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I think I am living in the wrong part of the country…ok, stop rolling your eyes, I kinda like it here now, I just also think I am addicted to rain. It has been an especially wet spring and summer, one of the reasons we are having such a hard time moving, EVERY house we have looked at has a horrid mold problem, and if I can’t breathe in the house, well, it is a problem. Although it would be good for cultivating rare and exciting basement fungi! Anyway, what I am getting at is it has not rained in like three days and that makes me sad! I keep stalking accuweather for signs of rain and get so excited when there is a chance of storms and rain. Yeah, I need to move somewhere with steady rains!

So, it is time once again to return to Liquid Proust Teas, this time for Mate Nectar. Honestly this tea had me at the word nectar, I am part hummingbird, I swear! This is a blend of Brazilian Mate (one of the Ilex plants that is naturally caffinated and native to the Americas, the others include Guayusa and Yaupon), Green Rooibos, Rock Candy, Apple, Marshmallow Root, Beet Root, Strawberry, Carrot Flakes, Flower Petals, and Flavoring. Quite the list of yummies! I was told by the creator himself that this tea is good cold steeped, and well, tis the season! The aroma of the pile of yummies before I toss them in my steeper is super sweet! Lots of berries and sugary goodness, a touch of grassy hay and vegetation (hello Mate!) and a finish of apples and carrots. The name nectar really is fitting, it smells like pixie food. Kinda looks like pixie food too!

After an overnight steeping, the travel steeper that I used now looks like a sunset, the beet root at the bottom turned it a lovely red that gradients up to orange. Giving it a shake mixes it all up, but it is quite pretty. The aroma is super fruity and sweet, cane sugar, marshmallows, fresh sweet apples, and strawberries waft out of the steeper. A hint of honey and fresh hay bring up the tail end of the aroma, so much sweetness though, which I am totally ok with.

I have a confession, usually I am not much of a Mate person, I don’t dislike it but I rarely go out of my way to seek it out. This brew might make me a believer…in fact maybe I just don’t like Mate warm, tastes like lawn clippings (and not the clean clippings like you get from a freshly mown lawn, this is the stuff from the next day that you get a mouthful of when you trip on wet grass and fall into the grass clipping pile) not a taste you want warm. The crisp hay and clover flower notes from the Mate when cold are pretty fantastic. Toss in sugar cane sweetness, lots of sweet apple and strawberries, and oh yes delightful marshmallow at the finish with a slight almond nuttiness as the aftertaste. This truly is nectar like, sweet and cold on a hot day, well, I am in a happy place. In theory I should try this hot, but I don’t wanna! Bravo my tea blending friend, I think I found a new favorite hot day drink.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2015/08/liquid-proust-teas-mate-nectar-tea.html