Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
Intelligent Nutrients’ Nurture #4 is warm, cozy and balancing. We are using the Li Family’s lightly smoked Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong black tea from the Wuyi Mountains as the base for a smoldering base to pair with certified organic Nature #4, and draw out the natural sweetness of the tea with elderberry and coriander. Like sitting by a crackling fire, this comforting blend brings warmth and balance.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
From the time that I first opened the package to the last drops dripping from my gaiwan into my cha hair, I was practically seduced by the flavor. I love the smell of this tea! To put it bluntly, it smells like musky hippie perfume that all those Tibetan souvenir shops always sell in one form or another. I know, not the most glowing description ever written, but I freaking love that hippie perfume. It’s slightly sweet and smoky, with perfume notes that evoke ancient biblical spices. Frankincense? Myrrh perhaps? I cannot for the life of me put my finger on it, but I am so intoxicated by the smell.
The large, long and lightly twisted leaves are dotted with coriander, and if you can look hard enough, you can see tiny dried elderberries hiding out, same color as the leaves. I gongfu’ed this tea and was delighted by the changes in flavor profile each infusion brought to the table. The new copper penny colored brew presented different combinations each time I steeped it. The first steeping I smelled a scrumptiously peppery aroma. I tasted the peppered aroma on my tongue, as well as that hippie perfumery.
The woody notes transitioned me into the next infusion, where I got a slight lavender essence, and upon smelling the top notes, I found a warm welcome of bread and malt notes. The smoke was an afterthought, until the third time around. I half wondered if there would be any smoke to it at all. But it came out to shine in the third round. It was as if someone had just blown out a match. Not so sting to turn you off anything smoked for the rest of your life, but just a hint so that I could taste the other fascinating notes. This time I got a vanilla orange spice to compliment the hint of smoke.
Sipping and enjoying this tea sent me on a sensory overload trip. I was transported to a different time and place. I know that most people upon hearing the word ‘perfume’ being used to describe tea will most definitely run for the hills. But there is so much more to this brew than the hippie cologne. Each time I took the kettle and dowsed the tea, it showed me a different card hidden in it’s sleeves. If I had brewed it any longer, it may have tried to pull a rabbit our of my cup. This is truly a strange brew.
9 Spice Chai Black Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Could it be? A perfectly balanced chai tea? Yes, we know chai means tea and we are saying tea tea. But we like tea tea. Anyway. 9 Spice Chai is a smooth, deep, and complex black tea with just enough spiced flavor to penetrate the Indian and Sri Lankan black teas. Finally, a cup of chai that isn’t literally a cup of cloves or a cup of cinnamon nutmeg! Rejoice! This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
If you’ve read many of my reviews, you know by now that I love a good chai! So, I looked forward to trying this 9 Spice Chai from M&K’s Tea Company. After reading the description, it would seem that M&K’s is promising me a good chai here, so I am eagerly anticipating that!
And I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the humor in M&K’s description. I know that ‘Chai’ means tea and when I say “Chai,” I am more often than not – 99 times out of 100 – referring to a spiced tea blend. But I also often find myself worrying about those purists out there that might read one of my post titles that say “chai tea” and they’re snickering about me saying “tea tea.” I like that M&K’s addresses this “confusing” subject with humor. Thank you.
Anyway … let’s move on to the chai tea that sits in front of me, tempting me with it’s lovely aroma. It smells warm and spicy, like the kitchen during the holidays when there are lots of tasty things being baked.
Especially when I was a kid in my gramma’s kitchen … not so much now because if tasty things were being baked in the kitchen, that would mean that I was baking them and doing all the work. Things smell a lot better when I’m not the one doing the work. I think that’s why the childhood memories of pies, cakes, cookies and other yummies “smelled” so much better than when I make those things.
I’m just full of tangent today, aren’t I?
As I was saying, this chai smells good. It has a lovely, warmly spiced fragrance. And, I’m happy to say that it tastes as good as it smells! The spices are nicely balanced (as promised in the above description), I taste gentle notes of cinnamon and cardamom and clove. Hints of nutmeg and vanilla. The pepper and ginger are zesty. The allspice and coriander round out the flavors. The spices have been carefully considered here to create a pleasing, round flavor that warms you from the inside out without coming across as too spicy.
