Celestial Seasonings

This was the first tea I ever loved. I didn’t know anything about loose tea and how bagged tea just uses tea dust and such-it just tasted great. I’m a little picky about green teas-not much I like, so this was a revelation. And caffeine-free! The other ingredients really moderate the peppermint and just bring out its best notes. Despite the name or the artwork on the box, it does not really taste like a candy cane. If it did, I would have had one cup a year and been done with it like I do with candy canes. No, it’s subtle, complex, sweet and very festive. I’ve probably had over 100 cups. I haven’t bought this the last two years since they stopped carrying it in my area-just couldn’t bring myself to mail order Celestial Seasonings. But, I miss it, and after drinking 250 grams of TeaGschwendner’s Sencha Claus, I think I’ll have to order some of this instead for the holidays later this year.

Today’s version: bag in, half-and-half, a dash of turbinado sugar.

I actually think I prefer the cream-only version. Overall, I have raised my rating because as I learn more about the tea itself I’m becoming more and more fond of it.

Now, of course, I’m wondering, “But what if I used a bit of honey instead of sugar?” But that will have to wait for later.

HAHAHAHAHAHA! In my morning listen to Mma Ramotswe and her associates, one of them confessed that she has never really cared for bush tea and does not wish to be rude, but wants to drink only “ordinary” tea from now on, brewed in her own personal teapot.

So I have been wondering whether that person was also speaking for me.

This morning I left the bags in my mug and added a generous splash of fat-free half & half. And decided I will continue to share and enjoy Mma Ramotswe’s kind of tea. I wonder whether she takes it plain?

I bought this because I have been on a listening glom of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency audiobooks and had no idea what bush tea was or what it tasted like, and I wanted to know. I wonder how many of us from continents other than Africa did essentially the same thing?

Anyway — this afternoon I am trying it straight up, my usual 2 bags to a pretty large cup (8-9 oz.) of microwaved water. I didn’t time it carefully.

I have tried it before with milk and with the famous fat-free half-and-half, and it’s growing on me.

All by itself, it smells earthy with a strong current of vanilla. More nutty than woody, maybe a bit like roasted pecans.

To me, it tastes almost NOTHING like it smells. All I can taste is the nuttiness. No flavor of vanilla at all. A much simpler taste than scent. Vaguely disappointing if I think of it that way, so I am now sipping it in a zen-like “be here now” non-judging manner.

It’s warm and comforting and I want to go back and sit with Mma Ramotswe while we sip.

Maybe more later, re-visited with something added to the tea.

Minor update: as the tea cools a bit, I’m getting caramel – maybe an echo of the vanilla.

Perfect tea for right before I go to bed. It calms and soothes the nerves without being overbearing :)

This tea is really, emphatically, sweet. Not just sweet as opposed to tart. Sweet. I used to drink it years ago and I swear the recipe has changed because I used to add both milk and sweetener to it. Now I use milk or fat-free half and half, but never sweetener.

I don’t detect the pepper as much, either. To me, this is a nice spicy dessert tea, very much like chai but not as cloying as the over-sweetened chai I have tried from time to time in restaurants.

Cold-brewing today, to have with Amy’s Cheese Enchilada Dinner for lunch.

This stuff is my soda pop, and I’m not ashamed. It’s fruity, a bit sweet all by itself, leaves my mouth clean and happy, has no caffeine and no calories. I could drink it all day, but I get that it doesn’t appeal to everyone.

I don’t like Kool-Aid but I really enjoy this stuff. I usually drink it hot, leave in the bags, and do not sweeten it because it doesn’t need it. It has a very strong cherry flavor with sweet/tart accents that I find very refreshing. Can also be cold-brewed.

Hmm. Having some now a few minutes after finishing a container of lemon-flavored yogurt. The sugar in the yogurt is making the tea taste like nothing, although the scent is still delightful. Must remember this. Leaving bag in mug to continue cold-steeping.

Decided to try a second steeping. Alas, it’s thin and wimpy when cold-brewed a second time. Might work if brewed hot for second steeping, leaving the bags in the cup.

Still yummy and refreshing as I attempt to flush an excess of caffeine out of my system from earlier today. Still doing a cold brew/infusion. It’s not QUITE “iced,” but I can’t seem to get the little slider above that without going too high.

Very fond of this — lots of orange, one of my favorite flavors. Refreshing and tart and unlike the ubiquitous Zingers from Celestial Seasonings.

