Mint Lemonade Organic Green Tea from Fraser Tea. . . .

Fraser Tea was one of my favorite “new to me” tea companies from 2017.  I instantly fell in love with their teas and loved the selection they have to pick from.  A few orders later, I’m still enjoying their teas almost on a daily basis.

Mint Lemonade Organic Green Tea is a unique blend of green tea, spearmint, turmeric, and other organic ingredients.  I can’t say I’ve seen another offering like this one for a green flavored mint lemonade tea.  So this pretty much was a “I have to have this now” sort of tea.

Brewed up with water around 190F and allowed to steep for 4 minutes, this tea definitely strives to be a mint green tea with a lemon and herbal twist.  Smooth, refreshing, and completely addictive.    The green tea, lemon, and mint flavors come across in this wonderful melody.  As much as I enjoyed the tea, with the long list of ingredients this tea blend contains, I had this feeling that cold brewing this bad boy would be the way to go.

Cold brewed over night, this tea is sensational! Fresh pops of lemon really come across with this minty green tea base.  You get this almost herbaceous and spicy hint here and there that really elevated this tea.  Sunshine in a glass for sure!

If you haven’t taken a look at all that Fraser Tea has to offer, take a moment and check them out.  So far I have been super impressed with the teas I’ve picked up.  I have to drink down my tea stash a bit but as soon as I do, Fraser Tea will be getting another order from me.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy:  Fraser Tea
Description

Enjoy a glass of invigorating Mint Lemonade Organic Green Tea for a pleasing summer refresher any time of year.  Green tea unites with spearmint, peppermint, turmeric, and lemongrass to create a citrus explosion. Relax with a glass of iced Mint Lemonade Organic Green Tea for its health benefits and refreshing flavor.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Headache Relief from Virginia Tea Co (with help from Mary Poppins). . . .

Once upon a time, I had sad news to give, and I was up all night thinking of how to break it. The next morning came with a pretty rough headache, but also the right words to say. Good thing this headache curing tea was in to ease some of my mental turmoil!

It’s got lots of pulverized leaves, I can recognize lavender and chamomile and there’s definitely spearmint in there too, though there are lots of fragrant flowers I can’t ID.

Virginia Tea Co is a Kickstarter crowd-funded company, whose done all the herbal medicine research so we don’t have to. They also source fair trade ingredients, and that’s a relief too.

When I tasted this, it seemed bitter to me, almost tasted like aspirin. Was it my conscience affecting my taste buds or was this just not my cuppa?

A few weeks later, I served some to a friend who’d been having a lot of headaches and thought he might benefit from it. He often describes himself as having “the palate of an eight-year-old”, but he liked it!…. After adding Paula Deen amounts of simple syrup…. in about 15 minutes, he noted his head felt less tense,  and later that night it hadn’t come back.

Well now we know Mary Poppins had it right, a (few) spoonful(s) of sugar helps the medicine go down! I know that some folks are sensitive to OTC pain relief options, or prefer not to use pharmaceuticals and this is a great option for them.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Virginia Tea Co.

Lavender, feverfew, chamomile, skullcap, and spearmint are blended together to help fight those awful headaches. They do this by relaxing your mind and allowing for better thoughts to enter.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Organic Sage Superherb by Republic of Tea. . . .

I steeped this tea five minutes with one tea bag in about one cup of 190 degree water. Although I do normally use loose leaf tea, the convenience of pre-bagged tea is tempting too! Especially when it’s high-quality tea.

After steeping, it’s become a yellowish color and smells a bit pineapple-ish with an undertone of sage. The sage isn’t too overpowering, at least judging by the fragrance.

First sip: Yes, the pineapple may actually be stronger than the sage here. It’s also quite sweet. It has a bit of a stevia flavor, almost. The pineapple flavor blends with the flavor of the sage leaves and, according to the ingredients list, orange leaves as well to create a pleasantly fruity drink. It’s much more palatable than drinking an infusion of straight sage, which is important if you’re going to be drinking this on a regular basis. Yet the woodsy, flowery flavor of the sage does come through as well.

This is listed as an herbal tea for hot flashes, although I wouldn’t know anything about how effective it would be for such a complaint. It’s probably good for colds/sore throats as well; it’s comforting, soothing, and relaxing. Or if you’re looking for a more culinary use it would probably go well with cookies for a snack, although I’m not a tea pairing expert either.

It’s definitely sweet and seems well-balanced in flavor, and whether you end up drinking it on a daily basis or just as an occasional novelty, I hope you’ll be glad you tried it too!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Herbal
Where to Buy:  Republic of Tea
Description

As women, we have the power to create and nurture life, all while juggling hormonal changes and external stresses. For centuries, women have relied upon the same powerful herbs found in our organic SuperHerb Teas to keep them balanced, and now they can easily be part of your daily life as well.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Daily Support from Lipton Teas . . . . .

Lipton, yes that Lipton with the red tagged black tea bags.  Lipton has a series of new wellness teas and the SororiTea Sisters are checking them out. This time, I’m tasting Daily Support blend.  This blend features turmeric, echinacea, ginger, and green tea.

