Whether you received our Taste the World of Tea Sampler as a gift or you purchased it yourself, welcome! We're so excited to have you here.

We've created this page as a virtual guide to help you along your tasting journey. Use as little or as much of these resources as you like.

If you need help, don't hesitate to reach out. Meanwhile, please share your tastes and experiences on social media using the hashtag #plumdeluxe!

And don't forget that the coupon on your insert card expires in early July!

CAFFEINE KIT

If you received the caffeinated version of this sampler, you received black, green, chai, oolong, and puerh teas. These are the most common types of tea and all are made from the tea plant, camellia sinensis.

  • BLACK TEA

    By far the most common tea and you've no doubt tried some! We included in the kit both a classic orange spice flavor, as well as a dessert tea everyone's been asking for.

    BLACK TEA 101 
  • GREEN TEA

    It's a very popular tea, but it's really important to prepare this one properly; a common mistake is to put boiling water on green tea, which will just result in bitter flavor. You'll want to use a kettle with temperature settings and choose 175-180F; otherwise, just cold brew the tea. Both of the green teas we provided you make great iced teas as they're each fruity or floral blends, but this is also a good experiment to see if you prefer them hot or iced!

    GREEN TEA 101 
  • WHITE TEA

    White tea has similar benefits and taste profile to green tea, being both delicate and light. It gets its name from the downy white hairs that remain on the leaves, which are picked from the plant when they are still small buds. As with green tea, water temperature is vital in ensuring your white tea does not become bitter. Around 160 to 180 degrees is best. Generally, white teas withstand a longer steeping time; we suggest three minutes.

    HOW TO BREW WHITE TEA 
  • OOLONG TEA

    Perhaps less common but still just as delicious. These types of teas are also sometimes called "half fermented" due to how they are processed. You'll note that they have more woodsy notes than traditional black tea, but they are indeed quite similar. Often, you'll see black teas and oolong teas blended together, such as our best-selling Toasted Nut Brulée blend that you received.

    HOW TO BREW OOLONG 
  • PUERH TEA

    Puerh teas (sometimes spelled pu-erh or pu'erh, and pronounced POO-air) are a fully fermented tea that have strong mineral notes and a higher moisture content. The tea by itself has a very strong chocolate-y note. This year we included a tea heart - you can just drop the heart in your infuser like it was a large teaspoon of tea!

    DISCOVER PUERH TEA 
1 of 5

Buy More Caffeinated Teas

Purchase more of the exclusive and signature blends from the kit.

1 of 7

find your perfect brew

TRY IT ICED
To cold brew your tea, add 1 tea sample packet to an 8-oz mason jar, fill with cold water, and refrigerate overnight. Strain and enjoy.
ADD A HINT OF SUGAR
Sweetener can clarify flavors in the tea — especially when it comes to fruity, nutty, or dessert blends! Start with a pinch, then sweeten to taste.
LOVE IT A LATTE
Adding milk can totally transform the experience! Brew your tea in half the water you'd normally use, then strain and fill the other half with steamed milk.
KEEP IT CLEAN
If you normally add sugar or milk to your tea, try tasting before stirring in any additions. Savor both flavor profiles and see which one your prefer!
Want to Learn More About Tea?

Sign up for our FREE 5-day Introduction to Tea Basics email series.

If you're new to tea or want to expand your knowledge, you'll learn:

How is tea "made"?

Tea types and caffeine

Tea steeping & preparation

Tea & food pairings

Simple tea pleasures & rituals

Want to Learn More About Tea?

NON-CAFFEINATED KIT

If you received the caffeine-free version of this sampler, you received fruit, red rooibos, green rooibos, decaf black, and honeybush teas. Only the decaf black tea is made from the tea plant, camellia sinensis. Caffeine-free tea varieties run the gamut; really, anything steeped in hot water can be called herbal tea. Herbal teas are also called tisanes.

  • RED ROOIBOS

    One of the boldest herbal teas because it has strong flavor notes similar to black teas. It's also one of the most common ingredients in herbal teas and is made from a South African plant, aspalathus linearis.

    HOW TO BREW ROOIBOS 
  • GREEN ROOIBOS

    A Plum Deluxe favorite! It's made from the same plant as red rooibos but has a much less sharp tasting tone, which many find pleasing. Flavor-wise, it has similar grassy notes to green tea. Both teas are fun dessert-y options this year!

    MORE FAVORITE HERBALS 
  • FRUIT TEAS

    Fruit teas are teas that are made with pieces of fruits and sometimes flowers or spices. These are very common and popular in Europe. They make great iced tea infusions, and if you like fruity teas, these give off strong flavors and can often be re-steeped.

    LEARN HOW TO RE-STEEP TEA 
  • DECAF BLACK TEA

    Decaf Black teas are made from the tea plant but with the caffeine extracted. These can be a great way to enjoy the robust flavor of black teas without the caffeine hit. (Although we would say the process of removing the caffeine does alter the flavor a bit. It's also quite expensive, which is why we don't just offer every one of our black teas in a decaf version.)We also want to point out that the decaf black tea included has trace amounts of caffeine. We use the carbon dioxide process to remove the caffeine from the tea; this leaves no chemicals in the tea but does result in a tiny amount of caffeine molecules.

    DECAF AND CAFFEINE AMOUNTS 
  • HONEYBUSH TEA

    Honeybush Tea is another Plum Deluxe favorite, and while it's also from South Africa, it is a different plant altogether, from the genus cyclopia. Its name is perfect because it has a natural hint of sweetness that lends itself well to all sorts of herbal infusions.

    HONEYBUSH BENEFITS 
1 of 5

Buy More Non-Caffeinated Teas

Purchase more of the exclusive and signature blends from the kit.

1 of 7

find your perfect brew

TRY IT ICED
To cold brew your tea, add 1 tea sample packet to an 8-oz mason jar, fill with cold water, and refrigerate overnight. Strain and enjoy.
ADD A HINT OF SUGAR
Sweetener can clarify flavors in the tea — especially when it comes to fruity, nutty, or dessert blends! Start with a pinch, then sweeten to taste.
LOVE IT A LATTE
Adding milk can totally transform the experience! Brew your tea in half the water you'd normally use, then strain and fill the other half with steamed milk.
KEEP IT CLEAN
If you normally add sugar or milk to your tea, try tasting before stirring in any additions. Savor both flavor profiles and see which one your prefer!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"I just wanted to take a minute to tell you that even though I've only gotten my second tea today, it meant so much to me. Not only is the tea outstandingly delicious, it's just so much fun when I go to the mailbox. It's one of the nicest things that I think I've ever had; I look forward to each month." - Pat G. (gift recipient)