the real thing. 

There was a terrific balance between caffeine and decaf tea blends. That made it easy to decide when or how I was going to drink each day. There were instructions on the box for making regular tea or lattes or whatever they recommended. Each tea tag had clear details of whether it had caffeine and if you should use milk or not and even if it should be enjoyed hot or cold! 

Bird and Blend just does it right. They had a digital advent option for each calendar which took you to a special page which had details on each tea, the ingredients and tips on how it’s best enjoyed. They also had a downloadable tea tasting journal! I admit that I tried to keep up with it but I just lost track…

Would I buy this again? OHMYGOD YES! Sadly, due to the cost of shipping it’s not likely it’s going to be soon though. I’m glad I purchased it and fully enjoyed it. Yes I’d recommend it to everyone but beware there could be extra fees depending on where you live…

…but maybe you live right there and can enjoy Bird & Blend whenever your heart desires. 

Lucky you!

I hugged it…I seriously did!

Advent Adventures 2023

Every company seems to have an Advent Christmas Countdown Calendar of some kind these days. I really enjoy finding out what little present lies behind each window leading up to the big day. So what calendars did I purchase for this years holidays? Read on!

The first calendar I purchased was from The Body Shop. I had gotten one last year and it helped me to relearn how to relax and take care of myself. As with everything the prices have gone up and this year I purchased the smaller version. It’s called The Advent of Change and comes in lovely blue packaging. The display isn’t as stunning as the larger version but the smaller rings in at $95 CAD. I purchased it back at the end of September and used my birthday rewards coupon for it. It says it’s a value of $181 so we will see when I get to start opening on December 1st. 

The second countdown calendar I got was from Bird and Blend. I TOTALLY splurged on this and for those reasons I’m not going to include all the extra fees I paid. As well I had ordered the Halloween countdown at the same time so charges were a bit more. I LOVED this one from a few years ago. The packaging is 100% recyclable and very festive. The main Tea Advent Calendar is priced at $49 USD. However, the one I purchased was specially curated for the tea lover and Bird and Blend customer. It’s called the Ultimate Tea Lover’s Advent Calendar and lucky comes in at the same price of $49 USD. They also have a Matcha calendar!

That was going to be it, but just this afternoon I found a coffee 12 Days of Christmas. I purchased the Grove Place Market keurig cup coffee countdown at Peavey Mart for $18.99 CAD. It does not appear on the Peavey Mart website but similar boxes seem to be available elsewhere. The cashier said they were also waiting on a hot chocolate one. 

Okay, but what about your husband? You can’t forget your husband! 

Right you are. I have found 2 calendars for him this year. The first is the Walkers Shortbread calendar which is a 24 day countdown. I originally ordered from Tea At The White House but they sold out twice. Since I’ve been informed it can be found at London Drugs and a few other retailers. I spent $40 but apparently they can range in price. 

The other countdown I got for my husband I stumbled upon. I bought it at Canadian Tire for $24.99 CAD.  It’s the National Lampoons 12 Days of Jelly Advent Calendar.  We had the Bonne Maman calendar last year and really enjoyed it. This quirky calendar has repeats, comes with a knife and I’d say the packaging is a real “beaut”. 

There you have it. My countdown extravaganza. 

Only 6 days to go!

T.Kettle Tea : Advent Calendar Review

I know what you're saying...

It's not Christmas.

True!  While I'm sitting here anxiously awaiting to open the first door on my Bird & Blend Halloween calendar I thought I should offer an update for the future holiday season!  I've pretty much been mute on this blog page for several months and really enjoy sharing in a new/old way what I've been up to.  I really loved catching up with everyone in this format last Christmas so maybe this is a hint as to what's to come... 

T.Kettle is a Canadian "born and owned" tea company.  Their website states their priority is wellness combined with flavour and great tea.

T.Kettle opened in several of the abandoned David's Tea locations and I was pleased to have another Canadian tea retailer easily accessible.  That was until September when I discovered the location I often visited had closed up shop and the only location still open in my city is in a shopping mall I rarely visit.

I've never found their website very current or easily navigable.  I think this company could be more popular if this was updated and had a more user friendly layout.  I don't have a background in this.  I'm just a girl who likes tea and occasionally shops online.  

This Advent Calendar was the 2022 version.  I don't see one available for this year but like I said above, their website isn't 'great'.  It originally retailed for $49.99 but I purchased it in March of 2023 on clearance for $29.99.  The design is very similar to other calendars.  It has 24 days of tea in each drawer.  Each day consists of a small metal container which has a portion of loose tea for about 2 cups.  What I liked most was that each drawer had not only the name of the tea, but the ingredients as well as brewing instructions and caffeine level.

I was very pleased that there was a large amount of caffeine free options in this Advent Calendar.

