Tangerine Creamsicle

This is super delicious.

My favorite guayusa is still The Killer’s Vanilla, but this is nice for days when I’m not looking for a real comforting, cozy cup of tea, but something a little more tangy and zesty. So perfect.

I love that it has the sharp bite of citrus combined with a wonderful creaminess to make it not at all overpowering – it actually just blends perfectly with the earthy guayusa to make a very satisfying and flavorful drink. I am so glad I ordered this one.

Last cup! So I’ll definitely have to make a note, as this is one of my favorites. It’s been my first guayusa and it makes me excited to try more.

I love having this one on mornings where I think I might need a little extra kick. It’s a really relaxing tea (the tangerine taste is fairly sweet to me, not as tangy), and the guayusa does always seem to give me more energy. The whole tea just seems like the perfect blend of a grassiness, citrus taste and a light creaminess. I put off the review for so long because I can never pinpoint what it is that makes me love it so much, and I still can’t quite name it. The smell is always amazing, and does actually reminds me greatly of a tangerine creamsicle! (though brewed it’s a bit less so) The tangerine taste is very juicy, and the creaminess to this one is light, making it really refreshing instead of too dessert-y.

I never did end up adding sugar to any of the cups I had, so I’ll have to remember to try it that way with my next order. I’m definitely going to try and keep this one in my permanent teas (as soon I’m allowed more money to spend on tea)! I even got a separate tin all ready for it, with labeling and stuff.

Thanks to Azzrian for the sample.

This is my first guayusa and it’s definitely different than I expected. I can see how the citrus flavors lend themselves to this type of tea. My tea tastes a lot like orange peels. I’m not really getting TOO much of a creamy taste from it. It is pretty good, though. Rather interesting.

Also, I totally forgot to smell the tea before I brewed my sample – d’oh! I’m reading all these notes about how wonderful it smells, too. Urgh. I used my IngenuiTEA to brew this, but I’m noticing now that the tea doesn’t really expand too much. A T-Sac will work just fine for next time.

Oh, and I thought that guayusa had no caffeine – good thing I double checked THAT one (and good thing this is the morning). It has more caffeine that Yerba Mate. I’m certainly awake now, if I wasn’t before ;)

Second infusion: I think this is better the second time around. Not quite so much “orange peel”-ness and I’m able to taste more of the cream. Overall, a very interesting tea.

Yet another from the TeaboxB! There is a bit of this one in the box. An actual Butiki blend I haven’t tried yet! Probably because it is newer! I LOVE Butiki’s guayusas though. The flavor is so smooth and Butiki knows how to add nice flavors to the bases. This one is lovely! It doesn’t have too much creaminess to it, other than the smoothness from the guayusa itself. The tangerine is definitely tangerine! It doesn’t overpower the guayusa which is nice. I added some of the Adagio sugar crystals also from the teabox, suggested by Butiki. I wish I had tried a sip or two before I added the sugar crystals to see that the difference is. But obviously sugar would help it taste more like a creamsicle! One of my favorite ice creams happens to be the orange/vanilla swirls. The second steep was over nine minutes accidentally – too much, though it didn’t ruin the tea.. it was just earthy, more vegetal (green beans?) and the creamsicle was gone. I’m not sure if I will take the couple remaining teaspoons out of the teabox or not…. Also, I can’t wait to see all the new Butiki blends I saw mentioned yesterday… and what everyone comes up with for the contest!

This tea is nothing short of amazing. The tangerine citrus taste is apparent and there’s an underlying creaminess that works so well with the guayusa base. The guayusa adds a certain subtle earthiness to the background. I’m really enjoying this as my morning tea today. I may have to order some in my next Butiki order.

For those unsure of guayusa I highly recommend this as the guayusa taste is quite subtle compared to the other flavours. I quite enjoy guayusa, but with these flavours, I don’t mind that the actual guayusa base is subtle.

Enjoying another sample from Stacy. The first few sips tasted strongly of guayusa. I didn’t detect tangerine or cream or creamsicles at all. Midway through the cup, the tangerine comes through stronger, but still lagging behind. Guayusa is a strong flavor and I’d be surprised for it to be hiding behind anything other than spicy cinnamon.

I like it because it’s guayusa, and I like guayusa. I may order it again for that reason, but the complete blend of orange peel and other flavors didn’t wow me.

I’m SO disappointed that it doesn’t work for me. It smells like creamsicles for real, but once steeped all I can taste is the hay-like guayusa, and apparently I really don’t like that flavour. I’ll just sit here with my nose in the bag, OK?

:(

In other news, I’m sitting on a $50 shopping cart at DavidsTea. Persian Apple (for the BFF), Merry Cranberry, and Ever Green. I’m not sure about the Merry Cranberry or the Ever Green, but I really really really want to try them and this seems like it’s the only way now.

The last of my samples from Butiki. I really enjoyed the Cider Guayusa yesterday, so I have high hopes for this.

The dry leaves smell delicately of orange, creamy rather than zesty, with the earthiness from the guayusa providing a pleasant undertone. It’s quite a straightforward scent, but if it tastes as good as it smells, I’ll be a happy girl.

I brewed this for 6 mins, and needn’t have feared. The tangerine is a subtle flavour, but it’s definetly there. The creaminess isn’t noticable at first, but develops more as the tea cools. I haven’t added anything to this, but I can imagine the contribution a little sugar would make. There’s not a great deal of natural sweetness from the tangerine, so the earthy guayusa does tend to dominate, at least in the intial sip. The creamy tangerine is noticable in the aftertaste, though, which makes for a very pleasant early-afternoon drink.

On balance, I prefer the Cider Guayusa I tried yesterday, so this probably isn’t one I’d order more of. I’m glad I had the opportunity to try it, though. Experience is the key in all things!

This one is from the Traveling Teabox B. I’ve always been curious about this one so I was happy when I saw it in the tea box. Ooo the aroma is delicious! The flavor is nice. Nice juicy tangerine flavor and a nice creamy note. I can even taste the guayusa under it all :]

Thanks for running the return customer promotion, Stacy.

This one is really good! It has an excellent balance of flavor without too heavy focus on the citrus.