By: S.M. Harlow
Publisher: Weiser Books
Book Size: 7.25 x 5 x 1 in (approx.)
Book pages: 208
Release Date: October, 2023
Price: $16.95 usd
Purchased or gifted?: Review copy gifted from Red Wheel/Weiser

Absolute favorite page: Tea Divination (pg 111)

Notable Details: Really nice quality pages and cover, yellow ribbon for saving your favorite recipe, wonderful selection of recipes, correspondences table and brewing instructions

*A Tea Witch’s Grimoire featured with The Moon card from* *Viola Lux Umbra Tarot*

First impressions: I knew I would love this book. I’ve been a tea fanatic since I was ten when I had my very first cup of green tea at Benihana. My family used to go out to dinner every Friday night and one night, the restaurant we chose had a two hour wait and my dad is pretty impatient. Benihana was across the street so my mom suggested it since she had been once before— my dad and I had not. I’ve always been an adventurous eater, even as a kid (thanks mom and aunt Linda for going to culinary arts school) so when they offered me the chance to try green tea, I was all over it. I took my first sip and have been hooked ever since only now, in addition to making my own teas, I have tried literally hundreds of different green, black, white, oolong and herbal teas throughout the years. When I saw this book, there was no doubt I was intrigued.

The first thing I noticed is the quality. The book is pretty heavy for its size; an indication of excellent materials. The cover is super thick and so are the full color pages. Speaking of color, its very saturated but still retains its subdued, cottage core like feel. There’s also a ribbon which I know doesn’t seem like much but publishers are not quick to add details like this because they cost more. It’s considered a luxe addition but absolutely needed here. If you like to cook or bake like I do, then you’ll probably have a stack of books with scraps of paper tucked inside for your favorite recipes. The ribbon makes it look a little more aesthetically pleasing than whatever piece of paper is close by.

Speaking of aesthetics, this book is cottage core all day. It's very cutesy with bright but subdued colors and watercolor illustrations. The style is very similar to my book, the Witch’s Apothecary which is also that cottage core type of style. A little fun fact, the illustrations in both my book and this one are lovely but, they aren’t my style. I love them for people who love them, but I’m a much moodier type of gal, think Terrain or Anthropologie. I actually went back and forth with my publisher for months over the style of my book because it was much more cutesy before which I didn’t enjoy.

All this to say, I think there’s the cutesy cottage style and then there’s the modern farmhouse style. This one falls a little more into the former in my opinion. And both styles are great but aesthetic matters these days to a lot of people so I’m pointing it out in case it makes a difference for you. I really don’t think you can “review” an aesthetic just because everyone’s taste are different. Having said that, it still feels sophisticated enough for an adult but I could see teens liking it too.

There’s a really nice selection of recipes, my favorite being the sabbat and astrological ones. There is a tea recipe for each sabbat and for each sign. So far, Imbolc has been my favorite of the set but I’m really looking forward to trying Yule. I waited on that one since we’re so close to Yule now. Seemed a shame not to craft it during the season. My favorite so far of the zodiac ones are Taurus which is so interesting because I’m a scorpio (who’s heard me say that a million times, lol) which is the exact opposite of Taurus. It’s not an easy sign for me to work with but probably why I enjoy the tea so much. I must need more Taurus energy in my life. I’ve shared the photo of this recipe down below.

And I feel like teas are a great way to “work” with an energy without committing to anything too time consuming like a more involved ritual or spell. You can make the tea in large batches and drink it on your way to work, keep it at your desk, or when you get home. You’re still getting the benefits of metaphysical energy but in a much more practical way. That makes this book a winner all by itself.

My favorite sections of the book are on tea divination and tea remnants. I have tried to do tea divination over the years but just couldn’t get the hang of it, mostly because I didn’t know what symbols to look for. Harlow offers a nice introductory section to the topic as well as a list of symbols to help with your interpretation and a few pages on how to go about your reading. It’s a really good starting place if you are a complete beginner like me and I appreciated the inclusion of it. I would’ve loved the book without that section so having it seemed like a nice bonus.

And then there’s the section of tea remnants which is actually titled The Tea Magick Continues. The section describes the different ways to dispose of your brewed tea leaves according to your intention. I’ll admit, how you dispose of your spell workings matters but I rarely if ever put a lot of thought into it. I usually dump it somewhere outside and go about my way which isn’t very intentional and I need to do better. But despite doing magical workings in one way or another for nearly two decades, there were several things in this section that were new to me. I’ve been doing this a long time so any time a book or deck teaches me something new, it’s a winner, even if it’s only one thing. And because this section can easily be applied to other spells and rituals, tea or not, I would highly recommend adding it to your library.

Something I found to be interesting are the Milk tinctures, a phrase I have not heard of but seems to be just infused milks. While I love the name milk tinctures and I often add milks to many different kinds of tea, I’m not sure tincture is the appropriate term in my opinion but that’s just semantics. Nevertheless, Harlow offers it as an alternative for people who do not wish to use alcohol to make tinctures. However note that you can also use glycerin to make what is called a “glycerite” which is usually the alternative to alcohol based tinctures and lasts a couple of years versus a couple of days with infused milks. Mountain Rose Herbs has instructions which you can find here. And because glycerin is sweet, it can be used to sweeten your teas if you often add other sweeteners like sugar. You can also make infused honeys which of course honey goes hand in hand with tea.

Who is this book for?

Overall, this is a lovely book and a niche I believe can expand. Its a great resource for people who are interested in tea for magical purposes and the addition of useful information like brewing times, correspondences (which include intentions like happiness, money, youth, sleep and even exorcism), and tea divination make it much more impactful than a book of recipes on their own. And if nothing else, it is a great recipe book to have on hand if you fancy a cuppa for your ritual workings.

Any books you’d like a review on? Have any questions about decks at all? Leave me a comment and stay tuned for more reviews.