Artificial flavor. You are a bane to the tea world.
And yet when it comes to cinnamon tea like this I have a small part of my world reserved for you.
You would be completely different without that accursed thing. This brings me back to Pike’s Place Market in Seattle.
To the left you will find a shop that sells Orange cinnamon tea very much like this one. Ohio Tea Co does a very good job with this imitation though I still prefer Marketspice as I feel theirs is stronger. It could also be due to the type of tea bag they used which makes it so this tea can’t fully realize its potential in the water.
Now that I don’t drink many teas with flavors I feel myself getting a bit of a headache so I am glad I only got one bag. But the headache was worth it. I think. Something still bothers me about this one though. It starts off nice and strong and then it just drops off a cliff or like a part of the flavor runs into a wall and the rest keeps going. It is strange.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Ohio Tea Company
Description
This blend brews very sweet even though no sugar is added. A cinnamon lover’s dream come true. A combination of hearty Chinese and Indian black tea and invigorating cinnamon.
Many cinnamon teas have a watery aftertaste due to the use of low grade teas. The black tea here has the stamina to last through the whole tasting process.
Ingredients:
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Vanilla Caramel Chai/Tazo
A little while back the SororiTea Sisters shared teas in a traveling tea box. One of the sisters was kind enough to share several tea bags of Tazo’s Vanilla Caramel Chai. I grabbed a couple bags to try since vanilla and caramel are both flavors I usually love and lately I have been trying more and more chais and enjoying them.
Tazo’s Vanilla Caramel Chai is a black tea with cinnamon, licorice root, ginger, black pepper, cloves, and natural flavors. The licorice root has me a bit nervous but hopefully the other flavors hide the typical cloying sweetness of the licorice root.
Normally I would make chais as a latte but with only two tea bags, I didn’t think I had enough leaf for that. Consequently, I am trying the tea plain first but may add a splash of milk to get that latte creaminess.
Sipping on it now I am happy to report that the licorice root is nicely masked. There is a lot of cinnamon in the scent of the steeped tea which transfers over to the taste. I also get a ribbon of clove running through the sip. It is sweet and though I can smell vanilla caramel, nothing distinctly reflects that in flavor other than sweet.
I added a little bit of milk and unfortunately it doesn’t do much for taste. This tea is still cinnamon heavy though there is perhaps a bit less clove now.
Some people don’t like too much spice from their chai blends and if you are one of those people, this could be a nice option for you. As for me, I think spice is the whole point of having a chai and this falls short. I would happily forgive the lack of spice if it was in favor of highlighting the vanilla caramel but this falls short there too. It’s not bad per se but there is nothing all that great either.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tazo Tea
Description
How do you make a great cup of chai tea taste even better? You add rich notes of vanilla, delectable caramel, and the classic spices of chai into the boldest black teas. It’s a sweet twist on a spicy favorite. It’s not just better. It’s better-er.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
photo credit: Tazo Tea
Stress Less/Lipton. . . .
It’s been ‘forever and a day’ since I have tried a new-to-me-tea from Lipton, to be honest. But since I’m looking to try more herbal tisanes I figured WHY NOT.
Stress Less from Lipton was one of these herbals I have tried as of late. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised at the flavor. It all seemed to mesh well and nothing was too overpowering.
This offering had Cinnamon, Chamomile, and Lavender in it. In the past I have been know to avoid herbals with a Chamomile base. The more I drink the more I seem to open my mind with that specific ingredient. I tend to lean towards those that pair with mint or chai type spices, hence, the cinnamon in this one.
I can see how this one could help mellow you out. Those 3 ingredients have a long history of that. But for me, the mellow flavors that meshed so well, is what convinced me to give this another sip next time I come across it.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Lipton
Description
Relax, rewind, then press play again with Lipton Stress Less Caffeine-Free Herbal Supplement, containing cinnamon, chamomile, and lavender. Stress Less is a comforting, cozy herbal infusion to help you unwind*. Carefully selected botanicals are blended with lavender essential oil that make every cup delicious. Enjoy a daily cup or two of Lipton Stress Less to supplement your varied, balanced diet. For the perfect cup, brew tea bag 4-6 minutes in freshly boiled water. Wellbeing by Lipton. Feel Happy & Healthy. *This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Goldenberry Banana Cinnamon from Voce Fruit Tea. . .
