slygirl

This is a review for the Spinach Chive. I received it as a sample at the Coffee and Tea Festival. It has a variety of dried organic vegetables and decaffinated green tea. The instructions recommend you steep the tea bag in boiling water (covered with a lid) for about 10 minutes, then for ultimate flavor, gently squeeze the bag to extract more liquid. As for the taste, it was…interesting. Of course, you went into it thinking that it would taste strange, due to the spinach, chive, garlic, and the other vegetable-based ingredients. But it wasn’t bad! I like to think of this as a vegetable-based tisane. Even though there is green tea in this blend, it’s not a predominant note. Dry, it smells like spinach and a blend of Italian spices. In the cup, you can smell the spinach and chives. And taste—well, spinach water with a hint of garlic on the finish. I wouldn’t write this off entirely. I can totally see the benefits of a savory tea as a cooking mechanism. Feeling sick but can’t be arsed to get veggies into your system? Want to cook some veggie broth but you don’t want purchase a carton of vegetable stock or buy bullion? Then get this! This would be a good enhancement to any savory dishes you are cooking in your kitchen.

Predominant notes of lavender, sweet honey, and a hint of coconut. I was surprised to find myself nodding off after drinking a mug of this tea.

I just finished a bag of Ginger & Tumeric. A bit of a lingering sweetness on the finish, but I did enjoy this tea for its stomach soothing properties.

I go to Bliss Spa in DC frequently and they serve Tea Forte in their relaxation lounge. I have tried the company’s fancier-packaged teas, however, this one is a plain paper tea bag. I agree with a previous reviewer; this tea is a good introduction to green teas if you typically dislike them. You can taste the sencha, but the lemon is more prominent. It doesn’t clash with the tea. I felt like it tasted like green tea with a squeeze of lemon juice, versus citrus zest. I probably would not purchase this for myself.

Tried this the other day as recommended by the description: Viet-style, with condensed milk. I didn’t have it iced, though. Interesting blend of flavors. It doesn’t pack a sugar-rush whammy like Vietnamese iced coffee with milk (ca phe sua da) but it wasn’t bad, either. It was the last of my stash, so unfortunately, I won’t be able to continue my experiment further.

No notes yet.

This is a review for the iced tea version. At $0.99/bottle on sale, how could I resist? Honest Tea is the company that turned me to lightly sweetened ice teas, so they have a soft place in my heart. This one tastes a bit odd, like you can almost taste the blackberry and raspberry powder. If you are looking for a loose-leaf tea, I would recommend DavidsTEA’s “Bear Trap” over this one.

You know what makes this tea awesome? The fact that there’s a picture of an over-caffeinated lemur on the package. That in itself is almost worth the purchase. As far as tea goes, this falls along the same vein as Celestial Seasonings. Not the best quality but it has its place. This is especially good if you doctor it up with milk and sugar. I have also used it to make vanilla tea-infused granola multiple times, so it gets extra points for that. It’s finely milled, so you don’t have to put it through the spice grinder.

I love chai and being Vietnamese, I love me some Saigon cinnamon. I’ve had this iced, hot with honey, and also almond milk/honey. I do enjoy drinking this tea, but I don’t love it. It’s a nice cinnamon-flavored tea. I prefer my chai to have more of a “punch you in the tastebuds” impact, so unfortunately, this didn’t make the cut. Will not repurchase, but it does smell oh-so-lovely in the bag.

No notes yet.

Has it been so long since I’ve reviewed any tea? We visited Davids Tea while in New York. The description of this tea is right up my alley, but oddly enough, it was my boyfriend who purchased it (He That Shuns All Sugar). Now I wish I purchased some for my own personal stash. It shimmers so prettily in the cup, you don’t have to add any sweetener, and just a touch of milk does soften it a bit. If the golden bits were pink, it’d be the Hello Kitty of teas. Delicious!

This is a review for the bottled iced tea sold at Whole Foods. At $2.49, it’s about double the price of Honest Tea (who has the home advantage in the DC area). What lured me into purchasing this tea was the packaging. The chic glass bottles with plastic screw-on lid are reusable and can easily find its place on the shelf amongst the eco-friendly SIGG bottles. This is the second flavor I’ve tried and I admit, I bought it so I could get another glass bottle (LOL). The color is a murky brown. Upon opening the bottle, a sweet hint of vanilla, mingled with the spicy aroma of ginger is detected. Taste: sweet, very sweet. This sweetened iced tea is on par with the other sweetened iced teas that Honest Tea sells. I am a big fan of ginger and this was not “gingery” enough for me. I look forward to trying other flavors, but will stick to making my own iced ginger green tea at home.

Beautiful floral bouquet in the store canister and bag. In cup, only a whisper of jasmine. Not overwhelming, clean taste, slightly sweet, very refreshing. Good for multiple steepings.

Mixed feelings about this tea. The scent is not a true apple, but more along the lines of apple candy, like Jolly Ranchers. Really couldn’t detect the apple note with the second steeping. It tastes much better iced. I took the remaining tea to work and everyone immediately devoured the rest of it. Looking to try other teas from Lupicia but probably won’t repurchase this one.

No notes yet.

I didn’t get this tea from this particular company, but it’s the same name and description, and it looks like the other tea place doesn’t carry it anymore. Anyway, as mentioned by the first reviewer, you really need a fine sieve or a teabag because this tea has a fine milled quality. It’s a nice vanilla tea. I have mine with condensed milk or milk/honey. I’ve also used it in a granola recipe. All around good tea.

I normally harbor disdain for rooibos teas (I think they taste too medicinal) but this is the second rooibos that I’ve actually enjoyed! We visit Wegman’s about every 3-4 months, and on our recent visit, the Blood Orange Tisane won for best scent. I’m huffing my bag as we speak… it’s a delightful bouquet of freshly peeled oranges. Very lush and tropical. The tea has lemongrass and rosehips, which gives it a bit of tartness without making you think you’re drinking watered-down orange juice. A winner!

I was pleasantly surprised by the taste of this chai. I was expecting it to be a bag of weakspice, but it was actually quite flavorful! I steeped my bag for about 4 minutes, then added honey pearls. Perfect brew for a cool morning!

No notes yet.

Slightly astringent, but refreshing brew. A good tea to try if you’re over sencha but aren’t willing to commit to the pricey matcha.

No notes yet.

Blech! I found this in my housemate’s tea stash. It smelled good so I thought it might be good iced. Too heavy on the licorice. My stomach’s feeling fine, so I cannot review its stomach easing properties.

Smoky. Reminds me of pu erh.

It reached triple digits today. Came home and poured this over ice. I feel cooler already. Best of all, there was a sale at H Mart, 2 for $3 for Oi Ocha today! Yeah!