Tea with bananas? That’s crazy, right? Or maybe it’s just crazy delicious. Let’s take a look at five banana teas I’ve tasted lately.
Grilled Spiced Banana from A Quarter to Tea – Let’s get started with the weirdest banana tea I’ve come across. Not only does this blend feature bananas, but it also uses smokey flavors to convey the “grilled” part of Grilled Banana. Brewed, this tea is shockingly creamy, much more like banana creme brule than any overpowering smoky lapsang souchong. The hint of smoky adds a nice savory note to the sweet banana, like the tasting the sweet-salty shell of fried ice cream. This is a total underdog combination of flavors, and they really come together.
Banana Peach Green from 52Teas – This green tea is smooth and sweet, with some very forward peach flavors on the smell and taste. The creamy, tropical banana comes through on the aftertaste, rich with real-fruit flavors. No banana-candy flavors here. The nuttiness of the tea makes the aftertaste of this blend feel smooth and comforting, like banana bread.
Bananas and Custard from Bluebird Tea – This tea can seem mild at first, with little fragrance in the dry leaf, but when this green tea is brewed at the right temperature, something magical happens. When brewed this tea truly smells and tastes like banana cream pie. It nails the fruity, starchy banana flavor, and the creamy-yet-tart vanilla custard. The gentle nuttiness from the green tea helps keep this centered, but there are plenty of banana-crazy dessert flavors to go around.
Banana Split from A Quarter to Tea – There’s a lot going on in a banana split, there’s vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream, and sauces like marshmallow or pineapple, and the bananas and whipped cream of course. This white tea is sweet with strawberries but creamy with bananas and has a touch of the starchy, real-fruit banana flavor. This blend is sweeter than the others thanks to all the strawberry, but who wouldn’t want to taste an ice-cream-themed tea?
Monkey Chops from Bluebird Tea – Wow, what a name! Monkey Chops has a tart ceylon black tea base with added vanilla flavoring and banana pieces. Even without milk this brew has plenty of creamy notes and smooth banana flavor, strong enough to compete with the bold black tea base. This would be amazing with a splash of milk or a dash of cinnamon sugar.
Love them or hate them, banana teas don’t come along every day so it’s worth getting a little crazy and giving them a try!
Banana Pancakes from 52Teas. . . . .
Whenever I hear the phrase “banana pancakes” I always think of Jack Johnson’s song- “we’ll make banana pancakes pretend like its the weekend…” My parents used to like him when I was little and I remember sitting in the car listening to his music, I remember it as very relaxing! Now that I think of it, it would have accompanied this cuppa very well! Anyways, the fact that I just love banana is a new thing for me. Before this year I never would have really picked up anything banana, except maybe a chocolate banana smoothie. Lately I’ve been really loving banana teas, though.
So when I saw that 52 Teas’ new blend was Banana Pancakes, I was really excited.
Opening up my sample bag the smell of maple was very present as well a hint of banana. Naturally, this tea was already right up my ally- another flavor that I get excited over is maple. I steeped this properly, you have to follow the steeping instructions on 52 Teas’ packaging with their teas, I feel like the black tea is very bold and strong from 52 Teas and if you overstep it’s going to be bitter. Since I steeped this properly, it was dang good. Smooth, sweet, and very pancake-y. The maple and banana mingled really nicely and definitely reminded me of banana pancakes.
I have tried two teas that were dubbed the name “banana pancakes”. Both were delicious, but I really enjoyed this one just a tad more. I would love to continue trying banana teas! So, if you like banana stay tuned….and give this blend a try!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Teaa
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Banana Split from A Quarter to Tea. . . .
Everyone knows I love banana teas, and I also love dessert teas, especially ones modeled after ice cream. I have had tremendous luck with this company, A Quarter to Tea. Their flavors are so different and interesting, and all of their teas are really well done. This one, Banana Split, I knew would be extra special the minute I smelled it. It really smells like a banana split- banana, cocoa, and strawberry. The white tea leaves were big and fluffy. I was really excited to try it!
