Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Our premium organic Iyerpadi black tea blended with sweet organic peach flavors. This may not be as crazy as Garlic Toast or Maple Bacon, but this will make you happy inside.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
When I first saw that Southern Boy Teas created this Georgia Peach Iced Black tea as their tea of the week for the first week of January, I thought, Oh! That sounds good! Then I thought, kind of boring though, isn’t it? Then my mind wandered to the ready-to-drink peach flavored iced teas that are mostly sugar and flavoring and very little tea. Bleh!
So, as I was brewing this, I was hoping that it wasn’t going to taste like the stuff you can find on the supermarket shelves. I was hoping that I’d taste tea that’s been flavored with just enough peach flavor that I could taste the peach and still enjoy the flavor of the black tea.
And that’s exactly what is in my glass right now. Well, actually, I should say that’s exactly what WAS in my glass, because I’ve finished my third glass of this iced tea in a matter of a half an hour. This stuff is good. I know that Southern Boy Teas is embracing the slogan “tea that’s meant to be shared,” but my mind is embracing the notion that I need to drink this before anyone else realizes how good it is. All for me, none for you! Share? Ha!
The black tea that Southern Boy Teas has been using for their black tea blends is an Iyerpadi estate black tea that’s brisk and has a solid black tea flavor. It’s not an aggressive tea, but it isn’t too shy either. It doesn’t hide behind the flavors. It’s a tea that’s rich, smooth, not astringent or bitter, and just … really good.
The peach flavoring starts out subtle. My first few sips, the peach flavor wasn’t strongly apparent, but there was something luscious there that kept me sipping. About midway through that glass, I realized – LOVELY peach! Yum! The peach is a sweet flavor but not candy sweet, it’s more like a true to the fruit sweetness.
Really nice!
And please don’t forget about Frank’s Indiegogo campaign that’s going on right now! He’s looking to enhance his iced tea business so that he can take it to the next level! Please help this small business achieve its goal!
Christmas Fruitcake Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
What’s Christmas without fruitcake? Not some brick of processed dried up yuck and colored cherries, but real, moist, sweet cake with cherries, oranges, cranberries, and pineapple–that’s the kind of Christmas fruitcake we tried to recreate here. And we did it, like always, with just premium organic Iyerpadi black tea and organic flavors. Enjoy!
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
OK, confession time: I actually like fruitcake. I’m probably one of the only people on earth that does like it. I don’t like all fruitcake, but if I happen to find a bakery that does fruitcake right – something that’s been baked in-house with good quality ingredients and that’s been doused with brandy … yeah, that stuff, I’d eat happily. That, to me, is the best way to ingest brandy.
So I was happy when Southern Boy Teas announced this Christmas Fruitcake Iced Black Tea as a flavor for the week of December 29th!
I don’t taste brandy flavoring here, so I don’t know that it was actually utilized in this flavor. But that’s OK, because this is really tasty just the way it is.
I’m really liking the flavors here. Of the fruit flavors, I think I taste the orange most. I taste orange throughout the sip and into the aftertaste. I get a nice little sweet and tart citrus note in the aftertaste. I taste notes of pineapple and cranberry and cherry, and I appreciate that these flavors are nicely balanced. I’m not getting an overwhelming, cough syrupy cherry note which is good.
The cake notes are softer than the fruit notes, but they’re definitely there. I get a sweet, cake-y flavor that is really pleasant. I taste hints of a buttery flavor. I like the way all the flavors come together in one sip: the sip starts out with a sweet orange note, and shortly afterward, I pick up on hints of cranberry. Pineapple is present throughout the sip. Cherry weaves its way in and out. The cake notes are sort of a sweet undertone throughout the sip and if I happen to slurp the sip, I get more of the cake-y sweetness (although it feels a little weird to slurp iced tea, I’ve gotta tell you.)
Overall, a really good, fruity, fun iced tea.
And please consider supporting this small business with their Indiegogo Campaign! They’re looking to reach new heights with their company and they need your support!
Blackberry Sangria Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Our amazing organic Iyerpadi iced tea base blended with the organic flavors of blackberry, red wine, and citrus fruits. This will delight your palate and the palates of your guests. A great iced tea to share with your holiday guests.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s a tasty iced tea, but as someone who typically doesn’t get all that into alcoholic beverages, I’m not finding the flavor combination of fruit and red wine all that alluring. It’s just not my ideal flavor combination.
But it is tasty. The blackberry notes are very forward which I am enjoying, and I taste notes of red wine. I like that the red wine isn’t a particularly strong flavor, it reminds me a bit of the wine flavor you’d taste if you were drinking a wine cooler. Yeah, I used to drink those. They were pretty popular when I was younger. Boy, I just aged myself, didn’t I?
There’s also a background note of citrus. These flavors add more ‘tang’ than a real focused citrus-y flavor. A little bit of contrast to the sweet notes of blackberry.
The black tea is tasted among these other flavors, and I appreciate that as well. I can’t say that this is my favorite iced tea flavor, but I’m enjoying it. It’s refreshing and fruity and my palate finds it pleasing. But if I were to sit down and place another order, I don’t think that this would be one that I’d put into my shopping cart.
But Southern Boy Teas does have a lot of other teas that I’d put into my shopping cart (more than I’ll allow myself to buy! ha!) Have you checked out their Indiegogo campaign yet? They’re looking to take their brand to new heights with this campaign, so please consider contributing and helping them reach their goal!
