Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal/Functional Tisane
Where to Buy: Algonquin Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Delicious daily tonic formulated to assist every major organ in the cleansing of toxins. Immune boost and detox. Great iced tea. Tastes similar to black tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Postal Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
The above description suggests that this tisane tastes similar to black tea. And despite this ‘promise’ – I found myself still hesitant to try it because … well, because it’s a tisane. And I know that I’ve mentioned more than once or twice my apprehension when it comes to tisanes.
But I finally decided that it was time to try it. So, to brew this, I measured out three bamboo scoops of the tisane into the basket of my Breville One-Touch tea maker and added 500ml of water to the kettle. Then I set the temperature for 195°F and the timer for 7 minutes and I let the tea maker do it’s thing!
I let it cool for a few minutes before taking the first sip. And yes, it does taste a bit like black tea. More accurately, it tastes like a ‘thinned’ black tea with herbaceous notes. Like maybe someone took half a cup of black tea and topped it off with an herbal tisane.
It’s actually quite pleasant to sip. And this tea has a few “pros” to it: a) there’s no hibiscus! Yay! b) it has echinacea which is a fairly well-recognized herb that boosts the immunity system. c) it’s pretty tasty.
Unlike many tisanes I’ve had in the past, this tisane is more like a unified flavor of all the components. That is to say – this tastes like one flavor and I’d find it difficult to discern the different flavors/ingredients of the blend. I taste a gently warm flavor to it – like a subtle spice. I notice a slight “root-beer-ish” kind of note that I attribute to the burdock.
But other than the “thinned black tea with herbaceous notes” – that’s really all I can taste. I taste a thinned black tea, herbaceous flavors, warm, subtle spice and a hint of root beer. It’s a tasty tisane.
The brochure from Algonquin that was included in this edition of the Postal Teas box suggests that tea is an effective “cleanser” or detox type of tisane and this is a detox tea that I wouldn’t mind drinking now and again because it does have that black tea + herbal tea taste to it and I’m finding it to be pleasant.
One thing I gotta say about Algonquin, their packaging is beautiful! If I saw these packages in the store, I’d definitely be tempted because the artwork is stunning and as I’ve said before, I’m a sucker for artwork! The packages that we got from Postal Teas are not as lovely as what I see on the Algonquin website, but if it wasn’t for receiving this 9th edition of Postal Teas, I probably wouldn’t have discovered the beautiful artwork!
Peace Tea from The Algonquin Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal/Functional Tisane
Where to Buy: Algonquin Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Peace Tea instills the tranquility, patience and beauty of the earth. This rich, bittersweet blend grounds us in a flowing meadow of healing herbs. Peace tea is ideal for calming down before, during or after any busy period.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Postal Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
So, my Postal Teas box arrived the other day! Yay! A beam of happiness shines like a ray of sunshine when tea is in the mailbox! And I do really enjoy the Postal Teas subscription. So far, with every box that I’ve received from them, I’ve tried teas from companies that are new to me. I like that. I like that a lot!
I’ve never really made a big secret of the fact that I prefer camellia sinensis blends over herbal teas/tisanes. Not a big surprise, right? So, I was a little less than enthused when I opened the box this month and found not one … not two … but ALL THREE teas in the box were herbals.
What?
So, it probably goes without saying that this month’s box was a little bittersweet. I was not thrilled about receiving three herbal teas in the box BUT I was happy to be trying teas from a new-to-me company: Algonquin Tea Co.
And while I do prefer camellia sinensis, I am willing to try herbal blends, and I actually do like to have an herbal tisane later in the evening to encourage some peace and quiet so that I can get a good night’s rest.
Which is why I chose to try this Peace Tea first. The ingredient list suggests that there are quite a few calming herbs in the blend.
Ingredients: Blue Vervain, Lemon Balm, Catnip, Oat Straw, Red Bergamot, Chamomile, Hops, Motherwort, Valerian, Skullcap and St John’s Wort.
