I got a sample of Sweet Peppermint from Tea Drops in some teamail from a friend. Most of the tea I drink for fun or for reviews are loose leaf teas, with the occasional bagged tea as well. I personally haven’t tried many instant teas, so at first I was a bit baffled with the right way to brew this sample from Tea Drops. Simply put the tea-cake into hot water and stir. How easy is that?
Let me draw attention to the adorable fact that this Sweet Peppermint sample came pressed into the shape of a heart. The cuteness of this tea-cake is the essential detail here, and is what makes these Tea Drops teas such cute gift ideas. They have other shapes like stars and flowers as well as the heart shape I tried.
Brewed this tea is mildly minty, very sugar and sweet, with some creamy vanilla tones. The little compressed tea-cakes might be an easy solution to brewing tea on the go. Consider stashing a few of these in your desk at work for when the going gets tough and you only have a mug around for tea-brewing.
As a tea, this blend is okay. The cuteness of the presentation is its true benefit and enjoyment. Definitely worth a try for the novelty of their super-cute tea-cakes.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Tea Drops
Description:
A fuller bodied Peppermint tea experience that’s refreshing to the senses with a kick of genuine spearmint. Naturally caffeine-free, this is the perfect anytime tea – morning, day, or night.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Product Review: Cardamom Spice Teadrops
About Teadrops:
Elaborate tea ceremonies have a time and place. However, if you desire high quality tea and are short on time and tea props, then meet Teadrops.
Each Teadrop is a portable morsel comprised of finely sourced tea from India, natural sugar, and aromatic spices creating a blissful tea blend that can be enjoyed any time, any place, with just hot water. No special tools, no steeping time, no tea expertise necessary.
About Cardamom Spice Teadrops:
An invigorating blend of fresh cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and fine Black Tea from the tea estates of India.
Learn more about Teadrops here.
Taster’s Review:
I have been told on more than one occasion that I am a tea snob. And I guess I am. There are certainly different “levels” of tea: there is exceptional tea, there is excellent tea, there is good tea, and then there is tea that isn’t good at all. There is tea that doesn’t deserve to call itself tea for to call itself tea is an insult to the good tea of the world. So, when I first encountered this product, I wasn’t sure what to think about it. Tea that has been pressed into a “tablet” that is the size of a quarter that you put into your teacup, add hot water, and stir … and then presto! You have tea? I could feel the tea snob in me emerging.
But I was determined to enter into this tea experience with an open mind. Maybe – just maybe! – this could be something exciting. What the heck, I’ll give it a try.
Let me first tell you about the packaging. I LOVE the box. The wood box offers a beautiful presentation. My one comment about the box, though, would be this: I think that this company should also offer their tea drops as “refills” to their repeat customers at a slightly lower price so that the customer can keep reusing the box. This would not only be better for the environment, but, also better for the pocketbook.
The top of the box slides open and there are eight individually wrapped tea drops of different designs: stars, flowers, hearts … cute! The tea “drop” or tablet had a nice aroma – I could smell the cardamom. I poured boiling water over the tablet and stirred, and it did dissolve quickly.
The fragrance wafting from my teacup is amazing. I love the smell of the tea and cardamom. It’s so warm and inviting. And this is actually really tasty. The tea is rich and satisfying. There is a nice amount of cardamom to this – it’s pleasantly spiced without being overdone. It has a comforting, warm taste to it with a zesty flavor. Hints of citrus too.
It tastes like a fine quality tea. It doesn’t taste to me like “tea dust” or “fannings” that you’d find in a grocery store teabag. I can taste the rich, malty flavor of the tea, and I am enjoying the cardamom.
My biggest complaint about these would be that they’re sweetened. But, even so, there isn’t TOO much sugar to this. I like that they aren’t too sweet, but I think I’d rather choose how much sweetener goes into my tea and not have that decision made for me already. It does make it more convenient for those who usually take sugar in their tea to have the sugar in there already, but, for those of us who don’t always add sugar to our tea, this can be the deal breaker. That said, this isn’t too sweet.
There is also some undissolved leaf sediment that sits at the bottom of the cup too. That isn’t something I was terribly happy about, because I’m not one who likes floaters in my tea. For those of you who are of similar thinking, I’d advise to stop drinking when there is about 1/2 an inch of tea left at the bottom of your cup … I didn’t get any sediment/tea leaf in my sip until I tried to drink beyond that 1/2 an inch mark.
But the rest of the cup was quite enjoyable. I would drink this again, and it would be very convenient for traveling , and it tastes a whole lot better than most hotel and/or restaurant bagged teas. The next time I’m traveling, I’m definitely ordering more of these!