My favourite flavour was the Fruit Cake because to me those are the flavours which sum up the holiday season.  In September which is when I decided to indulge in this calendar I was sad to find out that a lot...and I mean, A LOT of flavours in this sampler were discontinued so I couldn't find them again even if I wanted to.  That's not terribly unusual but if this was your first connection to the T.Kettle company it would be nice to be able to stock up on your favourites.  How long before I drank them had they been discontinued?  There's no way to tell.

Previous to this, their Gingerbread Cookie tea is the BEST, hands down, that I've ever tasted.

The over all appearance and design of the T.Kettle Advent was very nice and it sat in my kitchen easily and didn't take up a lot of space.  The construction was cardboard or thick paper with a magnetic door.  I'm sure my first David's Tea calendar was similar.  I recycled the whole thing including the small metal cups which held the tea.

Would I buy this again?  Yes I would.  If it were available.  At this time in October when many of the companies have posted their upcoming Advent Calendars you'd think if it was available for this season it would be out there too, but I don't see a mention of it anywhere.  Maybe keep your eyes peeled on their social media for such an announcement.

Advent Calendar Reviews

This is a comprehensive table of contents or appendix of all the Christmas Advent Calendars and Countdowns in one easy to find place.

The Body Shop

Tea at the White House

Bonne Maman

President's Choice

Ilchester Cheese

T.Kettle Tea

The Body Shop 2023

Bird & Blend

Christmas Vacation Jelly of the Month Club

Walkers Shortbread

Grove Place Market 12 Cups of Joy

President's Choice : Advent Calendar Review

I picked up the President's Choice Advent Calendar on a whim.  I did not need another calendar in the slightest because I had three for the 2022 Christmas season.  It was on sale and was only $12.  There's no way I could leave the store without it.

I tucked it away until after the holidays were all over.

It was January when I decided to take it out and open it up.

The President's Choice Calendar was a light cardboard which unfolded to reveal all the numbered days.  It included a string so that it could be hung in the kitchen for easy access and to decorate for the holidays.  The calendar was 24 days but there were some duplicate flavours.  Each day was a single teabag in it's own package.  Behind the tea package was a quote for the day.  What really impressed me was that each tea package included a list of ingredients, whether it was caffeine free or not and brewing instructions.  This impressed me because tea advent calendars which I've spent far more money on didn't include these things. Bravo!

As I stated, the calendar was 24 days and I spent $12 on it (which is actually rounded up).  That breaks down to 50 cents per cup.  That's an excellent value!

My favourite flavours included Ginger Peach, Feeling Soothed, Dreamland, Lemon Ginger, Spiced Apple, Chocolatey Chai and Feeling Calm.  Honestly, I found something to like and enjoy in each flavour.  I even purchased a box of Ginger Peach and Feeling Calm.  I can see myself purchasing some of these other flavours as well.  A box of President's Choice tea is very affordable and you won't feel guilty for having them in your tea cupboard.

Would I buy this President's Choice Tea Advent Calendar again?  You bet!  Next time, I'd even enjoy it during the holidays instead of after the New Year.

Bonne Maman : Advent Calendar Review

We be Jammin'.  That's the lettering I had on my music classroom wall a few years ago but it's also a fitting phrase for this blog post about Bonne Maman jam or preserve and this review of the Advent Calendar I purchased this Christmas season.

This first came onto my radar in 2021 when I viewed Tea With Jann on YouTube.  She had videos of all her calendar openings and Bonne Maman was one of them.  It looked so nice and different and I knew I had to try it out as well.  I do love jam.

I purchased this Advent Calendar from Papa Jack Popcorn which is a Canadian candy company and distributer from Ontario.  The calendar itself was $48.99 and the cheapest shipping was an additional $24.26 so the total was $73.15.  The communication with Papa Jack was terrific and it arrived well protected which I was a tad bit worried about since its all glass jars.  Now, had I known that I would start seeing this calendar at different retailers I could have saved the shipping cost.  I didn't find them locally until December though so if you are impatient like me then ordering from Papa Jack Popcorn comes well recommended.

This Bonne Maman Advent Calendar was 24 days and included 23 preserves and 1 honey.  That breaks down to $2.04 a jar.  The jars are approximately 6 tablespoons of jam which was plenty for Hubby and myself to spread enough on our English muffins which is how we preferred to sample each flavour.  This was our breakfast for all of December.

The great part of this calendar was that I was exposed to many different flavours which I would have never picked out in the grocery store.  I tend to buy strawberry or orange marmalade but I got to enjoy a wide range of flavours and even found some new fruits! My favourite flavours included fig and cherry and even though I'm not a big fan of honey I thought their honey was terrific spread over peanut butter.  So if you desire to try some flavours which you wouldn't ordinarily then next holiday season you should give this countdown a try.