It has a flavor that is reminiscent of a homemade spice cookie. It isn’t too strongly spiced – but it isn’t subtle either. It’s somewhere in between a very strong, spicy chai and a more softly spiced chai. The spices aren’t competing with one another and there isn’t one spice that overpowers the others. This isn’t all about the cinnamon or ginger or clove. I get a little bit of each spice in each sip and that’s what I mean by a nice balance of spice.
The black tea base is a blend of Ceylon and Assam, and these two teas provide a solid background of flavor. It’s robust and holds its own against the strong spices so that I’m not just tasting spices in each sip, I’m also tasting tea. The teas don’t taste bitter but there is some dryness toward the tail – a slightly astringent sensation – but it isn’t unpleasant. I like the way the dryness allows the spice notes (a contrast between spicy and sweet) to come through in the aftertaste.
I really am enjoying this chai. I think if I’m to offer any kind of criticism about it at all, it would be that I think I’d like just a tad more vanilla to this. The vanilla here is rather subdued, perhaps because it’s in the presence of so many other spices but I think I’d like to experience a little more of the sweet, creamy notes of vanilla here. A little more vanilla and you wouldn’t need to add dairy to make this a latte – it would be like a latte in a cup without the dairy!
Ayurvedic Stimulating Tea from Tea of Life
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Learn more about Tea of Life and Amazon Teas here.
About Tea of Life Ayurvedic Collection:
The word “Ayurveda” is derived from two words – “Ayus” meaning life and “Veda” meaning ‘knowledge’ or ‘science’. So the literal meaning of the word Ayurveda is ‘The Science of Life.’
Life or Ayus, according to Ayurveda, is a combination of senses, mind, body and soul. So Ayurveda does not just limit itself to the body or physical symptoms, but also provides comprehensive knowledge about spiritual, mental and emotional health.
The traditional healing system of Ayurveda is based on a theory of balance between the body (physical), the soul (spiritual) and the mind (psychological).
Ingredients:
Black Tea with cinnamon, Nutmeg, Coriander, Ginger & Rose flavors.
Taster’s Review:
I categorized this Ayurveda Stimulating Tea from Tea of Life as a “chai” because even though it doesn’t have all the “usual” spices of a masala chai blend, it has several of them.
That said, this doesn’t taste like the “usual” chai that I’m used to drinking. It’s not quite as spicy as a typical chai. I taste more black tea than I do spices. That’s not a bad thing – I’m just saying that it’s a different tasting “chai.”
The black tea is smooth and nicely round. Even though it’s a finely chopped CTC (in a tea bag, no less), it has a pleasing flavor. It’s full and robust and energizing.
The spices add a nice depth to the flavor. The coriander is the strongest flavor that I notice in this blend, but I can also taste the cinnamon and nutmeg, and even a hint of kick from the ginger. The ingredient list suggests a rose flavor too, but I’m having a hard time detecting it. When I slurp the cup, I can pick up on whispers of rose notes but it’s very faint.
Overall, this is alright. Not my favorite chai blend, but I do like how the coriander comes through. And it does deliver what it promises: it’s a stimulating cup of tea!
Ayurvedic Immune Tea from Tea of Life
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Learn more about Tea of Life and Amazon Teas here.
About Tea of Life Ayurvedic Collection:
The word “Ayurveda” is derived from two words – “Ayus” meaning life and “Veda” meaning ‘knowledge’ or ‘science’. So the literal meaning of the word Ayurveda is ‘The Science of Life.’
Life or Ayus, according to Ayurveda, is a combination of senses, mind, body and soul. So Ayurveda does not just limit itself to the body or physical symptoms, but also provides comprehensive knowledge about spiritual, mental and emotional health.
The traditional healing system of Ayurveda is based on a theory of balance between the body (physical), the soul (spiritual) and the mind (psychological).
Ingredients:
Green Tea with Ginger, Coriander, Pepper, Cumin Seed and Tumeric.
Taster’s Review:
When I got my package from Tea of Life, this super cool hexagon package of Ayurvedic teas was among the many teas that were included. The photo doesn’t really do this packaging justice – it’s really neat! There are six different Ayurvedic teas in this package: Stimulating, Slimming, Calming, Detox, Immune and Destress.
