Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Lemon Grass is a native herb of Southeast Asia. It is said to help with digestion, calms the nerves, and helps with high blood pressure. Our Lemon Grass has a delicate Meyer lemon flavor with a hint of sweet ginger and an uplifting floral aroma.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Co-Op Membership here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s been a little while since I’ve had pure lemon grass. It’s not something I drink often but I do enjoy it when I drink it, so I wasn’t at all disappointed to find it in last month’s Co-Op box from Simple Loose leaf. It’s a lovely herbal tisane: soft, soothing, and uplifting.
I brewed this in my Breville, using three bamboo scoops (I usually use more leaf when I’m brewing an herbal than when I’m brewing a tea) to 500ml of water. I set the temperature to 195°F (my go-to temperature for herbals) and the timer was set for 10 minutes. Because this is a pure lemon grass, I didn’t have to worry about tannins making it bitter.
This is a fine quality lemon grass and it tastes very much like I’d expect a good quality lemon grass to taste. It’s smooth and buttery with a sweet, lemon-y note. The lemon taste of lemon grass isn’t a pucker-y tart, it’s more like a lemon curd. The description above suggests a Meyer lemon, which tends to be a little sweeter than a typical lemon, but I think that it’s even a little sweeter than a Meyer lemon.
The description above also suggests a sweet ginger note and I can pick up on a hint of spice. I don’t know if I’m tasting ginger but it is a subtle note of spice, reminiscent of white pepper.
It’s a really nice tisane to drink after I’ve had several cups of tea – it’s a nice change of pace to the caffeinated beverage. It’s naturally caffeine free and it’s quite soothing to sip. I like to keep lemon grass on hand for times when I’m starting to feel a sore throat come on because it’s very comforting to my throat. It’s also makes a refreshing cold beverage – my daughter loves it!
Nonpareil Yunnan Dian Hong Ancient Wild Tree Black Tea from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
This Ancient Wild Tree black tea comes from Fengqing, Yunnan. The tea garden is at 2000 meters high, is renowned as a good place of growing good tea.
The local tea tree is Fengqing large leaf species, can produce thick tea leaf. Our Ancient Wild Tree black tea then has large, strong leaves. The dry tea is glossy and dark, covered with thin pekoes. Its full aroma and bold taste can be revealed when brewed, as well as the particular strong taste which brings a characteristic of raw pu-erh to this black tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’m always happy to try a tea from Teavivre, because I know that the tea is going to be good. Not just good, but excellent! I can’t recall ever having tried a tea from Teavivre that I’ve been disappointed by, and this Nonpareil Yunnan Dian Hong Ancient Wild Tree Black Tea is no exception. This is lovely.
The flavor is rich and smooth. There is a delightful honeyed flavor to the cup and this honey-like flavor is further highlighted by the thick texture of the tea.
There is no bitterness to this tea and it’s very smooth with very little astringency. By mid-cup, I started to notice a slight dryness to the finish. So there is some astringency and it does develop but even by the end of the cup, the astringency is very slight.
It’s earthy with notes of leather and hints of mushroom. This is a wild tree tea and I can almost taste the ‘wild’ in the tea. It’s beautifully complex, with the sweet notes of raisin and plum, hints of flower in the distance and of course, the aforementioned honey notes. I like the balance between the savory notes – earth, spice notes that develop as I sip and leather – and the sweetness.
Yet another tea from Teavivre that I can enthusiastically recommend to any tea drinker. This is marvelous.
Serene Herbal Tisane from The Honest Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
This tea is available from Amoda Tea.
Tea Description:
This tea does exactly what its name promises – brings serenity to your day. Ingredients like chamomile, jasmine and lavender really do have that affect. We taste the apple-like flavours of chamomile, a perfect lemon squeeze and smooth mint. There’s tart and sweet florals playing off one another and hints of relaxing lavender that come out mid-sip.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
After my first few sips of this Serene Herbal Tisane from The Honest Leaf, I found myself contemplating whether or not I actually liked it. I didn’t dislike it but I wasn’t too sure whether or not I was enjoying what I was tasting.
That is to say, it’s quite unlike other teas I’ve tried.
Now that I’m about halfway through the cup, I can say that yes, I do like this. It’s different, it’s tasty and I like it.
