Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tea Description:
The Coconut Puerh Tea is a unique blend of organic pu-erh loose-leaf tea, cocoa nibs and coconut provides a smooth, full, slightly sweet flavor with a mild hazelnut finish.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Coconut Cacao Tea from The Persimmon Tree is really tasty! If you’ve read many of my reviews, you know that I’m not always “excited” to try a new pu-erh, because I had some bad experiences with pu-erh early in my tea journey. Since then, I have learned better ways to infuse pu-erh, and this has greatly influenced my enjoyment of the beverage, and I can say that I do enjoy pu-erh now. But that doesn’t stop me from being hesitant when it comes to trying a new pu-erh … there are still some residual effects from those bad memories that play games with my head when it comes to having a cup of pu-erh.
But this Pu-erh blend from The Persimmon Tree captivated my interest because … well, the chocoholic in me couldn’t overlook the word “Cacao” in the name of the tea. And my love for chocolate overrules my hesitation when it comes to Pu-erh!
The Pu-erh here is indeed earthy … but I think that the other flavors in the blend manage to offset the earthiness enough so that the earthiness is not all that I taste. It is rich and mellow, and I like how the mild flavor of the pu-erh melds with the chocolate … it seems to enhance the chocolate experience in a very pleasant way.
While this blend is primarily about the chocolate for me, I’m finding the other flavors of this tea to be almost as agreeable as the chocolate. The coconut, for example, is sweet and creamy … it has that “slickness” that coconut has, and it coats the palate with that deliciousness. The combination of the chocolate (and how nicely it is enhanced with the pu-erh) and the coconut gives the overall cup a very candy bar-ish like taste.
As the tea cools, the chocolate and coconut really POP and the dessert-like taste really comes to life … this tea is best served when hot … but not piping hot. Let the tea cool in your teacup for about two or three minutes, and you’ll be rewarded with yumminess!
Another great tea from The Persimmon Tree. Check them out on Facebook, and don’t for get to “like” them to get updates on what’s new!
Mexican Cocoa Rooibos Blend from Trail Lodge Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Honeybush
Where to Buy: Trail Lodge Tea
Tisane Description:
Mexican Cocoa Rooibos is a Trail Lodge exclusive herbal tisane. You’ll feel like you’re having a Mexican Fiesta when you sip this tea. It’s a rooibos and honeybush blend with the perfect amount of cocoa and chilli. There’s just enough chilli to give it a little kick, and it will help warm you up an a cool day. Add milk for an extra special treat. Ingredients: Organic Rooibos, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Honeybush, Organic Cacao Bits, Chocolate Seeds, Organic Safflower, Organic Chili Flakes and Natural Flavor.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
This Mexican Cocoa Rooibos Blend from Trail Lodge Tea is seriously YUMMY! I’m not always big on rooibos, but, I find this blend to be very good, and I attribute this to a couple of factors: first, the rooibos used in this blend is organic rooibos, and I’ve found that there is a notable difference in taste between organic rooibos and conventionally grown rooibos. Second, the base of this tisane is crafted not just of organic rooibos but organic honeybush as well, and I find that tisanes created using both of these South African herbs are very tasty.
And … let us NOT forget about the CHOCOLATE! This blend has lots of chocolate-y flavor, enough to bring a big smile to this chocoholic’s face. I also love the fact that there is a touch of spice from the chili pepper flakes in this blend. There is just enough of the pepper flakes to add a gentle warmth that gradually increases, offering a very soft “burning” sensation in the throat without becoming too spicy or hot. I like that gentle warmth that radiates in the throat, and I LOVE the contrast of the spicy notes with the sweet, rich chocolate flavor.
The spice is further accentuated with the addition of cinnamon … adding a touch more warm spice but also a nice hint of sweetness to the cup. I like the way the cinnamon is represented in this tisane … there is a pleasing cinnamon note that gives the overall cup a very satisfying “Mexican Cocoa” kind of flavor … but they didn’t go overboard with the cinnamon. Cinnamon can often be a selfish spice in blends – but it’s not like that with this blend, and I applaud Trail Lodge Tea for managing to keep this tisane so nicely balanced.
I also applaud Trail Lodge Tea for going the extra mile with this tisane, and turning it into a “charitea” – for every 2 ounces of this tisane that is purchased, a dollar is donated to the “Ninos of Mexico.” Here’s what Trail Lodge Tea says about this charitea:
Trail Lodge Tea now has a new “charitea” that is also are own exclusive blend. It’s called Mexican Cocoa Rooibos. You will feel like you are having a Mexican Fiesta when you sip this tea. It is made of a blend of rooibos and honeybush with just the right combination of chocolate, chili, and flavoring as well as other high quality ingredients. Trail Lodge tea is donating a portion of every sale of this tea to Ninos de Mexico. That’s why we call it a “charitea”. Ninos de Mexico is a wonderful Christian Mission that’s main purpose is to help orphaned and at-risk children living in the Mexico City area. They do this by raising children in loving Christian homes and providing the children with medical care and education. The mission currently runs four homes for children, a medical clinic, and a private school. So you can enjoy some delicious tea and help disadvantaged children at the same time. Click the link below to learn more about Ninos de Mexico or go to the herbal tea page to order some Mexican Cocoa Rooibos.
I like this tisane … not only for its amazing chocolate flavor and warm spice notes … and not only because its all ORGANIC … but also because when I sip it, I know that there are children who are benefiting from this charitable organization.