What I didn't like about this calendar is actually a very small detail.  The jars are incredibly hard to pry out of their windows.  I appreciate that the jars have to be secure for shipping but I would have to struggle to get the jars out of their holding spots.  The cardboard calendar itself was sturdy and was easy to recycle.  I've kept the jars but so far am at a loss as to what to do with them.  They would be handy for storing small amounts of crafting items like tacks or buttons and likely even for small amounts of loose leaf tea.  I'd like to know what other people have done with their mini jars or if they got thrown away.

The only store near me which I know has a wide variety of Bonne Maman jam is Walmart.  There are a few flavours which I am sure I am going to check out.  If you love their strawberry then it's always available at Costco for a very reasonable price and it's the one I always gravitate to first.

If you are curious about specific flavours then click on the Advent Photo tab on this blog.  You will find every photo I took of each calendar and item while more detail is found on my Instagram account.

Did you purchase this Advent Calendar?  Are you likely to repurchase, purchase or look for this one come the holidays?  Let me know!  While it was highly enjoyable, I feel like I've now experienced it so there's not a big reason to buy it again but as previously stated, I will continue to buy their brand.

Tea at the White House : Advent Calendar Review

Anyone else sad that we no longer have Advent Calendars to open and share?  There's such excitement over it all and the big build up to Christmas and then - Boom - it's over.  Done.

I do have some other items to share including this review of an Advent Calendar I was really looking forward to opening from Tea at the White House. 

Tea at the White House is a Canadian Tea House and Online Retailer.  They are located in Waterdown, Ontario and boast "A Tea Shop for the Tea Lover, A Tea Room for the Tea Drinker".  They have unique flavours of tea and other items including scones with the fixings and items from the Royal Family.  I have been making a big effort to support Canadian made items and companies so was really looking forward to trying a large variety of their tea flavours through the Advent Calendar.

The Calendar was available for order in October and I snapped one up for $40 CAD.  It arrived promptly in November.  It was 24 days of tea.  Each day was one single pyramid style tea bag.  It breaks down to $1.67 a day/cup.  The box itself was very well made and really nice in a light blue magnetic box.  Each day had a perforated window to peel back to reveal the tea bag individually wrapped in a clear plastic bag.  The box was easily displayed in my kitchen and was a lovely size.

There was an adequate variety of flavours of tea however it seemed to me that many of the first flavours included mint.  The majority of the tea was caffeinated.  While I do enjoy tea in the afternoon, I also use it as a wind down at the end of the day so it was disappointing that there were so few decaf teas in this box.  I don't think I'm really alone in this because we are so busy during the holidays and all need some relaxing moments with a cup in the evening.  I had to adjust my ritual to accommodate drinking this tea at another time of day.

My favourite flavour hands down was German Christmas Cake.  This flavour was so good and totally a Christmas flavour for those of us who enjoy fruitcake and mincemeat pies.  For me the worst flavour was the Ontario Ice Wine which I'm convinced was a poor batch because it was totally floral.  I don't think I was able to finish the cup.

Okay, I'm going to spill the tea here, beyond the name of the tea on the label there was absolutely nothing included to tell you what the ingredients were or how to brew or enjoy the tea.  After opening the tea, I would head to the website and look up the flavour to see if it was caffeinated or not but that's all the website tells me as well.  Instructions like, use water at this temperature and brew for these many minutes would be HUGELY appreciated.  It's possible that Ice Wine tea was so terrible for me because I let it steep too long, but how would I know otherwise?  Another super helpful detail is to tell us consumers whether it's appropriate to add sweetener or a creamer or make it into a latte or it's terrific iced.  These things definitely add to the overall enjoyment and likelihood that I'd not only come back to buy that flavour again but recommend it to others as well.  I'm also going to mention that it sure would be nice to receive some other little perk on the final day.  Back when I first started with the David's Tea calendar, there were mini ornaments included on the last day and I think there were coupons in some as well.

I'm going to admit this.  I really felt like I was missing out on two other Advent Calendars.  I've really enjoyed the Bird & Blend calendar previously but because of shipping costs I decided to not get that one this year.  I felt like there was a whole portion of the tea community enjoying that one and interacting with their social media.  Of course the David's Tea calendar is super popular but another one which I've put on my wish list for next Christmas season is the T.Kettle Tea Advent Calendar.  It was a similar design to David's Tea and the flavours looked intriguing.  I think the folks at Tea at the White House have missed out on interacting with their fans.

I'm definitely not saying to not try this company out for yourself because there are very worthy products.  For the price, it's a nice little calendar but just be wary that there are others out there which I feel are much better.  I really wanted to like this one but I feel rather underwhelmed and likely will not purchase another calendar from them.