The flavor starts out quite subtle. I notice a soft lemon-y note from the lemon peel and flavoring. This flavor develops over the course of the sip – starting off with a delicate whisper of lemon. The finish is bright with lemon notes and the aftertaste is quite lemon-y, as if I had just taken a sip of lemonade. The aftertaste lingers a while.
After the subtle introduction of lemon, I pick up on flowery notes of jasmine, lavender and passion flower just before mid-sip. These floral notes are also quite subdued. They don’t develop the way the lemon does, but I do pick up on a few more floral notes mingling with the lemon notes in the aftertaste.
Just after mid-sip, I notice the crisp peppermint. I like that the peppermint follows the example set by the flowers and lemon and is understated. The cool peppermint is a nice contrast to the lemon-y flavor, but the mint doesn’t slap you in the mouth with it’s minty presence. It’s just a slight ‘peppy’ sort of flavor that perks up the flavors of the tea without tasting like someone spilled a little bit of mouthwash in my teacup.
I didn’t really notice the chamomile until I reached mid-cup. The chamomile is more of an undertone, offering a indistinct apple note and hint of honey. I can smell more chamomile in this than I can taste. After the mid-cup point, the chamomile notes develop somewhat, but they never become a strong, prominent profile to the cup.
Happily, I notice no hibiscus in this, unless the hibiscus acts as a ‘tart’ agent to help amplify the tartness of the lemon, because the aftertaste does have a tartness to it. Not too puckery, though, but as I said, I do get a lemonade-y sort of experience in the aftertaste.
Overall, I found this to be a relaxing, enjoyable cup. It’s certainly different than the typical ‘nighttime’ type of tisanes, and different is good!
Duchess Black Tea from White Two Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: White Two Tea
Tea Description:
Just the tip of the leaf is used in the production of the Duchess black tea, which is made in a traditional Jinmaofeng [gold tip] style. This tea is suitable for both heavy brewing and gongfu style, depending on personal preference. The fragrances range from sweet and floral to mint.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about White Two Tea’s Monthly Subscription here.
Taster’s Review:
Yum! This Duchess Black Tea from White Two Tea is oh-so-delish!
It’s a golden Yunnan tea and it brews up coppery. I brewed this tea in my Kati Tumbler. I measured out a bamboo scoop of tea – I had to estimate this because the leaves are very long and wiry and didn’t really fill the scoop very well – and heated the kettle to 205°F. I poured the water over the leaves and let the tea steep for three minutes.
The flavor is wonderful! Very much what you’d expect from a Golden Yunnan tea. The sip starts out sweet with a strong caramel-y note. The texture is smooth and thick. The caramel flavor develops, offering hints of molasses and hints of spice. By mid-sip, I’m picking up on notes of Leather and baked bread and malt. In the distance, I pick up on hints of cacao. The finish is smooth (very little to no astringency whatsoever) and sweet. In the aftertaste, I pick up on faint floral notes with whispers of spice.
An absolutely LOVELY cup of tea. I prefer this tea served hot but as it cools, it is still quite good. It would make a great mid-to-late morning tea when you want something rich and satisfying to keep you going.
Sweet Apple Cider Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Our premium organic Iyerpadi black tea blended with organic apple, green apple and cinnamon flavors. This is a super refreshing iced tea. I may have created a few apple flavored teas lately, but the apple and cinnamon notes with this Iyerpadi black tea are just astounding.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! I admit that my first thought was “another apple tea” but now that I’m tasting this, I don’t mind at all. This Sweet Apple Cider Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas is really good.
I hot brewed this iced tea, bringing 1 quart of water to a boil and then letting the tea bag steep for 2 minutes. Then I strained the tea into my favorite iced tea pitcher and brought another quart of water to a boil and resteeped the bag for 2 1/2 minutes. No, this doesn’t make the tea too strong for me, it’s strong, yes, but not too strong. Then again, I like my tea strong.
I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I really like the Iyerpadi estate tea that Southern Boy Teas has been using for their black tea base. It’s got a pleasant flavor, it doesn’t have a bitter taste nor is it astringent. It’s smooth and even without tasting too weak. It’s really a delightful tea.
The apple flavor is coming through nicely. I found that with my first few sips, the apple flavor was less obvious than the cinnamon, which seemed to overpower. But, after the first few sips, the apple notes developed and the cinnamon waned just enough. Now, the cinnamon is still a strong presence, but the apple comes through and adds a pleasant sweet-tart note to contrast with the warm, zesty taste of the cinnamon.
Really tasty!