Twinings – Vanilla Tea
One of the many nuggets of wisdom I acquired at the Twinings Tea Masterclass was this: if you want to determine whether a box of Twinings Tea is a domestic or international edition, look at the royal crest above the logo. If there’s an arch, it’s a non-UK product; if it’s flat, it’s a box for the UK market.
I mention it because this here Twinings Vanilla Tea is one of them for-sale-to-foreigners blends. I know I have a number of people of the American persuasion amongst my readership, so this blend may be commonplace where you are. You probably pick it up alongside your zucchinis and cilantro at Walmart or something. But here in Blighty, you need to travel all the way to London to purchase Twinings Vanilla Tea. (Or just buy it off the internet, obvs.)
So, is it worth going to great lengths like travelling to the capital city or moving to Foreign to procure this tea? Meh, not so much. It’s oddly sweet for a start. Its ingredients consist of (non-specific) black tea, ‘natural vanilla flavourings’, ‘other natural flavourings’, and ‘flavouring’. That’s a lot of flavouring. I’m not sure what the ‘other’ non-vanilla flavourings are supposed to be, but at a guess I’d say sugar and condensed milk.
The only Twinings vanilla blends aimed at UKers on the shelves right now are herbal nonsenses, which is a bit of a swizz. The international market, on the other hand, has three different proper-tea-and-vanilla offerings: Earl Grey Creamy Vanilla, Chai French Vanilla and this one.
I didn’t like this Vanilla Tea. It’s artificial and sweet and not nearly as much fun as it should be. And yet, I still really, really want to try those other two teas on the list. I like Earl Grey. I like spicy chais. I like vanilla. What could possibly go wrong?
Even the fact that I have just written a review basically answering that exact question, has done nothing to deter my enthusiasm. Honestly, it’s like I never learn.
Today’s book pairing is 140 Artists’ Ideas for Planet Earth, because I thought ‘planet Earth’ fitted with the whole international flavour of this review.
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