Free The Tea

Part of the Revitalize Teaser Box from Free The Tea. Includes 4 samples – each about 5-7 servings and an infuser (tea ball with handles).

This is aimed at new to loose leaf users.

It is listed as containing premium organic green tea is blended with organic peppermint and dashed with organic spearmint leaves.

3 minute steep in 175F water produced a honey colored cup with a healthy mint presence. By the ingredient list, I expected a peppermint tea with notes of spearmint. Instead I get just the opposite. I’m not a spearmint fan. Here is works OK because the peppermint tempers it and the green tea melds with it nicely.

Couple not exactly complaints but I do wish I were able to separate the green tea taste out more. I think this is just the nature of mint tea. The other may just be my sample but much of the leaf pieces are very small. There are a few bigger pieces and the small ones are big enough to work in a tea ball. I think here I have just become accustomed to big whole leaf. On the whole as good or better than most entry level teas.

The ingredient list on Steepster wouldn’t let me add organic sugar cane or wheatgrass. They are in here with the matcha powder from Japan. This is a new to me company.

I learned a valuable lesson with the cute little sample tins. Don’t try to open them unless you are awake enough to pay attention. The lid was very tight. I didn’t stop to think it through (twist moron, twist). Yep, matcha all over the desk. Not the first time. Won’t be the last.

I was concerned about the additions to the matcha. I had never heard of wheatgrass. I have heard of sugar – which probably best explains why I have not heard of wheatgrass.

It is listed as 15 calories per serving so it is not even remotely as sweet as a green tea frap. The powder color is a pleasant spring green. I could not make it foam despite the use of a handheld frother. The cup color is a deep green.

While sweet, this is not candy level overdose. It is about where I would sweeten it myself. The taste is nicely grassy. The sweet grassy aftertaste lingers.

I also made a cold milk latte. With milk this foamed really well.

For me the only negative was the pre-sweetened mix, however as I said I was going to make it this sweet anyway.