Since my husband is currently battling an awful cold and I don’t want to suffer with that same cold, I decided to dig into this hexagon and try the Ayurvedic Immune Tea from Tea of Life to see if it will help me avoid what seems to be an inevitable fate. Whenever anyone gets a cold in this house, I end up getting it too. So, here’s hoping that this will help me … if not avoid it all together, at least minimize my bout with it.
Right off the bat, one thing that I like about this, before I even brew it, is that it has real tea in it. It’s not a blend of herbs. Not that there’s anything wrong with a blend of herbs, but, I like tea. You might have noticed that.
The aroma of the dry tea reminds me of the fragrance I’d experience if I were walking into a restaurant that serves Indian Cuisine. I could smell the tumeric and the other spices. I didn’t get a lot of green tea essence from the aroma.
The brewed tea smells very much the same. A strong tumeric scent, with notes of ginger, cumin, coriander and pepper. I can smell notes of green tea – a light, fresh ‘vegetal’ note.
As far as “functional” teas go, this is really tasty. It reminds me a bit more of a spiced vegetable broth than it does a tea, but, I’m enjoying the flavor. If I’m going to be drinking this for the next few days (as I plan to do to help ~hopefully~ avoid the cold that my husband has right now), then I’m very pleased that the flavor is enjoyable.
While the spices are strong, this is not an “in your face” kind of tea. It doesn’t overwhelm my palate with lots of spice flavor. I can taste the green tea, and the spices keep time with the lightness of the green tea. That is to say that the spices don’t overpower the green tea – a balance has been achieved with this blend. A really good balance.
I consumed this straight up with no additions, and it was just fine like that, however, I think it would be really nice with a dollop of honey (and honey has the added benefit of antioxidants and every little bit helps when you’re trying to avoid a cold.) The sweetness of the honey would accentuate the spices nicely.
Love & Joy Tisane from Verdant Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Tulsi, Herbal & Fruit Tisane
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tisane Description:
The light apple aroma of the chamomile is tempered by herbs and florals and grounded with cacao. This blend does what tea is known to do – bring you to a place of relaxation and reflection. Love & Joy blend tastes sweet and has a soft and round mouthfeel. Sip, relax and enjoy.
Learn more about this blend here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
What an interesting tisane! This Love & Joy Tisane from Verdant Tea is the second tea that I’m tasting from February’s Amoda Tea Tasting Box. Yeah, I’m a little behind. My March box should be arriving within days, and I’m still getting around to tasting February’s teas! Better get a move on!
This tisane has an abundance of ingredients:
Marigold (calendula), Goji, Linden Leaf + Flower, Honeysuckle, Chamomile, Tulsi, Elderberry, Cacao, Coriander, Frankincense.
And even though there seems to be a lot going on here, the flavors all meld together in an agreeable way. The first flavor that I can identify is the chamomile, and it offers a light, crisp, apple-y flavor to the cup. Then I notice the tulsi, and it tastes of basil and mint. There is a background of berry notes, and these berry notes come forward in the aftertaste. I get that tart note, that tingly berry sensation that you might experience after eating a tart berry.
After my first few sips, I start to realize that there is a distinct lime-ish note to this and then I re-read the ingredient list: linden! Yep, that would do it. The linden really brightens the cup.
There are light floral notes, not so much from the calendula (I very rarely taste a strong flavor from the marigold petals), but from the honeysuckle. It tastes sweet and floral and I like this little bit of sweetness from the honeysuckle.
In this cup, I smell the frankincense more than I taste it, but there is a warm spiciness to this cup which is not just from the coriander (and the tulsi!), but also the frankincense.
I found myself wanting more cacao. No big surprise there, I guess, since I am a chocoholic. My first 1/3 of the cup, I didn’t really notice much cacao at all, but by the time I finished that first 1/3 of the cup, I started to pick up on the notes of chocolate, and … YUM! I like the way the notes of chocolate meld with the other flavors of this cup. Sure, I’d like more cacao, but, I always do, don’t I?
As it is, this is a really interesting, intriguing cup. It seems to draw me deeper into the depths of its flavor with every sip. I discover more flavors each time I take a drink.
I have to admit that I like this a whole lot more than I thought I would. I’m not usually all that excited to try tisanes, but, this is really tasty!