310 Hibiscus Tea/310 Nutrition

Being a recently turned vegetarian, I’ve been on the look out for great tasting protein shakes and other supplements to make sure I am still getting all of the nutrition I was.  What is really funny is that I was looking at 310 Nutrition when they reached out for the SororiTea Sisters to review their teas.  It was like it was meant to be.

310 Nutrition offers a variety of different products including detox teas.  Now detox teas are quite controversial for tea enthusiasts but we all know that certain herbs are good for helping to reduce bloating and provide someone with a good bump of energy.  That is what I always think about when I try a detox tea.  Not so much am I losing weight but does this blend taste good and do I feel better after enjoying the blend for a few days.

This particular blend is 310’s 310 Hibiscus Tea, which consists of hibiscus, green tea, yerba mate, oolong and a handfull of other ingredients.  unfortunately (for me), red rooibos and stevia are included in the list.  I have never been a fan of either of those ingredients .  But nevertheless, I wanted to give this blend a shot so I prepped my water, steeped the tea and sat down to enjoy.

The blend itself is pretty tasty.  I really enjoy the hibiscus and ginger notes that are coming through.  The tart and spiced tones really work well. I can’t say that I’ve had a hibiscus ginger blend before and never thought those flavors would work together but they are delightful.   The oolong and green tea notes are faint but since I am not a fan of two ingredients in the blend, that could be way they are so faint.  I wish the blend had green roobios instead of red rooibos because I think it would work deliciously.

Overall, this tea is not for me but I had a feeling it wouldn’t be when I saw the ingredient list.  I did take a look at the rest of the tea blends offered by 310 and it does look like the majority of the blends do have red rooibos.  But I’m happy I was able to try this blend regardless and look forward to seeing what a few of the other Sisters think of this blend. I really can’t speak to the detox portion of this tea since I only had one cuppa.  But my interaction with the company has been quite pleasant and I’m thinking about ordering some of their lemonade mixes.


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type:   Green/Oolong/Red Rooibos

Where to Buy: 310 Nutrition 

Description

Get a taste of the tropics with 310 Hibiscus Tea. We combine this flower grown in subtropical climates with a blend of herbs to product a premium tea with a naturally sweet flavor and beautiful crimson color.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Let’s Detox/The NecessiTeas

I don’t buy Detox teas. I don’t buy weight loss teas. I don’t buy any teas that claim magical health benefits. I understand some teas can help with some ailments (i.e. ginger teas and peppermint teas can help settle a stomach and chamomile teas can have a calming effect) but I don’t like when teas are marketed specifically for the purposes of curing people and detoxing people because, to me, that marketing strategy is tantamount to the work of a snake oil salesman. With that said, I do want it to be clear that that is just my personal opinion and I understand that for many, detox teas do help them feel better. That is why even though I wouldn’t pick them for myself, when a detox tea does cross my door, such as this one, I usually will try to have them at a time when I feel bloaty or have been having too much junk food because on the off chance they do work, I want to reap the benefits.

The past couple of nights I have been drinking and going out for meals and so if any time was a time for a detox, this would be it. I woke up at 6:30 am and brewed up this tea comprised of honeybush, rooibos, lemon myrtle, lemon peel, star anise, ginger, licorice root, juniper berries, lemongrass, marigold, stevia, birch leaves, willow bark, and natural and organic flavors. Essentially a lot of ingredients I tend to avoid (basically, I am not this tea’s target audience and thus this review should be taken with a grain of salt).

This tea tastes the way a Lush store smells. That is the best description I got. Hopefully you have been in the store Lush and can understand the reference but if you have not, Lush is a store that sells fresh handmade cosmetics. It is fragrant and pungent with a whole plethora of scents that come together in one semi-sweet, semi-medicinal cloud of fragrance.

Surprisingly, it is not as bad as I expected. Between the star anise, the licorice root, and the stevia, I was expecting a cloying mess. Though this does have that sweet licorice root/stevia top note that sort of coats your tongue, there is a nice ginger burn underneath which reigns in those sweeter ingredients just enough that they are tolerable. I get some lemon and some licorice. A little of this and a little of that but nothing distinct enough to give this a truly discernible flavor.

I will say my stomach, which was a bit queasy, is slightly settled. I think the ginger has a lot to do with that and to be honest, I would probably have preferred to just drink a ginger tea for this health benefit. However, it did help which means this does have some merit to its claim that it will “make you feel good from the inside out”. Plus, it is one of the more tolerable tasting detox teas I have tried.

 


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type: Herbal

Where to Buy:  The NecessiTeas

Description

This wellness blend will make you feel good from the inside out. This antioxidant rich blend of organic honeybush and rooibos is combined with marigold, birch leaves and juniper berries to promote a healthy immune system and cleanse away the effects of harmful toxins.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

The Cleanse from Harlow Tea Company. . . .

