Cacao

This ‘herbal’ and I are sorting things out.

I have a hard time calling it an herbal, even though I know that, by way of tea terminology, it’s entirely the right word. It just seems so strange. It’s comprised entirely of shredded cacao shell — little flakes of it — and seems even more of a stretch for the term than usual, to me.

Oh well!

I was pretty excited to get it. For four dollars you get a pretty impressive 4oz bag! This is good, because they want 3 teaspoons of the stuff per 8oz. of water.

Opening the bag, the scent is heavily, unapologetically, mouth-wateringly chocolate. Tea isn’t the only heated beverage that I love a little bit more than I should, as it happens — I’m also quite fond of artisan hot chocolates, and there is nothing quite like that rich, real-chocolate smell.

I steeped it up with glee. Steeped, the aroma is even better — like rich drinking chocolate.

And then…I was sort of disappointed. It was quite bitter. I actually would have expected this, given the product itself and its unaltered organic authenticity, if it weren’t for the tasting note and description, which suggest it’s quite sweet. Which is not to say that I wanted Hershey or Swiss Miss sweet; as I say, I like good chocolate, and am quite fond of some bitter, fruity dark chocolates, and I can say with authority that I wasn’t looking for the over-sugared chocolate thing we’ve got going in this country.

This is not a terrible thing, though. I can work with this. I am just going to have to play with it in order to figure out how best to coax the chocolate flavor into a creamy, tasty state…because the aroma promises it, and I desperately want the flavor to come more into line with what the scent is.

In the first effort to figure out how to do that, I prepared it tonight on the stovetop, like a chai — boiled/simmered for a few minutes, topped with milk, heated again, strained. I added a bit of turbinado sugar, but not much.

I was also sort of naughty and used whole milk, just for over-the-top indulgence.

It is quite good. There’s still bitterness, but it’s pleasant, the way that chocolate bitterness can be, and the chocolate flavor is rich. A lower-cal option to actual hot-chocolate, but prepared this way, I’m not sure it’s much better, and so will be continuing to play with this one for a while.

Yeah, twist my arm, right? ;)

Leaving a rating off until I’ve played with it some more.

Oh. My. Goodness.

This is freaking AWESOME.

Because Teagasm doesn’t adequately describe what I’m experiencing at the moment, I’m going to say ChocolaTeaGASM.

So good. So very very good. I am sad that I only got a sample packet of this from Tea Review Blog (going to write my review of this tea for the blog in a few moments) because I could drink this every day. I will have to hunt this down and buy some.

Rich. Chocolate. Sweet. Chocolate. Delicious. CHOCOLATE. This is better than any sipping chocolate or any hot chocolate. Oh… yum yum yum yum yum.

The boss man is out of town for the weekend with his cycling team doing a training camp of sorts. I’m at home. On the sofa. It’s totally quiet. The kids are in bed. I need something incredibly indulgent to celebrate. Enter Tisano Cacao “tea”.

This is a funny drink to call tea, but I’m not one to argue semantics, it’s a plant product, so cool, it’s an herbal tea. It also gets the title of my new favorite herbal tea. Holy smokes. I love super duper dark chocolate, think one notch sweeter than baker’s chocolate. This tea is actually a little sweeter than even that, but it is so rich and smooth with absolutely no additions. The only addition I added was some Hojicha in my second cup to add a little extra roastiness to it.

Ahhh… alone on my couch, the tv all mine, no one making any requests of me, and this cacao tea in my hand. Shhh…. I’m savoring.

Another one from Wombatgirl and one I’ve been curious about since first I took it out of the box. Wombatgirl sent me a nice little tin with the sample in it, which is definitely air-tight. And child-proof. And very nearly Ang-proof as well, so prying it open resulted in a little spillage (and some air turning blue).

What we’ve got here are some flakes of something that I’m guessing are cacao bean shells or husks or something. I feel we’re kind of stretching the term ‘herbal tea’ with this one. I mean I know that the definition of a herbal herbs and plants steeped and prepared as a tea, without it actually being tea. And I know that cacao beans are also plant parts so it’s still covered by that definition.

But at the same time, aren’t we really more like moving into hot chocolate territory with this one? I’m posting about it because it’s already on the site. If it hadn’t been, I don’t think I would have added it and just sent Wombatgirl a pm about what I thought of it instead.

It tastes like a cup of cocoa too. Slightly bitter though for the absence of sugar. I’m reminded of that sort of hot cocoa where you’ve got a powdered mix and put hot water on it. This tastes a bit like that made with only about 20% of the proper amount of powder. If I were to add a little sugar (and I shall try this once there’s better room in the cup for stirring) it would come really close to a cup of thin, watery hot cocoa. If you make this really really strong and add sugar and milk, I’d wager you were nearly there.

If what you’re looking for is an actual herbal tea that tastes like cocoa, then this is a very good bet for it. I bet it’s also really great for mixing in with other things, adding a little flavour to an otherwise slightly dull tea.

This is pretty good for what it is. But I’d really rather have some real hot cocoa.

This is the gold standard of chocolate tisanes. As it is 100% cacao nibs and no honeybush/rooibos fillers, this is 100% chocolate taste. Does this taste like a hot chocolate? Not as rich – but it is extremely chocolatey with a hint of sugar. The addition of milk would only improve this. I also blended my previously infused sampler w my Zhi Tea Gongfu black (similar to Premium Steap’s Red Empereror). Now I finally have the perfect black tea. The richness and syrup-i-ness of the gong fu was a perfect match for the cacao nibs. I highly recommend this.