To brew this tisane, I used my Kati tumbler and measured 1 1/2 bamboo scoops into the basket. I heated 12 ounces of water to 195°F and then let it steep for 8 minutes.
As the description suggests, there is some bittersweet going on here. This is a tisane that I recommend adding a dollop of honey (raw, locally harvested honey if you’ve got it!) to help tame the bitterness a bit. After I added a little bit of honey, I found this to be an enjoyable cup.
The vervain and the hops is where a lot of the bitterness is coming from. I taste hints of mint-like flavor from the catnip and there is a touch of citrus flavors from the lemon balm and bergamot. I was really hoping to taste more of the bergamot in this.
Mostly, what I’m tasting is a very herbaceous flavor. It is bittersweet. Almost medicinal. There’s a light floral note that is nice and it develops as I continue to sip. I pick up on more of the chamomile flavor as the tea cools and guess what? I was actually happy to discover the chamomile! I think that the reason for that is because it’s more of a familiar flavor amid the medicinal notes.
All that said: this isn’t a bad tisane. I’m not hating this. It’s not horrible. It’s alright. But this is not something I’d want to reach for on a regular basis. The citrus notes and the hint of mint are this tea’s saving grace, because without those notes, I don’t know that I’d enjoy this.
The pros: there is no hibiscus in here. I enjoy the citrus-y notes and the touch of mint. The floral notes are pleasant. With a bit of honey this tastes much nicer and I am noticing myself relaxing and calming down a bit – I feel the peace that the name of the tea promises. These are good things!
The cons: It does have a strong bitter tone to it and while I can appreciate a contrasting, savory bitter note in a tea or tisane now and again, this is a stronger bitter taste than I’d like it to be. It has a medicinal quality that makes me feel like I’m drinking something functional or “good for me” – which I am, but I don’t like to feel like I am. I like to get my functional, good for me teas in sweeter, better tasting blends.
I think I’d like this a lot more if it had more citrus-y flavors, or more flavors that I don’t normally associate as “herbaceous.” As a drink, it’s alright. As a source of peace and calm, I appreciate how this tea is inspiring those things in me at the moment. I feel noticeably more relaxed now than I did before I started sipping.
24 Days of Tea Holiday Countdown – Day 16 from Teanzo 1856
It’s Day 16 of this Advent Calendar/Holiday Countdown with Teanzo 1856. There are eight days left to shop! Every year, I tell myself that I’ll start my shopping early, but every year, I end up waiting until the last minute. (Sigh!)
For today’s artistic inspiration, I am turning to another piece that I received in a 12 Days of Christmas mail art swap. The artist I’m featuring today is Gwynn Thoma, and she made this beautiful rustic heart ornament for my tree.
This is another one of those ornaments that’s just FUN to discover every year when I start “unwrapping” all my ornaments for the tree. It’s so cute and there are so many neat little details about it that I seem to keep finding something new about it every year. I also like the bit of rustic whimsy it adds to my tree.
Another thing that really stood out to me about this particular ornament was the packaging. Gwynn stitched together little “envelopes out of Kraft paper and adorned them with bits of aged sheet music and a swatch of the burlap that she used to create the heart ornament. It’s a very clever and lovely package and I love how it “matches” the gift that was tucked inside.
I hope that you guys are enjoying my art “roundup” as well as the countdown to Christmas with teas from Teanzo this year!
Seasonal Relief Herbal Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Tulsi
Where to Buy: Teanzo 1856
Tea Description:
In India, licorice root is used to soothe sore throats, and the tulsi plant is revered for its many health benefits. In this delicious herbal wellness tea, we’ve combined licorice root and tulsi with a powerhouse of helpers: peppermint, hibiscus, honey bee pollen, and eucalyptus. Not only is the tea delicious, but it is soothing too. Enjoy this tea hot or iced.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I suffer from seasonal allergies that seem to last all year long now. I never used to! Before moving to the Pacific Northwest, I didn’t have allergies. But I guess with all the pollen in this area, I soon started feeling unwell in the spring with allergy symptoms, but because I never had allergies before, I thought maybe it was something else.
