Advent calendars seem to get more and more elaborate ever year, with options for everything from beauty advent calendars for every budget through to building your own Star Wars droid with a piece each day. But if you want something simple that isn’t going to eat into your Christmas shopping budget but that will still give you a few minutes of joy each day of December then, for caffeine lovers at least, a tea or coffee advent calendar is a really good option.
Who doesn’t want to stop and enjoy a warming brew and five minutes of me-time - whether that’s reading the paper, scrolling your phone or just sitting in quiet contemplation?
This year there are more tea and coffee advent calendars than ever, with prices ranging from the £10 to considerably higher - but with retailers reducing many options this weekend for Black Friday, now is the perfect time to pick one up December strikes.
Here’s our round up of some of this year’s best.
Whittard Tea Advent Calendar for Two
Cost: £70 RRP
Available from: Whittard in stores and online, John Lewis
What you get: A total of 96 teabags - a generous four per day in 18 of the iconic tea brand’s signature flavours - alongside a tea bag rest on day one to sit beside your kettle.
Verdict: If you’re a fan of traditional teas then Whittard’s hefty advent calendar is literally a solid choice.
The display box is sturdy and well designed and looks impressive, although you'd hope so for the premium price tag. The packaging was all plastic free which was a nice touch as was the ceramic teabag holder that sits in the drawer on day one alongside the teabags.
There is a good mixture of teas, with seven black tea blends ranging from traditional Earl Grey, Darjeeling and similar to this year's Christmas Tea which had a lovely clove and citrus zest to it that made it feel festive, although I found I didn't need to have milk with it.
Elsewhere there's a single green tea, seven herbal teas (three of which are organic) and three fruit infusions.
The Mango and Bergamot green tea was an enjoyable standout flavour, which surprised me considerably as I'm not usually much of a fan of mango as a fruit. Peach, raspberry and rose was also an unusual combination that I really liked and would buy again, a light and fragrant brew with undertones of Turkish delight.
As the most expensive of all the tea advent calendars we reviewed I wouldn’t be looking to pick this up without either some Cashback or a Black Friday discount. But that said, it feels luxurious, has a generous amount of tea and is the kind of thing I’d consider giving as a gift to family members who want a treat through December and are less excited by Christmas hampers and other more traditional foodie gifts.
Pact Coffee Advent Calendar
Cost: £29.95
Available from: Pact Coffee online
What you get: 25 individual 20g sachets of pre-ground, speciality coffees from around the world (because of course you'd want one on Christmas Day).
Verdict: Whether you love coffee or love someone who loves coffee, this is the coffee advent calendar you need to buy this December if you're serious about your caffeine fix. Also, it's worth taking a look at Pact's Black Friday sale where there's some great deals on Christmas gifts for coffee lovers.
Pact is a UK-based small business started by coffee lover Stephen Rapoport from his kitchen table ten years ago this year. The firm prides itself on dealing directly with coffee farmers worldwide buying small volumes of premium coffees for fair prices.
I had heard of Pact Coffee subscription boxes but never tried one before, so again the advent calendar was a great way to try them out.
The calendar contains pre-ground coffee which can be used in cafetieres, Aeropress, a V60 or for drip brewing. As someone who loves coffee but ends up with instant because I hate cleaning out cafetieres, this was a perfect time to bust out a V60 - a tiny mini filter coffee gadget that sits on top of your mug that allows you to brew directly (and can then be dishwashed afterwards).
I don't consider myself a coffee nerd but having worked my way through the Pact advent calendar I think I'd like to try and be one.
Each sachet comes with tasting notes, full details of where in the world the coffee has come from and information on the best way to brew it. There were lots of coffees I'd never tried before and learning about them all as I tested them was really interesting and fun.
I loved how ethical the company was and with the coffees being so unusual as well as unashamedly fair trade, I thought it was actually a reasonable price - these are the kind of coffees I’d pay £4 a cup for if I was treating myself while out and about, so they felt like a lovely decadent treat and the ultimate caffeine boost.
Pukka Days of Joy Advent Calendar
Cost: £9.99 - although it's currently 34% off in Amazon's Black Friday sale
Available from: Amazon, Boots and other retailers
What you get: 24 tea bags wrapped in individual paper sleeves. Flavours ranged from traditional tea through to matcha, citrus, herbal, floral and spicy flavours.
