Teabox

There are very few questions or problems that can’t be answered by having a nice cup of tea. It is one of the things that helped make the British Empire one of the greatest in the world. There is something of a ceremony to a decent cup of tea, though often we don’t even think about it if we’re having one with our breakfast in the morning.

Teabox want you to stretch your imagination, getting away from the tried and tested world of PG Tips, Typhoo and the likes in order to see what other teas are out there that you can begin to love and enjoy. As Teabox themselves say, tea is your escape. An opportunity to create a moment of stillness in an otherwise hectic world. What’s not to love about that?

How Does It Work?

Subscription boxes are excellent things, not least of all because they work in pretty much the same way no matter what you’re subscribing to, so you know what you’re getting yourself into. In the case of Teabox you sign up for a set length of time, pay a specific amount of money depending on how long you signed up for and in return for your money you get different teas delivered straight to your door.

What Do You Get?

You get lots of different teas. Not just boring, run-of-the-mill teas, though. Rather you get teas that are superbly sourced; teas that have a story and a background to them. You’ll get tea that is hand-picked and delivered to you in as fresh a state as its possible for it to be, meaning that your tea drinking experience is a rich one. Just as well, too, considering that tea is just like any other food source and can go off over time.

The general idea of Teabox is that it uses a computer algorithm to figure out which teas are best for you. Because of that you’re given the opportunity to rate your teas after you’ve tasted them and the computer will learn what you like and what you don’t. This ensures that your teas are aimed specifically at you and not just thrown randomly into a box and sent on their way.

Not only do you get to rate your teas to help Teabox learn which ones to send you and which ones to avoid, if you actively dislike the tea you’re sent then the company will send you a replacement one at no extra cost. Now how much tea you get every month depends on which plan you opt for, with 2.8oz being the lowest, 5.3oz being the middle amount and 10.5oz the largest box available. That’s enough for 12-15 cups, 30-40 cups or 120-150 cups respectively.

Options

The first thing you’ll do when signing up for a Teabox subscription package is fill in a questionnaire. This will help them learn what sort of teas you’re likely to prefer. When you eat savoury food are you a fan of spices? Herbs? Fruits? Do you like chocolate? If so are you a milk chocolate lover or more of a dark chocolate fan? Do you love the smell of freshly cut grass? Or do you prefer a bouquet of fresh flowers?

Your answers to those questions and more will determine which teas get sent your way. You do get shown a list of the types of tea you can expect to receive, so if you’re not a fan of what the algorithm has picked for you then you can take the quiz again, answer differently and receive a different set of options. Other than the amount of tea you receive and the way you answer the questions there aren’t really many options to consider.

Examples

The obvious thing to say about tea is that the leaves themselves can all be different. Green, black, white Oolong and chai are all different variations that you can expect to receive. The teas come from different locales, too, with Darjeeling, Assam, Kangra and Nepal sourced teas all part of the Teabox cannon. Goomtee Special Summer Muscatel Black, Green Hill Classic Spring Green and Wayanad Cardamom Chai have all been featured in previous boxes.