Favorite raspberry and mint teas
It seems like ages ago now, but before I ever stumbled into the world of loose leaf, my favorite teas were Bigelow’s Raspberry Royale and Plantation Mint. They’re both really simple — raspberry and spearmint, respectively, paired with a black base — but they remain two of my favorite flavors. I’d really like to try more sophisticated versions of them — I’m not crazy about Bigelow’s base — but they’ve been surprisingly hard to find. I was a huge fan of David’s Fantasy Island, but that’s discontinued now. Does anyone know any favorite raspberry or mint black teas they’d recommend?
David’s tea has a peppermint that is very good, I think it’s called Peppermint Amour but am unsure.
My favourite is Pacific Coast Mint by Tealyra (formerly Tealux). It’s a mix of spearmint and peppermint. I get by the 100g since I go through it so fast.
Adagio has a black raspberry with good reviews: http://www.adagio.com/flavors/raspberry.html
The mints appear to be herbals, however, though this one (http://www.adagio.com/herbal/peppermint.html) has some of the highest ratings I’ve seen on the website, so it’s apparently quite good. I haven’t tried it yet myself, but I will soon. :-)
Pu-erh Vanilla Mint by Zen Tea. Minty, creamy, sweet, and earthy… this deliciously cozy blend is in perfect harmony with itself. I was surprised that this Puerh blend was so enticing to me since, at the time I first tried it, I wasn’t really into the Puerh ‘thing’. But this stuff is one my all time favs, get some!
Minted Monkey by Tippy’s Tea is on a golden monkey base with some vanilla. Norbu Tea used to have a phenomenal Darjeeling with mint called Pudina Chai (no other spices, just mint), but I don’t see it on their site lately. Maybe another company has it. Or if you are ambitious and can come by some mint, here is a recipe for making your own. :)
Thanks, these all sound great! @Nicole — is Tippy’s Tea still in business? I couldn’t bring up their website.
Honestly, I’m not sure. I haven’t ordered from them in awhile. I haven’t heard on here about them going out of business but it’s always possible. That would be sad if so. Maybe they are just down temporarily.
Good to know, I’ll check them again in a few weeks and see if it comes up. I was looking over some old Steepster threads, and came across so many tea companies that closed in the past few years, despite the fact that it sounds like they were well loved (River Tea, Della Tella, Butiki). It is really sad!
Raspberry Pecan Rooibos from Zhi Tea is pretty tasty. It’s tastes exactly how it sounds! http://www.zhitea.com/raspberry-pecan-rooibos.html
DavidsTea also came out with a new Raspberry Cream Pie for their Spring 2016 collection: https://www.davidstea.com/ca_en/raspberry-cream-pie-tea
I haven’t tried it but honestly it sounds divine! I already ordered a Spring Collection sampler so that I can try it :D
As for mint:
- Teavana White Chocolate Peppermint Rooibos – the perfect dessert tea, IMO! http://www.teavana.com/us/en/tea/rooibos-tea/white-chocolate-peppermint-rooibos-tea-31502.html
- Zhi Tea Turkish Spice Mint – also like a dessert tea IMO – http://www.zhitea.com/turkish-spice-mint-8817.html?options=cart
- Zhi Tea Moroccan Mint – http://www.zhitea.com/moroccan-mint-8770.html?options=cart
Bought the Raspberry Cream Pie rooibos today. It is reasonably good but not spectacular.
Hey there! Of course, I’m going to have to be partial towards our two Raspberry inspired teas!
The first is our Raspberry Lemon Blend, it’s a green tea (Sencha) with Raspberry, Lemon, & Rose Petals.
http://victoryteacompany.com/collections/teas/products/raspberry-lemon
The second is our Raspberry Panache, it’s our black raspberry blend. This one is just black tea and raspberry!
http://victoryteacompany.com/collections/teas/products/raspberry-panache
Hope this helps!
I can’t help you with raspberry but I’ve had a LOT of mint tea in my life. I went through Moroccan/maghrebi mint phase which is green tea and usually a strong spearmint. I don’t buy it as much as I used to since I think I prefer mint tisanes but from what I remember Gong Fu tea (which I buy from a lot because they are local) has a good one.
http://www.gongfu-tea.com/sunshop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=18
Stash teas has a decent peppermint for a readily available bagged version. It doesn’t have the fresh high notes of a really good dried mint but it’s better most other supermarket versions and doesn’t have the dust and patchouli infused quality of bulk bin mint.
Mint is one tea I would advocate growing your own since it’s so easy. Nothing makes a better nighttime tea than fresh mint from the porch/windowsill. Most mints can make do in shady conditions or north facing windows and they can be hard to overwater. If you underwater they will usually perk back up if you do water them (a little stress actually makes them mintier). Some are so aggressive that you won’t want to plant them in the ground or they will take over. It’s also a lot of fun to try new varieties since peppermint, spearamint, and the ‘fruit’ mints all make different tasting tisanes. I’m hoping to try chocolate mint this year.
Thanks, Gooseberry Spoon! I actually did have some peppermint in the garden last year, and while the flavor of the mint was delicious steeped up, it seemed weak compared to purchased tea, even when I tried crushing the leaves to release the oils. Is there anything special you do when steeping to make it extra minty?
Use waaaaaaay more mint than you think is nessasary. I have a decent sized strainer and I tear and crush the leaves and pack it pretty full. You don’t have to worry about the leaves expanding like you would dried tea . Also trying a different variety may help. I found pineapple mint to always be a bit weak.
It’ll always be a different beast than dried though. Drying concentrates the mint oils so it’s easier to get more in the tea. It’s at the expense of some of the fresh flavors though.
Login or sign up to leave a comment.