Autumn is tea time. Get steeping

Cinnamon, spice and everything nice: That’s what fall teas are made of. And cranberry, and peanut butter and…

As the seasons change, so to do our drink orders. Gone are the iced coffees and fraps, replaced by soothing cups of steaming tea. And not that we have anything against our go-to Earl Grey, but there’s a bounty of new infusions inspiring our daily tea time rituals.

Tea to soothe and calm

Keep Calm and Sip On. Now there’s a slogan we can appreciate. It’s just one of the blends in iconic tea house Tetley’s new Signature Collection—a collection crafted by the brand’s expert Tea Master, Mark Donovan. These teas have no artificial flavours and even feature a unique drawstring bag that lets you squeeze out every drop of flavour. Keep Calm and Sip On—our fave—combines camomile, spearmint and orange. We’ve discovered that it’s a great way to get through that late-afternoon work slump: Spearmint and orange offer pep, while camomile soothes and relaxes.

Tetley Signature Collection, $5.50 (20 bags), www.tetley.ca

Tea, to sip and to save

More than just tea, Harney & Sons tea comes in decorative tins, which make beautiful vessels for storing matches (to get that fireplace going) or other knickknacks. We’re especially fond of the brand’s Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea at this time of year. It’s warm, rich, spicy and slightly sweet, with a blend of cinnamon, cloves and orange peel. The most popular of Harney & Sons’ flavoured teas, just imagining curling up with a cup of it soothes the soul.

Harney & Sons Classic Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea, $11, www.chapters.indigo.ca

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Pumpkin chai, apple, nuts: This is tea for the foodie

David’s Tea is a favourite around the office, so we were definitely excited to see its new fall collection—a limited edition box with four new (and one returning favourite) blends. The flavours include Pumpkin Chai, Cranberry Orange Muffin, Honeycrisp Apple, Nutty By Nature and Peanut Butter Cup. Our current go-to is the Peanut Butter Cup: a surprisingly subtle, sweet infusion with dark chocolate and almonds. It’s almost as good as the real thing but without the overload of sugar and calories, so extra nice.

David’s Tea Fall Collection, $28 (250 g), www.davidstea.com

Go green (and not just with tea)

We recently discovered LOV Organic in our local Metro. We have to admit it was the cute packaging that lured us in, but learning that LOV is all-organic and environmentally friendly sealed the deal—it’s on our must-try list. We’d start with something tailormade for fall evenings, like this Lovely Night herbal blend with linden, camomile, verbena, licorice and cinnamon. Sounds like a super-sipper if ever there was one.

Lovely Night Exclusive Blend, www.lov-organic.com