Verdict: As someone who regularly buys Pukka teas in my weekly shop to try and make sure I'm not sat at my desk working from home like an over-caffeinated meerkat, I thought I would be familiar with most of the flavours that came in this simple and reasonably priced tea calendar.
But I was pleasantly surprised by the range and new flavours that I hadn't had before - I loved the lemongrass and ginger tea, licorice and cinnamon blend and also also the elderberry and echinacea which basically felt like warming, soothing, health in a mug.
While it's lovely to buy expensive, decadent looking advent calendars this Pukka version is the most reasonably priced on the market and has minimal packaging, won't take up space on the side and will give you a refreshing pick me up every day without costing the earth.
The only down side perhaps is that if you are a regular Pukka drinker it might not feel like much of a treat. That said, if you’ve been keen to sample more of their range this is a great way to try new flavours before buying a full box of anything that might end up languishing in your cupboard because it wasn’t your cup of tea.
Nespresso Friends Christmas Coffee Advent Calendar
Cost: £14.99 - but currently 11% off for Black Friday
Available from: Amazon
What you get: 24 Nespresso compatible pods in a range of flavours - although beware, you get some repetition through the month so if variety is what you’re after you’d be better with something else.
Verdict: This cheerily boxed Friends-themed advent calendar contains eight different types of coffee in Nespresso style pods although if you're keen on funky flavours then you're going to be disappointed that three of them are the pretty-standard espresso intense, dark roast espresso and lungo coffee flavours.
That said, there are some more unusual options, with cinnamon, choco cherry, creme brulee, caramel toffee and English pudding flavoured options also appearing from behind the Central Perk doors throughout the month.
I was very suspicious about what English pudding actually was, but it ended up being the barest hint of Christmas pudding - think raisins and a hint of citrus. The cinnamon coffee was lovely though and the other options are great for coffee fans who want to taste sweetness from their brew without adding sugar.
If you’re the kind of coffee drinker who loves all the festive flavours then this is actually a really good option, especially if you can pick it up while it's reduced.
Bird and Blend Tea Advent Calendar
Cost: £38
Available from: Bird and Blend online and in stores.
What you get: 24 different flavours of Bird and Blend tea in individual mini boxes - with two teabags per day.
Verdict: The packaging is festive, although I found it difficult to keep the box stood up and had to lean it against a wall on the shelf. The entire calendar is 100% plastic free (including the tea bags) and fully recyclable.
As someone who had never tried Bird and Blend tea before, this calendar has cost me a fortune. With 24 different flavours to sample it was the perfect introduction to the company and by the time I'd finished I had a list of quirky flavours I needed to buy in full packs.
My absolute favourite was Cold Weather Warrior Tea. Made with peppermint, eucalyptus, aniseed, lemongrass, echinacea and the tiniest hint of chilli I had my first mug of this as the weather took a turn and I was feeling a bit run down and like a lurgy was brewing. It tasted cleansing, fresh and warming in a way that was like a hug in a mug and I absolutely will be buying more.
But this was just the tip of the iceberg. Other teas that are now on my must-buy list include Mulled Cider, Jasmine Poached Pears, Strawberry and Pomegranate and Mascarpone and Sour Cherry.
There were some unusual black teas in the mix too - Mint Pistachio (Sri Lankan Black Tea with Peppermint and Cardamom) was unlike anything I've had before and delicious, while Tea and Toast (Assam and Kenyan black teas mixed with raspberry, apple and hibiscus) really did have a savoury/sweet element to it that was oddly delicious.
While some of the options were a little too sweet for me, like the Salted Caramel Lebkuchen and Rooibos-based Rhubarb and Custard tea, there was nothing that was so off-putting I couldn't drink it.
The whole month's worth of tea felt like it had been put together by Willy Wonka and putting a tea bag in a mug every morning bought a little moment of anticipation - there was never a 'oh, it's just Earl Grey today' sort of moment because even the more 'plain' teas had something a bit extra, like the Chocolate Digestives Tea which mixed Sri Lankan traditional tea with cocoa, liquorice root and fenugreek.
If I was going for a tea advent calendar next year, this is the one I would buy myself - it’s mid-range in terms of price but it felt like something really special and unlike the collection of teas I already have in my cupboard for when I want a brew.
Have you chosen an advent calendar for this year yet? Let us know in the comments below.
