5 Tasting Notes
This has become my daily beverage of choice (not that I’ve given up coffee). The most important thing about yerba mate that I’ve discovered to keep it from getting bitter is something I saw in a snippet on another site – soak it in a little bit of cold water before brewing, just enough to get the leaves good and wet. I forgot to do this one time and it makes a HUGE difference in the flavor.
The way I have it:
2 Tbs yerba mate
1 Tbs dark chocolate chunks, broken up
2 tsp Oolong tea
1/4 tsp peppercorns
1/4 tsp whole cloves
a dash of nutmeg & cinnamon
Brew with 2.5 cups of water in an automatic drip coffee pot, add sugar and a dash of cream. I love it hot or iced!
Preparation
Having trouble deciding whether I want to buy more of this one, or Matevana instead when I run out. This is very tasty, I would drink it all day if I didn’t think the caffeine would keep me awake at night. Either my palate isn’t sophisticated enough, though, or the extra flavors just don’t shine through at all (i.e. cornflower petals and safflower). Regardless, this is a must-have for my morning routine, I drink it iced (along with my coffee, which I just can’t give up).
Preparation
I bought this with the intent to drink it iced at work in the morning. The leaves have a very roasty, chocolately smell. Once made, I could also smell and taste the rooibos in the tea, but the chocolate didn’t come through as much as I was expecting. It’s not a very pretty cup, sort of a muddy brown color. I sweetened it with honey but I don’t know that it really needed it, I will have to try it without sweetener next time. It seems like the sugar already present in the chocolate bits could have carried the day. I can see why this is recommended as a coffee substitute, it seems very thick for tea (or “hearty” as my boyfriend described it). Overall it went down very smooth and I think it will make a great morning cup.
Preparation
This tea has become one of my favorite sippers, just the right balance of cool mint and green tea. With a bit of sugar this turns into sweet minty wonderfulness in a teacup. I like it iced too, or with milk added. The only thing that bugs me about it is the particulate matter that ends up in my cup, but I think that’s more of an issue with my glass infuser, and I can live with it. Very forgiving on the brew time, I’ve forgotten about it and come back after more than the required 4 min and it still tasted good.