Organic White Delight from The Rabbit Hole
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Rabbit Hole
Tea Description:
White chocolate melts into juicy raspberries to deliver a smooth and creamy drop. This tea is delicious hot or iced and is a refreshing alternative to fat filled desserts.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh wow! YUM! This Organic White Delight tea from The Rabbit Hole is true to it’s name, it is definitely a delight!
The dry leaf looks really appealing with its large shreds of coconut and dried raspberries tossed with white tea leaves. It brews up very light in color, but certainly NOT light in flavor!
Yes, it is a delicate tea (most white teas are!) but, that doesn’t mean it’s flavorless … just the opposite! There is a whole lot of yummy going on in this teacup! The overall flavor is sweet and creamy, with notes of chocolate (YES, chocolate!) and raspberry. The coconut adds more of a creamy tone to the cup than a strong, distinctive coconut taste. That is to say that this doesn’t taste strongly of coconut … although if I really focus on the sip I can taste a very faint coconut-y taste. Instead, the coconut seems to enhance the creaminess of the cup.
The chocolate is distinct, however, and you know me … I like it when the chocolate is THERE. And it’s there! The description suggests a white chocolate flavor … and yes, I do taste white chocolate, but, the chocolate tastes just a little richer than white chocolate. Imagine white chocolate with creamy milk chocolate. That’s what I taste here. And it’s delicious!
And you might be thinking that the white tea is overwhelmed by these other flavors – but it isn’t! I taste the creamy, sweet, slightly vegetative notes of the white tea here. There is a really lovely balanced taste with this tea. It is flavorful while maintaining its light, refreshing taste.
This is really good served hot, but I allowed some of it to cool because I was in the mood for some iced tea (It’s getting warmer!) and it tastes AMAZING iced! This tea is a winner. I’m not surprised – The Rabbit Hole seems to offer nothing BUT winners! If you love chocolate teas – add this one to your shopping list!
The Witching Hour from 52Teas
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Tulsi
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
If you liked our Graveyard Mist from a few weeks back, I think you are going to love this one. We’ve combined Rooibos and Tulsi Rama with cacao nibs and fresh cut peppermint for an unearthly, caffeine-free Halloween treat. The rooibos, tulsi rama and chocolate smooth out the peppermint and make it more rounded, less sharp, more soothing and less jolting. the mint is most prominent, but it’s a subdued mint tamed by this blend of tisanes and chocolate.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh … YUM! This is some seriously delicious minty chocolate goodness in a teacup!
The rooibos and tulsi together offer a bit of an unusual base, but I don’t mean that in a bad way. It it actually quite good. I think that the tulsi helps to soften the rooibos’ sometimes weird woody taste just a bit, and it also adds some definition to the mint, giving the overall cup a more of an herbal-y/earthy kind of taste rather than the typical woody/nutty rooibos flavor, which is, if you think about it, very in keeping with the “witchy” kind of theme. The bit of herbal taste makes it seem as though this might have been freshly ladled from a witches caldron!
But, if it were a potion, I don’t think it’s an evil potion, because an evil witch wouldn’t put chocolate in her potion! This was a potion concocted by a very good witch (or a brilliant, mad, Zoomdweebie of a genius named Frank!)
I like the balance in this cup. I taste the chocolate (and OK, I’ll be honest, more chocolate is always better), and I taste the mint, but, the mint isn’t overpowering. It tastes crisp and smooth at the same time. There is a slight nutty flavor from the rooibos, but as I mentioned before, I find that the taste of the rooibos seems to be tapered somewhat by the tulsi. Everything just seems to work together very harmoniously to create a very soothing, calming, easy to sip tisane.
What a perfectly enchanting brew!
Green Caramel from Just Add Honey
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green Tea & Rooibos Blend
Where to Buy: Just Add Honey
Tea Description:
Japanese and Chinese green teas are blended with organic rooibos, roasted cocoa beans, hand-crafted chewy caramel and toasted sweet brown rice to produce a creamy, buttery cup. a relaxing treat with milk and sugar and naturally low in caffeine.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was about to start off this review with a rant. That’s because the first time I brewed this tea, I did so on the assumption that this was a blend of green and white teas … because that is what it said on the package. However, checking out the website, and then closer examining the loose leaf tea, I realize that this is, instead, a green teas and rooibos blend.
And, because of this error, the first time I brewed this tea, it wasn’t as successful as the second time. The first time I brewed this tea, I used a very low water temperature (160°F) and a slightly longer steep time (3 1/2 minutes). However, now that I know this is a green teas and rooibos blend, I used a slightly hotter water (180°F) and a shorter steep time (2 minutes). The results have changed my opinion of this tea. This has gone from a tasty yet somewhat bland cup of tea (first infusion) to a tastier, less bland cup (second infusion). While the differences in temperature and time seem pretty small, it makes a big difference when it comes to tea!
The first cup was tasty, but, the caramel was lacking a certain … something. It tasted more like a weak green tea with hints of caramel. With this second infusion, the caramel is enhanced with notes of toasty rice from the Genmaicha – a flavor that didn’t really come through with the lower temperature of the first infusion. The green tea does not taste weak like it did with my first session of this tea.
I don’t taste a lot from the rooibos, but, in my opinion, that is a good thing. The caramel is still a little light, but as the overall cup is a lighter taste, I think that the lighter caramel notes might just be spot on. The green tea has a buttery taste that accents the caramel nicely, and I love the toasty dimension from the Genmaicha. The ingredients list cacao beans in this, and I do taste a slight chocolate note here, but it is very faint.
Overall, a fair cup of tea. Will I be buying this tea again? Probably not. But it is certainly not something I’d refuse if it were offered to me, and I will enjoy the rest of my package.