I am generally skeptical of any tea that claims a detoxifying effect or special health benefit, other than ginger for its actually proven anti-inflammatory properties. However, I like that the description for this tea doesn’t promise any magic results. I also like that it has dandelion root; I just enjoy the roasty, robust flavor of dandelion root. So I was willing to give this tea a try when I received a sample.

The dry leaf smells like hibiscus, dandelion, mint, and houjicha. The scent of the dry leaf is actually the most complex thing about this tea. Made according to package instructions, the immediate scent of the peach-colored brew is sweet hibiscus with a roasty undertone. The hibiscus flavor is not sickly-sweet strong but it is strong enough to mostly overwhelm the other flavors.

The only other flavors I can discern are some underlying roastiness and a lingering minty coolness after the sip. There’s no change in the flavor profile when the tea cools.

A second steep yields the same results. It’s actually remarkable to me how consistent the flavor is; typically a tea will change at least somewhat as it cools and with multiple steeps.

My guess is that the issue here is the hibiscus drowning out everything else. If you choose teas for their purported health benefits, this one seems as good as any other.

At least it has ginger in it and I didn’t personally experience any negative side effects from drinking two cups of it. But if you choose teas for flavor or complexity and are not a huge fan of hibiscus, I would look elsewhere.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:
Where to Buy:  Harlow Tea Company
Description

We all have seen those “get skinny now” teas available. I so wish such a thing worked for all of us, but it sadly does not. What does help an individual in the weight lose process is detoxing your body with the proper ingredients, combined with diet and exercise.

This tea offers some amazing ingredients on top of green tea which helps boost metabolism.

Ginger, turmeric, peppermint, and dandelion are all natural ingredients to rid your body of toxins, i.e. detox

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Saffron Kahwa from Tea Trunk . . .

A saffron tea had me intrigued. This is not an ingredient usually used in tea blends so I was interested to see what it contributed. I had no idea what to expect but there is a creaminess here that I am at a loss for where it is coming from (would saffron add creaminess? I think that seems off. Maybe it is the almonds?).

In addition to the saffron and the almonds noted above, this tea boasts a chai tea profile with rose petals. All on a green tea base.

Tea Trunk recommends this as a detox tea, one to be had to cleanse the palate after a heavy meal and I can see why. For a tea composed of so many chai spices usually associated with warmth and fall/winter tea drinking this tea is surprisingly light. Though still spicy and warm. It is an interesting combination.

So this is creamy and spicy but also quite sweet. I’m thinking the almonds are playing a big role here contributing both the creamy and sweet notes and helping support the warmer notes of the spices atop a nutty foundation. In that regard, it probably also creates a bridge between the green base and the other ingredients.

The rose, on the other hand, is pretty hidden in the mix. Perhaps it adds sweetness but there is no floral component here that I can detect.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Green Tea
Where to Buy:  Tea Trunk
Description
Oldest known recipe of tea, the Kahwa has been a tea for Emperors.

Green tea is infused with saffron strands, cinnamon bark, cloves, ginger, cardamom pods, rose petals and sweet almonds. This luxurious blend is known for it’s detoxfying properties and is rich in antioxidants and nutrients. Wear your invisible tiara/ crown, and sip with regal grace.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

DeTox from Magic Tea Fit. . . . .

After a capital-D Decadent holiday season and a weeklong vacation recently, my body has been feeling CASHED. While I don’t buy into this whole detox tea trend, I do think that my body feels the difference between drinking another cup of peppermint-sugar-coated-chocolate-sugarplum-chocolate sugar tea (mmmm, the holidays) and an herbal blend with some anti-inflammatory herbs.

This tea smells strongly of cinnamon and licorice and tastes the same. I can’t detect any of the red rooibos here, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There’s a hint of hibiscus, a touch of ginger– really, this tea is kind of a mish-mash of all the key players in so many of the herbals stocks my cabinet at the moment.

I’m bummed to see stevia in this blend– my guess is that it’d be sweet enough with the licorice and other herbs alone, but I do get some of that trademark stevia-aftertaste that’s not so pleasant.

This tea might be a bit of an overachiever– so many herbs make for a bit of a competition between flavors. But on the whole, it sips great and is a welcome respite from the sugar-overload of the holiday season. I’ll be enjoying this one until it’s time to start baking some Valentine’s treats!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Herbal/Rooibos
Where to Buy:  Magic Tea Fit
Description

100% Organic Detox Tea (Evening Tea ) is a specially designed blend of 14 wonder Herbs, Root powders & Spices to  flush out the toxins,cleanse the Liver, Colon & the whole body . Its an excellent source to induce sound & quality sleep. Its 100% ORGANIC and Naturalcomplemented by carefully selected herbs that support good health.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!