Is the box wood or cardboard?

The gift box is made of cardboard. I found it to be very presentable. I gave it as a gift. I have been drinking Taylors of Harrogate teas for many years. Ever since my son gave me the gift of a box of Yorkshire Tea he picked up while on a business trip to London. I order my Taylors of Harrogate teas from Amazon. A similar box with eight compartments made of wood would cost an additional $20 to $30 depending on the type of wood. I recently gave a gift and the single compartment cedar wood "rustic presentation box" cost 6.95 pounds (about $11.47). When I gave this gift I was thinking of giving quality teas not a wood box.

what flavors of tea are offered in this variety box?

I just opened it, it has: Descaffeinated breakfast tea Green tea jasmine Lemon & orange tea Organic charmomile Earl grey tea Organic peppermint English breakfast tea Assam tea Box looks really pretty it has 6 bags of each.

Are these tea bags or loose teas?

I have experience with the 50 and 100 count packages of English Breakfast. Both are bagged tea, but the 100 count are each individually wrapped in a paper/foil pack. The 50 count is bags, loose in the container. Actually two bags connected by a thin perforation. The 50 count are perfect for using in a pot. The bags are full sized, and two bags will make four cups of strong tea. I use three bags per four cups, but I like it strong enough to stand up without a cup. The 100 count are not only annoying to unwrap each bag if you're using multiples in a pot, but they're also not as large (and more powdery). They make one cup each bag, and no more,. I really wish they sold the 50 style packaging in a larger bulk count.

I found the Irish to have a fishy flavor - anyone else get that?

Are you using filtered water, by any chance? When the charcoal filter in my ZeroWater pitcher is used too long, the water starts to get a fishy taste. Very peculiar, and thought I was going crazy the first time it happened.