Yum. Drinking a cup of this with some half and half and simple syrup. Wonderful evening treat.

So, I think this is the one TastyBrew sent me as a surprise, especially since she’s reviewed it. This is really good. Great chocolate flavor!! A little thinner than I would like, but delicious! And a great herbal to have later in the day! Thanks, TastyBrew!!!

I have been stalking the “shop” button on the Tisano site ever since I saw LiberTEAS’s review of it. So when I saw they were giving away samples, and you just had to pay shipping, I jumped at the chance. Got it in the mail today (yes, 4 out of 5 weekdays this week, I got tea in the mail), and almost immediately brewed it up.

The dry “leaf” smells soooo good!! Got a tin of Hersey’s Cocoa? Go sniff it, and you’ll know exactly what this tastes like. Not kidding, I did a side-by-side sniff test. And after it brewed, it smelled better. Seriously wondering if that stuff is edible, or if my insides would really get messed up if I tried it.

Okay, just realized I totally didn’t follow directions (then again, when do I ever?), and only used 1 teaspoon per cup (instead of 3). Yes, I could have read the package, but again, when do I ever do that?

Okay, even brewing it at 1/3 the suggested volume, this is still pretty darn good. I love the dark chocolate taste that’s there. Yes, it’s a smidge weak…but, honestly, I could drink it like this and be perfectly fine and happy. Yes, I’ll try it the way it’s supposed to be done next time. But seriously, the smell of this stuff is amazing!! It’s like I’m baking a chocolate cake and the smell keeps wafting out of the kitchen. I’d love to have a whole tin of this to experiment with; I think it’d be great to blend in with other teas to give them a chocolate edge!

If I closed my eyes and took a sip of this without knowing it was tea I would think this is hot chocolate! This is really really good! I just ordered a free sample from the company (had to pay S&H charges of $4.95) which was a great way to try this tea. Although I think it is just a tad bit pricey because you are supposed to use 3 tsp per 8 oz. But for a special treat I could definitely see ordering a tin of this! It is super yummy!

I finally got around to this herbal tea! It smelled divine! The shells were slightly crushed up! I absolutely love chocolate, so this was a nice treat. It smelled like chocolate. It brewed up a light caramel brown color. The taste was a very watered down hot chocolate. Still good though! I didn’t add any sugar or milk to it, and it was still pretty tasty. I imagine adding sugar and milk may enhance it. I will try it that way next time :)

I was looking forward to trying this tea, and thought that it might be the most chocolate-flavored one out there! The scent from the package to the mug to the steep was pure, rich chocolate. It smelled like a fresh and sweet cup of hot chocolate! My brother even commented and said, “it smells like so much chocolate in here.” I was preparing my mouth for a pure chocolate sip (but tea-style, of course). Like others have said, I found this tea to be a bit bitter. Yes, I tasted chocolate, but I wasn’t pleased with the bitter flavor that came with it. Usually with some flavored teas, you get the flavor and then a nice dimension of tea leaf. I found this tea to be completely one-dimensional: just a single layer of chocolate+bitterness. I kept waiting to taste some black tea or something in the background, but it just left me disappointed. I know this tea is popular with some, but it’s just not for me.

Has a wonderfully deep, rich, classic cacao aroma, unsweetened pure chocolate that smells like cocoa nibs (not surprising). Without milk or sugar it had a clean, chocolate flavor, but unsweetened, and with a bit of a bitter aftertaste. With half-and-half and sugar, the residual bitterness disappeared, yet the tea retained its pure chocolate aroma and flavor.

I steeped mine for 5 minutes using boiling water (their 0.5 ounce sample was for two servings), but I think in the future I would use a little bit more tea for two cups (granted, I use larger mugs for my day-to-day tea) and steep for another minute or two, but no longer.

One of my new favorites!

Ever buy a chocolate tea that smells soooooooooooo delicious? And then when you make tea the tea tastes like…tea? It’s pretty disappointing. This tea is magic! It smells like chocolate and the resulting brew tastes like a really expensive dark chocolate bar. Sweet! The only complaint I have is that you have to use a lot of it per cup, which means you’ll run out of it quickly…

I had a gift certificate so bought some from Amazon. Upon opening, it smells like cocoa. 3 teaspoons for 8 ounces? After steeping for 5 minutes, the smell is totally different, flavor way milder than anticipated. I want to play with it to see how it works to toss a spoonful or 2 into regular loose-leaf tea. Company brags about donating money to disability organization. Did not answer the email I sent asking for product info such as instructions…I’m blind and can’t read the package. That turned me off! I added maple sugar and it improved the taste, but hey, Swiss Miss is cheaper! Should be called a beverage instead of a tea, not a tea at all. Buy TeaGuys Chocolate Delight which I rate as a 10, it’s a real tea, way cheaper and they answer email!

This stuff is amazing. First saw it at the World Tea Expo this summer and just received my order…we are almost sold out already. Made up a batch for my customers this morning with 1/2 and 1/2 and whipped cream and a dust of cocoa…they loved it! What a great holiday treat!

One of my favorite teas - This is not a creamy hot chocolate kind of tea – This is a wonderful company they make excellent drinks - This is a very strong taste of dark chocolate - I try my teas without anything so I can really taste the tea and this smells wonder – When you open up the can it is wonderful smelling - I love my hot water brewer because it makes your tea temp taste just right – I think if someone doesn’t brew this at right temp you may not like it - If you love chocolate then this a great tea for you -