Then I started taking allergy medication and my symptoms disappeared. At first, I only needed these toward the end of winter, through spring and at the very start of summer. Then I started needing it through summer. Now, I need the medication year round or I start sneezing, eyes start watering and I’m just really uncomfortable with my symptoms.
So, I am always looking for a tisane that I enjoy that might help me alleviate my symptoms so that I don’t have to take so much allergy medication. So when I saw that this was a Seasonal Relief blend, I was excited to try it.
Unfortunately, I’m just not enjoying this one very much. Perhaps it’s the eucalyptus, but I feel like I’m sipping on liquefied VapoRub.
At first, I enjoyed the peppermint and licorice-y notes, and I could taste notes of tulsi that I enjoyed. But after drinking about 1/4th of the cup, the flavor of the eucalyptus seemed to build and it got to the point where all I could taste was the eucalyptus and this does not create a very pleasant cup for me.
On the plus side, the hibiscus is not a heavy flavor or texture. I think that this could be much nicer if maybe there was less eucalyptus, and maybe a little more peppermint and tulsi.
Overall, this just wasn’t my cup of tea. They can’t all be, though. Teanzo has had some real winners with this Advent Calender, this just didn’t do it for me, so hopefully tomorrow, we’ll have something yummy!
24 Days of Tea Holiday Countdown – Day 9 from Teanzo 1856
Wow, can you believe that it’s day 9 already? I hope you’re enjoying lots of wonderful teas this holiday season. I know that Teanzo has certainly kept me happy with this calendar of tea!
For today’s inspirational piece of artwork, I am again looking to one of the gifts that I received in one of the 12 Days of Christmas mail art swaps that I was involved in. This cute mitten was made by Sue Foster, and it hangs proudly on my tree.
I love how perfectly the stitches are on this. It would take me hours – literally, hours! – to do something like this. I’m not as handy with a needle and thread, I’m afraid.
Thank you, Sue, it’s beautiful and whimsical and a perfect addition to my handmade tree.
Today’s tea from Teanzo is one that should inspire happy dreams.
Dream Spa Blend Tisane
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal/Spice Melange
Where to Buy: Teanzo 1856
Tea Description:
Ingredients: Cardamom, saffron, licorice root, fennel, ginger root, cinnamon, rosebuds, lemongrass & rose scent.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
This tea smells amazingly good, especially after it’s been brewed. The dry leaf smells remarkable as well, but the brewed liquid is almost intoxicating – it smells so good! The combination of the spices and the rose is simply amazing. It doesn’t smell too spicy, it doesn’t smell too rosy, it just smells dreamy. Much like the name of the tea suggests.
Seriously, this scent should be made into potpourri or something. Or soap!
To steep it, I poured the contents of the sampler pouch into the basket of my Kati and added 12 ounces of water heated to 195°F and let it steep for 6 minutes. Originally, I thought that I’d steep it for 10 minutes, the length of time I would normally steep a tisane without hibiscus, but the aroma of the dry leaf was strong and I felt that if I went for the full 10 minutes that this would come off tasting too strong.
After I finished steeping, I kept the cup up to my nose for several minutes, just inhaling the fragrance. So beautiful! Then the thought that enters my head before I take a sip is: should I be drinking this? It smells TOO GOOD to drink, as in it smells like something I’d want to wear or possibly perfume my living room with but would I want to consume it?
But the ingredients suggest to me that this should be alright to drink. There are some of the “usual ingredients” for a chai and I like chai. There’s saffron and I like that too. Licorice root and fennel are two of my favorite tea ingredients. And I love rose teas and I enjoy lemongrass. There’s nothing here that offends my palate so even though it smells like perfume hopefully it won’t taste that way.
So, I let the tea temperature drop to a drinkable temperature and took my first sip. This is actually really nice! It’s a strong taste – I’m glad I didn’t go ahead and steep it for my usual 10 minutes – but it’s quite pleasant. There are a lot of layers to the flavor because I can taste each ingredient.