On taste, I can honestly say it was spot on. The white tea was creamy and light, the banana and strawberry was fruity and sweet, and the chocolate and caramel flavors added a nice flair that was definitely reminiscent of a delicious banana split sundae. This is definitely a great dessert tea, for its rich and flavorful. Although the flavors are rich, the white tea lends a nice creamy, but light, background and allows the other flavors to take the stage. The first flavor I notice is definitely banana. The banana is followed by chocolate and strawberry, and then finished with caramel, vanilla, and cream.
I have always recommended A Quarter to Tea since the first time I tried them, but I am really going to have to recommend that everyone try this one especially if you are looking for a guilt-free dessert tea. You don’t even have to add sweetener to this, the flavors are sweet and rich enough as is! A definite favorite of mine.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
Vanilla custard, bananas, strawberry and a hint of caramel and chocolate come together to make this creamy, fruity dessert tea.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Chocolate Banana Flavored Tea? We’re Listening. . . . #52Teas
There is definitely no mistaking that I don’t love banana- banana bread, banana tea, banana pancakes, banana smoothies. I just love bananas! I actually made chocolate covered bananas the other day. I dipped them in milk chocolate and covered them with crumbled graham crackers, crushed peanuts, sprinkles, chocolate chips, and shredded coconut. They were really really good. Sometimes I don’t always have the time to freeze, coat, and roll out chocolate covered bananas. Naturally, tea would be the next best option! You can always rely on 52 Teas for creativity and I know Anne (the mad tea artist at 52 Teas) is a huge fan of banana tea, so I had high expectations for this one.
My expectations were certainly met! This tea was a honey bush blend. I definitely prefer honey bush to rooibos, any day. It does still have a nice nuttiness to it though, just isn’t as woodsy or earthy. The nuttiness of the honey bush almost gave the illusion that this was more of a chocolate covered banana rolled-in-pecans tea. Either way, its delicious. The chocolate adds a creamy component and of course- the taste of chocolate! And who doesn’t like chocolate? The banana flavor is present but not overpowering or artificial. It is quite delicious and realistic!
I would definitely recommend this blend. I know not everyone is a fan of banana flavor, but even if you’re not I would suggest you try this. It is really good. A great after-dinner treat!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This blend is longer available but click below for blends that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Banana Nut Pancakes from A Quarter To Tea. . . .
I love banana nut anything. I actually just made banana nut muffins a few weeks ago and they were delectable. Thanks, Martha Stewart.
One of my favorite teas from DAVIDsTEA is their Banana Nut Bread fruit infusion. But, because it is an infusion, its caffeine free. This is fine for evenings, but I need caffeine during the day. When I saw that A Quarter to Tea had a caffeinated banana nut flavored black tea, I was so excited and ordered a few samples right away.
Every tea I have tried from this company thus far has been a complete dream. I have not disliked a single one. I actually have nothing bad to say about this company as a whole. They have an array of flavor options and super fast shipping.
Anyways, back to banana nut pancakes. This tea was very mellow. DAVIDsTEA’s Banana Nut bread is much more in your face with flavor. This was very mellow and i’m not sure if I would know immediately that it was impersonating banana nut pancakes. However, after a few sips that nuttiness, sweetness from the “pancake” part, and the banana flavor do start to come forward. I think that overall it is a good blend. I can’t say that it compares much to Banana Nut Bread from DAVIDs, for I feel that they are two very different teas. Banana Nut Pancakes is very mellow and good for a treat with breakfast or lunch. Banana Nut Bread is more so a dessert tea that you would have after dinner in place of something fat and calorie laden, as it more so satisfies my sweet tooth than Banana Nut Pancakes.
I still think that A Quarter to Tea is an amazing company and I still have nothing bad to say. I did enjoy this blend and would reorder. It is just not in-your-face with banana and nut flavor, and that is okay. Sometimes you don’t want something dripping with flavoring and sugary sweetness. Sometimes you just want something light and smooth, and that is exactly what Banana Nut Pancakes from A Quarter to Tea will deliver to you with this one!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
What could possibly be better than having pancakes for breakfast?
Drinking them of course. Ceylon is used as the base here and is paired with the flavors of banana nut pancakes drizzled in vanilla butter.
Makes an excellent latte.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
