Taylors of Harrogate Apple & Cinnamon Tea Review
Apple and cinnamon is a classic flavour pairing. Combine that with the legendary tea blending abilities at Taylors of Harrogate, and my expectations for Taylors of Harrogate Apple & Cinnamon are quite high! I have many apple and cinnamon flavoured teas to compare this one to, like Zest Cinnamon Apple which is a high-caffeine black tea. However, this Taylors of Harrogate brew is totally caffeine-free.
So, if you are hunting for an autumnal cuppa that’s caffeine free and low in added flavouring, then Taylors of Harrogate Apple & Cinnamon could be just what you need. But before I recommend it wholeheartedly, let’s delve into this tea review to discover what it is all about.
Apple & Cinnamon Tea at a Glance
Izzy's Rating
4.1/5
- Blend: Apple and hibiscus with mixed spices and additional fruits/herbs
- Flavour: Tart apple and hibiscus with honey drizzled spices and gingery fire
This is a wonderfully comforting tea with flavours of tart stewed apples, honey sweetness, cinnamon spices, and a ginger warmth that grows with every sip. Delicious!
Full Review – Taylors of Harrogate Apple & Cinnamon
Izzy's Rating
4.1/5
- Type: Spacious tagged paper filter teabag
- Ingredients: Sweet blackberry leaves, elderberry, apple, hibiscus, white hibiscus, orange peel, cinnamon, ginger, clove buds, allspice, cardamom, star anise, natural orange flavouring
- Flavour Notes: Tart apple hibiscus, honey sweetness, spices, warmth, ginger
- Aroma: Hot stewed apple, cinnamon, apricot sweetness, sticky rich fruit pudding, ginger, cloves
- Milk or Lemon: Honey to taste
- Where to Buy: Amazon or major UK supermarkets
Ripping open the teabag, Taylors of Harrogate Apple Cinnamon tea hits me with an intense apple aroma. Alongside the apples is a generous amount of sticky sweetness, like ripe apricots or a rich fruit pudding. The spices, primarily cinnamon but also some other undiscernible spices lingering beneath, are a super pleasant addition.
So far, excellent!
Once brewed, the leaves produce a blush rose tea with orange tones. The aroma is staggeringly mouth-watering – notes of hot stewed apples with cinnamon, ginger, and a hint of cloves. I cannot wait to take a sip.
The flavour is exceptional too. That first sip bathes your mouth in the flavours of tart apple and hibiscus with a little honey sweetness. Once you recover from the sweet tartness of these fruits, every additional sip adds tingling hits of spices and a gentle warmth will spread over your tongue.
The more you drink, the more those fiery ginger notes peer out too. It is slightly tangy but has a pleasantly smooth texture. Ultimately, the only fault I can find in this tea is the hibiscus. I just don’t think it needs it. The apples, spices, sweetness, and ginger are the perfect combination. Regardless, I could drink this tea every day during autumn and winter.
How to Brew Apple Cinnamon Tea
The instructions for brewing Taylors of Harrogate Apple & Cinnamon tea are to place one teabag in a single mug, pour over boiling water, and let it steep for six to eight minutes. This is pretty good advice for a fruit tea – most need at least five minutes to really develop a good depth.
As this is a fruit tea, you don’t need to add any milk. This tea is also packed with natural sweet-tart ingredients such as apple, hibiscus, and elderberry. However, if you have a particularly sweet tooth then you can add a teaspoon of honey or sugar to taste.
Eating something cinnamon-like with this tea would be a great food pairing. Snickerdoodles, if you are familiar, would be delicious with Taylors of Harrogate Apple Cinnamon tea. A cinnamon bun would also work perfectly.
Why Shop Taylors of Harrogate?
Taylors of Harrogate are a British brand with a reputation for high-quality products – they fit in well with the likes of Twinings, Waitrose, and other middleclass names. But most people don’t know that Taylors of Harrogate are owned by the same brand that produces Yorkshire Tea. Perhaps this is why my Yorkshire Tea Review was incredibly favourable (a complete surprise to everyone)!
I like that there’s very little flavouring in this tea. It primarily relies on real spices and dried fruit pieces, with only a little orange flavouring added at the end. It’s certainly not relying on flavouring for the main notes present; cinnamon and apple.
Delving into the very spacious paper teabag, you can see that the tea leaf is finely chopped. This isn’t great (I love to see whole chunks of dried apple) but it’s not as disastrous as seeing this sized tea leaf for a caffeinated blend. Unlike traditional Camellia sinensis tea leaves, finely chopping herbs and dried fruit flakes doesn’t harm the flavour so much. It will speed up the brew time, however.
I have to say, I was also impressed with the size of the teabag. The more space your herbs, fruits and tea leaves have to expand and mingle with the water, the better the flavour. Or at least, that’s the theory. Perhaps it is partly a placebo effect, but I always find that tightly packed teabags don’t provide a good depth of flavour even with a long brew. Let me know what you think about this phenomenon in the comments below.
Summary
Taylors of Harrogate have done an amazing job with their Apple & Cinnamon tea. Scoring a 4.1, the only way to improve this tea would be to tone down the hibiscus and use larger fruit pieces… but honestly, it is pretty damn good how it is right now. If you can’t find Taylors of Harrogate teas in your nearest supermarket, you can purchase them directly from Amazon using the button below.
Teaware Recommendation
To boost those cosy autumnal vibes, I recommend investing in some equally cosy teaware. In the Immortal Wordsmith shop, we currently have a selection of Scandinavian Teacups, complete with saucers. We ship across the UK for free, so make sure you browse our shop before you leave the site.