It can be cold-brewed, as can many of the fruit teas I’ve tried. I use 2 bags in about 8-9 oz. water and just let it sit there 5-10 minutes, or until it looks right. Sometimes I even leave the bags there as I sip. I haven’t tried re-using the bags, but the flavor is strong enough that I suspect one could.

My husband and I spotted a Celestial Seasonings seasonal tea sale at a local grocery store, so we snatched up this one and a few more. :) It was my tea of choice this morning because (and I am ashamed to admit it) it’s bagged, and it was easy to grab on my way out. I do have some paper fillable tea bags, so I could have grabbed those and some loose tea, but this looked like it would do the job. So far, I’m not terribly disappointed. This is just not the best of black teas. I mean, the flavors are all right, but I don’t really taste the individual notes. It’s just one big Schoenberg cacophony of almost-vanilla-almost-almond-almost-cinnamon-almost-something-else black tea. The cinnamon is the strongest flavor, naturally, which I don’t mind. Overall, this tea gets a “meh.” The hubby likes it, which is good. He can help me finish it. Probably won’t restock this one.

Nice aroma

Really basic but super minty. I make iced tea with this regularly.

Super basic but good to make iced tea from.

I’m sad to see this rated so lowly. This was my gateway tea that took me from the bleak world of Lipton to the tasty world of flavorful tea. While it doesn’t seem as delicious now as it did when I first tried it, the cinnamon balances nicely with the other flavors and you can taste the plum. All in all it makes a nice low-effort cup on a chilly night.

I love lemon tea, but if you look at the ingredient list it begins like this:
Hibiscus, rosehips, roasted chicory, orange peel…. wow – finally something that resembles lemon!

What, you think I wouldn’t notice that this is an hibiscus tea with lemon taste?

I don’t like herbal teas with hibiscus – I love lemon though.

Okey, if I drop the attitude a bit this tea taste of lemon. It’s the primary taste and the aftertaste is pleasant. If I just try to forget the hibiscus, I like this tea.

If you like hibiscus and lemon, you will love this tea.

My university wellness center stocks this in their lounge area/waiting room. It’s a sweet kind of spicy and reminds me of essentially every lotion I’ve ever worn in the fall, and every candle I’ve ever gravitated towards in the fall. It’s a really sweet cinnamon chai- and I’m not a huge fan of sweet cinnamon. You could probably just steep cinnamon in a tea strainer and get a similar cuppa.

Still, free tea, right? Yeah, ho hum. It did help my throat feel a little less congested.

The peach flavour on its own reminds me instantly of those fuzzy peach candies. Minus the sweetness. I think it would definitely taste a bit more pleasant with a sweetener, or perhaps I may have oversteeped the bag… either way, it’s fairly tasty and satisfying as a fruity-flavoured tea. I do enjoy it more however, paired with a green tea honey lemon ginseng teabag by Tetley thrown in the mix:)

a lot of spice. a lot of apple. this tea does not skimp on flavor. drank it on a rainy night and it was just what i needed. herbal so no caffeine either. its basically an apple cider

This tea tastes like Christmas to me. The peppermint, creamy vanilla, all layered gently with a mild, non-astringent green tea, make it an easy tea to have cups and festive cups of.

This tea, with a little honey, is what gets me relaxed and asleep when nothing else will. Chamomile and other herbal notes come together to put you to bed, lovely.

Holiday tea 2023 #12

Another from CameronB!  I guess a handful that Cameron sent over were, in fact, holiday teas. :D  So they ended up as my only “new” holiday teas for the year.  This is a good thing though, as with less than a week left in the year, I have NOT met my sipdown goals!   I forgot I had this tea YEARS ago and was able to refresh my memory.  It’s an okay Celestial Seasonings blend in my opinion, then and now!  I guess I forgot it was a decaf green.  Kind of a weird base for peppermint?  But the blend works overall.  I would NOT use two teabags for a mug with this one, as the peppermint would be a bit too harsh with two bags.  Otherwise, it’s a perfect complement of background flavors with just the right amount of sweetness, peppermint rightly taking center stage.  I think I steeped it JUST RIGHT.  Second steep was also worthy. I appreciate that a billion teas later, after last trying this one, I would still rate this a 74. :D
Steep #1 // 35 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 50 min after boiling (forgot about it) // many minute steep

Holiday tea 2023 #13  Simpson & Vail – Gingerbread
Holiday tea 2023 #14  Bird & Blend – The Night Before Christmas

I didn’t have enough time for all my holiday blends this year!  Merry Christmas to all!