Turmeric seems to be everywhere when the new year rolls around and people make new resolutions about living healthier and cleaner for the new year.  Turmeric comes up as one of those spices with lots of healthy properties like reducing inflammation and boosting antioxidants. I’m not a doctor, but I like trying new tea flavors so I took the plunge and brewed a cup.

Tumeric on its own can be a bit too strong and bitter.  It is spicy, but more reminiscent of curry powder than chai spices.  I find I like tumeric best when paired with ginger, like it is in this Daily Support blend.  Their spiciness compliments each other, bringing out the sweet heat in the ginger and the earthier spice of the turmeric.

I’m a spice-lover when it comes to tea, so I would say that this blend could use more ginger and turmeric to suit my tastes.  However, if you’re not into a hot-spiced blend, this might be a nice surprise.  The ginger is at its sweetest, with gentle honey and lemon undertones, and just a hint of the more savory turmeric in the aftertaste.  The green tea itself gets lost under these two powerhouses, but you don’t miss it.

I’ve had great success with tumeric ginger lattes at my local coffee shop.  I’ll have to try this tea with some frothy milk next time for a cozy, creamy cup of spice. No matter how you brew it, this is a perfect warming cup for turning over a new leaf and giving your body and mind some Daily Support.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Green tea
Where to Buy: Lipton Teas
Description:

Conquer the day with new Lipton Daily Support Herbal Supplement with Green Tea, which contains Turmeric, Echinacea, and Ginger. As an excellent source of Vitamin C, this herbal infusion helps support your body’s natural defenses*. Carefully selected botanicals are blended with green tea and orange essential oil that make every cup delicious. Enjoy a cup of Lipton Daily Support to supplement your varied, balanced diet.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Ten Flavors of Kombucha from GT’s Living Foods

Kombucha appears to be all the rage right now, with stores stocking more companies and flavors than I’ve ever noticed before, even outside the shelves of my local health food store.  What is kombucha?  Kombucha is fermented black tea.  The fermentation process gives the brew carbonation and bacteria, the good kind of bacteria like in yogurt, which helps the digestive system.  Due to the fermentation process, some kombuchas are contain alcohol, and others have gone through processes to filter out this excess alcohol and make it safer for those who don’t partake.  Check on the alcohol content of the next bottle of kombucha that you pick up to make sure it’s at a level you prefer.

My favorite Kombucha brand at the moment is GT’s Living Foods, specifically their Enlightened and Synergy series.  These teas come in heavy glass bottles with well-designed labels, and those with a white cap contain only trace amounts of alcohol.  Not to mention, these teas are available in seemingly every flavor imaginable.  Each time I find a store that stock’s GT’s Kombucha, I find a new flavor I haven’t seen before.

The best flavor I’ve tasted is their Synergy Trilogy flavor, which I see most often on the shelves.  Trilogy features a trio of fruits and spices, blending raspberries, lemon, and ginger with the bubbly black tea base.  This is the perfect balance of sweet and tart that compliments the sour bite of the fermented tea. The fizziness makes this feel like a sweet treat, but it has far less sugar than a can of soda, and more natural ingredients.  With black tea, bubbles, and that perfect touch of tartness, this kombucha always makes me feel like celebrating.  I can’t speak to how the good bacteria has helped my stomach, as I haven’t noticed a drastic change, but drinking the tea does do wonders for my morale.

Some of the other flavors I’ve had an opportunity try include:

  1. Trilogy – I’ve already waxed poetic about this flavor, see above.
  2. Gingerade – Less fruity, with more lemon and a spicier ginger kick, a great flavor for fans of ginger beer soda.
  3. Limited Edition Liberty – This blend came out for 4th of July, and features a blend of watermelon, cherry, and lime.  It’s a fun limited edition, but the fruit is a bit too delicate to hold up against the bold tea base.  I think it would have been better with a stronger lime-ade presence.
  4. Guava Goddess – Tasty, tropical, and pink, this was one of the sweeter blends available with the guava powering through the black tea base.
  5. Gingerberry – Very similar to the Trilogy flavor, but slightly sweeter with blueberry instead of raspberry, and still a hint of ginger spice.
  6. Cosmic Cranberry – The tartness of the cranberries work well with the sour tea base.  It’s similar to the Trilogy flavor but with more tart zing.
  7. Multi-Green – Surprisingly nutty and not too grassy at all. Much more savory than the other flavors.  Definitely an acquired taste.
  8. Lavender Love – The brew is almost purple in color from all the lavender. The soft, fragrant florals dance over the top of the sweet/sour tea.
  9. Lemonade – Most of the blends feature some lemon notes, but this blend is all-lemon, the sour citrus pairing perfectly with the tart tea.
  10. Mystic Mango – This blend is bright and opaque, full of fresh mango fruitiness.  This is like a kicked-up orangina, with hearty sweetness and a burst of bubbles.

Even looking at their website now, I see additional flavors I’m intrigued to try.  They even have a whole chia-seed series I haven’t seen before.  I’ll have to keep an eye out at my local stores.

If you’re intimidated by the idea of kombucha, give one of GT’s Living Foods many delectable flavors a try and see what new avenues of tea await you.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: GT’s Living Foods (or at your local grocery/health food store)
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!