Tea Review:
Leaf Type: Green (Matcha)
Where to Buy: Shanti Tea
Product Description:
Matcha tea is kind of like a super-powered green tea—since you’re ingesting the whole leaf instead of just the brewed beverage, you get up to ten times the antioxidant effect and nutritional value of your standard green. Matcha’s rich in antioxidants, as well as chlorophyll and fiber, and has been found to have natural mood enhancing effects. All in all, matcha’s got no match when it comes to healthy teas.
Taster’s Review:
Just like in my review of Shanti Tea’s Cinnamon Matcha, even though this is labeled as “Cocoa Matcha Latte,” I am choosing not to do this as a “Product Review” as I would with most Latte mixes, because the only ingredients to this blend are Matcha green tea powder and cacao powder. Since it doesn’t contain dry milk, sweeteners or other “latte” like ingredients, I consider this to be more of a flavored Matcha than a latte mix.
After sifting this flavored Matcha, I noticed that the Matcha green tea powder and the cacao powder separated. Interesting. My only explanation (read: guess) for that is that each powder is a different weight and/or size and they separate while sifting. Perhaps someone with a more scientific brain might know the answer. I’m an artist, not a scientist.
This whisks up smooth and lightly frothy… a little light on the froth, but that’s OK. The first thought that came to my head when I took my first sip of this Matcha latte? Ovaltine. This doesn’t have that “hot chocolate-y” kind of flavor that I might have expected. It definitely tastes more like Ovaltine to me, but I am finding it quite delicious, regardless.
It tastes very rich and chocolate-y and the texture is very creamy. There is a slight chalkiness to this, but it is more like that “powdery” sensation you might experience from tasting cocoa powder than the chalkiness you might experience from Matcha. I do recommend sweetening this just a little (I added the tiniest sprinkling of sugar) as the cocoa is an unsweetened, bittersweet cocoa and when combined with the slightly bitter taste of the matcha, I found myself wanting more of a sweet chocolate taste.
I used a 1:1 ratio of hot water and steamed milk to make my latte, and it turned out absolutely wonderful. Sweet and rich with chocolate-y flavor, but without overwhelming the sweet, vegetative Matcha notes. I notice the Matcha flavor more towards the end of the sip and moving into the aftertaste, with the chocolate-y tones presenting themselves more towards the start. It is creamy and very satisfying, and it even satisfies a chocolate craving (yay!)
YUM!
Cacao Chai from Zhi Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zhi Tea
Product Description:
Our Zhi Signature Blend Organic Cacao Chai has been lovingly hand-crafted to satisfy the most discerning chai aficionados and dark chocolate lovers.
Organic Assam Black Tea with cinnamon, cardamon and ginger, pure vanilla and an abundance of organic Peruvian cacao nibs.
This Chai loves whole organic milk and turbinado sugar! We created this blend due to overwhelming demand – at home!
Join us in a steaming cup of this sumptuous delight.
Taster’s Review:
This is yummy. It reminds me a bit of my homemade hot chocolate – made from scratch – which I really don’t make often enough. Now I don’t have to make it at all! I’ll just brew some of this chai instead.
This has a wonderful chocolate flavor. It is a deep, dark chocolate flavor that is bittersweet. The Assam base provides a solid backdrop of flavor, and seems to propel the flavors of chocolate to the forefront. Assam typically is a strong, malty and substantial tea, and while it isn’t front and center of this particular blend, it is an essential part of this tea because it helps to bring the other flavors to life in a really delicious way.
After the chocolate notes, what I notice is a spicy cinnamon kick, which is enhanced by the peppery flavor of ginger. The cardamom adds a warm, citrus-y note to the background.
This combination of cacao, spices and tea makes for an incredibly warm, comforting and indulgent cup. A must try for all you chocoholics out there!
Cacao Nibs from Supple Skin Boutique
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Tisane
Where to Buy: Supple Skin Boutique
Product Description:
Cacao beans and nibs contain a number of components that have been proven beneficial in research. Many of these constituents are destroyed or lessened by processing (i.e. milk chocolate is not as healthy as dark chocolate which is not as healthy as unprocessed cacao). For this reason health practitioners recommend that anyone interested in eating cacao for its health benefits use raw, unprocessed cacao beans and nibs rather than processed chocolate.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm … chocolate! And it really doesn’t get more chocolate-y than this, does it? This is pure, unprocessed cacao!
I didn’t steep this as recommended on the Supple Skin website, instead, I reached for my Libre Mug, and put the cacao nibs in the main chamber of the mug, added the boiling water and tightened the filter lid on the mug. As the mug sits here in front of me, the nibs continue to steep. The pure cacao flavor continues to intensify as I sit here sipping it!
The flavor is indeed intensely chocolate. It has a sweet, creamy chocolate-y taste, but there is a pleasant bitter chocolate flavor to it too. But this isn’t the kind of chocolate taste you can find in a typical chocolate bar, because it has that raw aspect to it too. If you’ve tried a raw chocolate bar (I’ve recently discovered these at my local Whole Foods market), you’ll know what I’m talking about. It also has an almost “powdery” taste to it that is especially noticeable in the finish and early aftertaste, a taste that is similar to unsweetened powdered cocoa.
Pure, chocolate-y deliciousness!
And don’t forget about the Special Groupon/Supple Skin Boutique offer! Click on the link for more details … and if you hurry, you might still be able to get in on the free sample offer just for our readers! Use the coupon code teareviewer and receive a free sample of Organic Oolong along with your Supple Skin Boutique order using the Groupon discount! Savings PLUS free tea? Yay!