Sugar Cookie Iced Honeybush Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Organic caffeine-free honeybush with organic sweet, cakey, sugar cookie flavors. This is one of those teas that your family might end up squabbling over, so be sure to stock up on a few of these. Blends like these are a great alternative to sugary caffeinated sodas–we don’t let me daughter have much caffeine, but she LOVES these honeybush iced teas.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
After having tried Christmas Cookie Shou Mei from 52Teas, I thought that this iced tea might be a lot like that blend, but it really isn’t.
This doesn’t have the same warm spice profile that the Christmas Cookie tea has. This is more of a sugar cookie. (Just like the name implies!) I like that it’s not overly sweet. I don’t get a heavy “sugar” cookie sugary taste, but I get that freshly baked shortbread-type of flavor. It’s sweet but not too sweet. This isn’t like a heavily iced sugar cookie that you’ll find in your grocery store bakery.
You know the cookies I’m talking about, right? They’re really colorful and they have trigger kind of names like “cotton candy” or “caramel apple” that lure you in and you have to try it, but then when you bite into it, it doesn’t taste like cotton candy or caramel apple, it tastes like sugar and shortening. It’s so cloying that a bite is all you can handle.
This is more like the homemade cookies that are rolled in sugar, so you get a even, consistent, sugary-sweet flavor, but as long as the cookies are made right, it isn’t too cloying. The dough is not overly sweet, more like a shortbread so balance is achieved.
I enjoyed this. I liked that despite the name “sugar cookie” this isn’t a too-sweet kind of drink. It’s really tasty!
Please take a moment to check out Southern Boy Teas’ Indiegogo Campaign – they’re looking to take their teas to new heights and could really use your support!
Product Review: The Tsleeve®
Product Information:
Where to Buy: Tsleeve
Product Description:
The goal of t-sleeve® is to be not only a convenient way to enjoy tea, but to be as eco-friendly as possible. Both the box packaging and t-sleeve® are recyclable. Once t-sleeve® comes in contact with the moist tea bag, it becomes a compostable product. Feel good about doing your part for the environment and reducing your carbon footprint.
Learn more about this product here.
Product Review:
When I first received this product to review, I wasn’t quite sure what to think about it. If you’ve read my reviews for any length of time, you’re already aware of what I think about bagged tea. I prefer loose leaf – always! – and while I have managed to find some bagged teas that I’m happy with, I still have qualms about the bag. And here I was with Tsleeves, a product that in essence embraces the tea bag. Hmm.
As with all things tea, I try to go into the review with an open mind, so I’ll do that wit this product too.
So, what is this product? It’s a sturdy cardstock envelope that’s just a wee bit larger than the average size individually wrapped tea bag. (For this particular review, I used a Stash tea bag.) You can also put a packet of your favorite sweetener in the Tsleeve.
The image doesn’t really show it, but there’s a little slit in the back of the Tsleeve that allows you to slide the flap into the slit for a closure. Then you have a neat little package with your traveling tea needs to take with you wherever you’re headed (a restaurant or hotel that doesn’t serve tea you like, work, or whatever.) It’s a handy little way to take tea (even though it’s bagged) with you. You can easily stow the Tsleeve in your purse or briefcase.
Note: I wouldn’t recommend using an unwrapped tea bag in this product, because of the little rectangular notch at the top of the Tsleeve, the unwrapped tea bag would not be protected from the elements, including the elements in your purse.
Anyway, when you’re ready to brew, then you remove your tea bag from the Tsleeve, unwrap the tea bag, and then slide the tag and string through the Tsleeve and through the notch at the top, as shown in the picture to the right.
This is probably the most useful part of the Tsleeve, in my opinion. On the occasions when I’m brewing tea in a tea bag, the tag seems to inevitably end up in the cup with the liquid as it infuses. Either the string isn’t long enough, or the act of pouring the hot water into the teacup seems to whoosh the teabag right into the cup with the liquid and I either have to try to fish the tag out with a spoon or fork or I burn my fingertips trying to get the tag out with my fingers. This ‘feature’ offers a larger ‘anchor’ that doesn’t get swept away into the tides of my teacup.
So, instead of having a dainty little tag on the side of the teacup, you have a rather large, anchoring Tsleeve sitting on the side of your teacup. This isn’t the most attractive look if you’re at a tea party with fancy teacups and saucers, but, if you’re drinking out of the average hotel room cup, it’ll work fine.
Once your tea is finished brewing, the idea is to hold onto the Tsleeve while you pull the tag up, which will pull the tea bag into the Tsleeve. Then, they suggest that you squeeze the tea bag into your cup.
I didn’t do this. Why? Because you should NEVER squeeze a tea bag into your cup. This doesn’t squeeze flavor into your tea cup, it squeezes tannins into your tea cup, making it bitter. This is supposed to be the main function of the Tsleeve – to help you ‘squeeze’ the tea bag and dispose of the tea bag.
It does give you a little less mess when it comes to disposing of the tea bag. I never know what to do with that hot tea bag after I’m finished with it when I’m on-the-go, because it is messy.
So, for me, the most useful part of this Tsleeve is that it anchors the tea bag tag so that it doesn’t go floating in my tea and it gives me an easy way to dispose of the tea bag after I’m finished steeping the tea bag.
For me, personally, this product really has a very limited use for me because I don’t drink a lot of bagged tea and because I don’t squeeze the tea bag. (And neither should you.)
But, I do thank the makers of this product for sending me a sample of it to try. I can see how this would be a useful tool for the casual sipper who doesn’t know that they shouldn’t squeeze the tea bag. For those of us who do know better, it could be a handy convenience when we want a cleaner way to dispose of the tea bag when not at home.