Last week I reviewed another tea from Voce Fruit Tea, their Lemon Ginger. I was instantly impressed with how delicious, fresh, natural, and amazing the tea. Today I wanted to try their banana offering. I’m sort of a banana freak and am always on the search for a banana flavored tea. You find them here and there but typically the banana flavor comes off light or chemical tasting. After having the Voce Fruit Tea’s Lemon Ginger, I knew that this banana flavor was going to be on point since they do not use anything but dried fruit in their blends.
For this blend I brewed the tea with freshly boiled water and allowed the tea to steep for 7 minutes and just left the tea bag in the mug while I enjoyed the brew. I did this with the Lemon Ginger offering and the tea just seemed to get better and better the longer the tea brewed and the Goldenberry Banana Cinnamon is no different.
First off you are greeted with fresh notes of banana and cinnamon. And that is exactly what you get in taste as well. The banana flavor reminds me of a quality dried banana chip instead of a fresh banana. Regardless, the banana flavor is delicious and doesn’t have that artificial feel like I’ve had in the past. The cinnamon adds its own charm playing well with the banana flavor. For the goldenberry piece, I can’t really say I taste much berry like flavor. I am getting a sweetness here and there that I can’t identify so I’m wondering if that is the goldenberry. The description of this tea indicated the tea should taste like banana bread and I have to say, they are pretty close to nailing that flavor profile.
Over all, this tea is downright delicious. After having a few cuppas of this hot, I’m excited to try this as a cold brew like I did with the Lemon Ginger. I was able to drink off of one serving of the Lemon Ginger for almost tea days- brewed both hot and cold and I have a feeling this serving of Goldenberry Banana Cinnamon will be the same.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Fruit
Where to Buy: Voce Fruit Tea
Description
You might not be familiar with goldenberries, but they are widely considered to be a superfruit, with a bright flavor that is similar to apricots. Our blend of organic goldenberries, organic bananas, and organic cinnamon is an unexpected treat that is reminiscent of warm banana bread, right out of the oven. It has a smooth and subtle flavor that goes down nice and easy.
Ingredients: organic dried bananas, organic dried, goldenberries, organic cinnamon chips. Packaged in the same facility as peanuts, tree nuts, soy, and milk products.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Yule Fuel from For Tea’s Sake. . . . .
Scent is one of the strongest senses tied to memory, and there is something distinct for all of us about the holidays! There are the cinnamon pine cones in every store, you start being able to use you fireplace, and everything smells like apples. Yule Fuel by For Tea’s Sake is hands down the best holiday tea I’ve ever had. It smells like the holidays with cinnamon and cloves immediately confronting your senses. One encounter with the aroma of this tea will make it obvious that it is aptly named.
I brewed this black tea at 212 degrees Fahrenheit (110 degrees Celsius) for five minutes as directed. It brewed into a nice rich color. The cinnamon and cloves which are prominent in the aromatic profile of this tea are reduced to supporting, but important, players when brewed. The flavor that comes out in the brewing process is a lovely vanilla which helps remove the bitter aftertaste that is common for black teas and often puts people off of drinking black teas without sugar or cream. Saying this is a smooth black tea may be an understatement for this blend. This blend needs no assistance from sugars or cream, but I suspect that the addition of either would create a lovely flavor profile as well.
I cannot say enough wonderful things about this blend. From the aroma to the flavor profile that is presented once brewed, this tea is one that you need to have in your collection.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: For Tea’s Sake
Description
This is a holiday blend tea so if interested click below right around the holidays to see if the blend is coming back!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