I notice hints of citrus at the very start of the sip. It’s a warm, spicy citrus note, and about half a second after the citrus comes through clearly, the cinnamon and ginger come into focus. Then I pick up on the rose and the saffron. By mid-sip, the licorice and fennel are recognized by the palate. In the aftertaste, I notice notes of rose and a cola-like flavor that I attribute to the cardamom. It’s a warm and soothing cup, but it does have some invigorating quality to it too.
It’s a really unique beverage but I find myself enjoying it much more than I expected to. To be honest, when I saw that today’s tea was an herbal, the thought going through my head was “again?” You know, a kind of disappointed “again.” But now that I’ve tasted it, I’m really happy with this!
Thank you, Teanzo for this beautifully fragrant dream of a tisane today!
Malibu Beach Beauty Tea from Newport Skinny Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black, Green & White Teas
Where to Buy: Newport Skinny Tea
Tea Description:
Malibu Beach Beauty Tea has ingredients that soothe inflammation in your body, especially your tissues, and regulate the hormones that cause acne and skin irritation to show up on the surface. Ingredients in it strengthen collagen production, eliminate excess water trapped in your tissues and reduce the look of cellulite. After using the tea bags, you can place them on your external skin to reduce redness and inflammation of acne, keep away from your eye area.
Learn more about this tea blend here.
Enter to win a Newport Skinny Tea 21 Day “TeaTox” Pack!
Taster’s Review:
Before I even brewed this tea, I read through the description card that came with my sample of this Malibu Beach Beauty Tea and browsed the ingredient list and this tea has a lot going on! Check it out:
Ingredients: Earl Grey Tea, Young Hysson Green Tea, White Tea, Calendula, Lavender Flowers, Red Clover Blossoms, Peppermint Leaves, Rose Flowers & Hips, Linden Leaf & Flower, Elder Flower, Chamomile, Lemon Peel & Oil, Gota Cola, Honeysuckle Flower, Blackberry Leaf, Privet Fruit, Stevia Leaf, Mangosteen Peel, Natural Flavors.
See what I mean? There’s a lot going on. I hope that it’s not too much going on! But I won’t know until I try it. So, I’m off to go brew it in my Kati Tumbler. I’ll use 2 teaspoons of tea in the Kati basket and add 12 ounces of hot water (but not boiling). The parameters on this description card suggest boiling water but with that many herbs plus green and white teas, I feel that boiling water is going to be too hot. I’ll opt for a lower temperature: 180°F, and steep it for 4 minutes. Let’s see how it goes!
Hmm … interesting. It’s an interesting flavor – in a good way! And as I said, there IS a lot going on. Because of that, the result is a flavor that’s a bit more like an herbal tisane than a tea. But that isn’t a bad thing. I like that I’m tasting the lavender and lemon and honeysuckle! I like that I am picking up on the flavors of peppermint and elder flower and rose! And I can still taste notes of bergamot (which are highlighted by the lemon notes) and the black, green and white teas.
I like that there is a lot going on but it all seems to work together in a way that pleases my palate. When I take a sip, my palate is intrigued and interested in what its experiencing. I find myself wanting to sip more rather than push the cup aside – which is, quite frankly, what I feared! I thought I’d take one sip of this and say NO! No like! But that’s not what’s happening. Yeah, it’s different. Yeah it’s a busy tea. But I like it!
The prevailing note here is floral. The lavender and honeysuckle and rose and linden and elder flowers give this a very floral flavor, but it doesn’t cross the line into perfume-y. It doesn’t even really toe the line because there’s other flavors going on to help it take a couple of steps back and keep it tasting floral/herbaceous without going into the icky area of floral/perfume-ish.
This is something I can see myself wanting to drink on a regular basis. It’s a got a really interesting flavor that compels me to continue drinking.
If the idea of beauty from the inside out interests you, check out Newport Skinny Tea’s complete line of teas. You can even enter their raffle – they’re currently giving away a 21 Day TeaTox package!