Bird & Blend Advent Calendar Day 9 – Fairytale of NY
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The packaging for this teabag says “And the bells were ringing out for… tea inspired by creamy Irish coffee” to which I responded with an emphatic “Hmm”. Wouldn’t methylated spirits and heroin be a more appropriate choice for a Fairytale of New York-inspired beverage? I’m fairly sure that Shane McGowan’s character didn’t end up in the ‘drunk tank’ at the beginning of the song due to a few liqueur coffees.
This tea comprises of rooibos, cocoa shells, coffee beans, roasted dandelion root and natural flavouring and it’s actually rather lovely. Regular readers will know that my utter disdain for tisanes doesn’t extend to rooibos which I’m always delighted to find in my tea mug. Tisanes, as a rule, taste like compost heaps or hot squash or literally nothing at all. Not so rooibos which is in a creamy, cakey, comforting category all of its own.
I like the coffee here too. I was quite sceptical the first time I encountered coffee beans in a cup of tea, but I’ve grown to love it. When I went to a Christmas craft workshop in a Bird & Blend tea shop in London last month, two of the three teas I drank there had coffee in them. (Affogatea and Coffee Pu-Erh) which wasn’t even particularly a conscious decision on my part, I was just drawn to them.
Rooibos, coffee beans and dandelion root is not in any way a Proper tea blend. And yet it makes for very satisfying cuppa.
As this tea is named after the Kirsty McColl and Pogues’ Christmas hit, and we must be due the annual debate of the Fairytale of New York lyrics (and whether “you cheap lousy faggot” is an acceptable set of lyrics in the 2020s), I am going to welly in with my opinion on the matter.
Yes, ‘faggot’ is an offensive and homophobic term. No question. But within the context of the song, it makes perfect sense. The characters in the story are an alcoholic and a drug addict in a toxic relationship shouting insults at one another. The language is offensive because it’s supposed to be offensive.
I think the problem arises when people only really listen to “the bells were ringing out on Christmas Day” bit of the chorus and think it’s a family-friendly Christmas festive tune suitable for playing in shopping centres. It’s not. I have no problem with people removing or replacing the word if they want to – there are radio-friendly PG versions of all sorts of songs.
Just as long as we’re all clear that this is a brutal song about pain, addiction, destructive relationships and wasted lives. It’s not so much a Christmas song as a song set at Christmas. It’s all the better for it, of course. It’s an absolutely cracking tune and I love it immensely.
It definitely doesn’t have any mentions of Irish coffee in it, mind.
Tea Ranking
- Hazelnut Rocher (7th Dec)
- Fairytale of NY (9th Dec)
- Poppin’ Xmas Butter Toffee (6th Dec)
- Candy Cane (5th Dec)
- Winter Is Coming (4th Dec)
- Peppermint Hot Cocoa (3rd Dec)
- Christmas Cranberry Pie (1st Dec)
- Mulled Cider (2nd Dec)
- Fireside Snuggles (8th Dec)
Today’s featured book is still The Night Before Christmas by Clement C Moore and – look! – we’ve got to the bit with all the reindeer names.
