There’s something magical about unusually flavored teas– my brain has no concept for what they *should* taste like, so each sip (especially the first) is like an awakening. A little party in my mouth, if you will.
This blend came with a recent summer tea of the month club order, and let me say– I was a little dubious at first. Not necessarily of the cranberry/basil blend, which sounds, frankly, like a tasty sangria treat, if anything. No, but of the tiny note at the end of the description: flavored with cream. Cream? Here I was, going down the route of fruity-herbal-sangria blend. Back it up for a sec, shall we?
Skeptically, I threw this one in a jar with some cold water and brewed iced overnight. In the morning, I had the most delightful jar waiting for me– fresh and fruity, with some interesting herb-y notes, but yup, there it is: that fascinating cream flavor, right at the end! Like a chocolate egg cream with a twist (minus the chocolate… obviously)– this one was effervescent, fruity and bright, but just a hint of sweetness-and-cream, with that almost-velvety mouthfeel that so often comes with creamy iced teas.
Yet again, AQTT succeeds in pulling together fascinating flavors that are truly unmatched anywhere else in the tea world. Add this one to your cabinet, friends!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description
A refreshing blend perfect for the season! Sikkim tea from the Temi estate with cranberry, basil, and cream.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
CTRL+ALT+DEL from Pluck Teas. . . .
I had this once before, hot and hated it. Let’s see how it is iced…
Well, first thing I noticed is this iced cup has less sediment than the original hot cup had. It brewed up a cloudy but light golden yellow but less cloudy than the hot brew. Hopefully both these things will result in a cleaner taste than what I recall.
The smell is strongly of ginger but with lemon in the background as well as a touch of musk that I am thinking is probably from a mix of this tea and some scent remaining from the mint tea that was in the press previously. Luckily, it is not transferring over to the flavor.
Instead, this has a strong ginger flavor with a bright lemon aftertaste. I wish I got more from the cranberries since they were the reason I was drawn to this blend in the first place alas they are hiding underneath all the other components. Nonetheless, the iced tea flavor is really quite natural and rich. To me, it is as if someone took fresh ginger and lemon and steeped that…and then maybe muddled it with some other ingredients. The lemongrass is maybe a bit more herbal tasting than I would like but this could be a nice caffeine free option for those who like this sort of tea.
Personally I am more of a dessert tea kind of girl so I don’t see myself reaching for this in the future but I am happy to report the the iced cup is much improved from the hot tea.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal Tea
Where to Buy: Pluck Teas
Description
Hit the reset button – with this refreshing lemon and ginger infusion featuring Muskoka cranberries. Caffeine-free and delicious hot or iced, this tisane packs a lot of flavour.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
On the 2nd Day of Christmas 52Teas Sent To Me (Spoilers!). . . .
Today is the 2nd day of Christmas if you are following along with your own 12 Days of Christmas. I’m quite excited to see what tea we have in store for us today after yesterday’s delicious flavored green tea. So as I’m typing this I’m scratching off the label and today’s tea is. . .
Cranberry Soda Green Rooibos
I’m sorry but I feel that we need to announce that in a bigger way. For the 2nd Day of Christmas promotion in the 52Teas holiday pack. . .the tea of the day is
Cranberry Soda Green Rooibos!!!
So as you can probably tell, I’m exited about this tea. I’m a huge fan of green rooibos even tho its relative red rooibos are arch enemies. Green Rooibos just adds a gorgeous honey flavor that I’ve come to adore and love. So when I see a flavored one, I get a bit giddy.
This tea was again stunning. Gorgeous pops of green and red (or maybe a cranberry color-ha!) throughout the dry leaf. The dry leaf aroma was amazingly sweet and I couldn’t wait for my water to prep and the tea to finish brewing. Like the tea from yesterday, I ended up devouring this entire pouch in no time at all.
This tea had notes of a creaminess that I fell in love with right away. The creaminess reminded you of a cream soda, which is where I’m thinking the inspiration for this tea came from. The lovely cranberry tartness really mingled well with the honey flavors of the green rooibos. That underlying creaminess really drove this tea to something special. I could and did drink this tea for hours and hours. I infuse the tea leaves until they couldn’t give any more.
Cranberry Soda Green Rooibos is one of those tea that I will also crave more of and will never be able to get enough. Hopefully this will be a re blended because I need tons of this tea. This would be a perfect after dinner tea or I’m sure an dynamite cold brew. I could even see this tea being mixed with maybe a touch of an adult beverage and you’ve got yourself the makings of an fabulous cocktail.
What I’m really trying to say is this tea was tasty and I would like more.
Please see below for the official description of this tea. Click here to read all of 52Teas Mad Tea Musings!
Here it is, the 2nd day of our Christmas tea countdown! Today’s tea is a new tea that I crafted especially for this box. I wanted to have at least a couple of caffeine free teas for our advent box, so I decided to create a green rooibos based tea with a flavor that’s inspired by the sodas that find their way onto supermarket shelves this time of year . . .
Crisp Cranberry Soda Green Rooibos!
Tea Description: My inspiration behind this tea was the cranberry flavored lemon-lime soft drinks that come out around Thanksgiving. I thought that the best base for such a tea would be a green rooibos because it has a light, sparkling kind of taste to it naturally, and the light fruitiness of the rooibos would enhance the fruity flavors that I’d be adding to it.
Then I added lots of cranberries to the blend and some natural flavors to create a soda like taste.
Really nice! Light and crisp and refreshing!
organic ingredients: green rooibos, cranberries and natural flavors.
The flavor of this tea is really quite lovely! So light and crisp, with the cranberry notes weaving their way in and out and lingering in the aftertaste. It reminds me very much of it’s inspiration – the cranberry flavored lemon-lime soft drink – because if you taste one of those, you’ll find that the cranberry tartness doesn’t slap you upside the head. It’s a light, sweet yet pleasantly tart flavor – just like the soda itself. This is really nice – bright and uplifting. And it’s naturally caffeine-free so it’s something you can enjoy any time of day!
It’s sweet but not too sweet – with a really nice level of tartness to it (at least for me as I’m not a big fan of tart). The first few sips were light in flavor but now that I’ve taken a few sips, I pick up on more of the lemon-lime notes as well as a really lovely cranberry note.
I’m pleased with how this turned out!
To brew: use about 1 1/2 teaspoons to 12 ounces of hot water (because this is green rooibos, I set my thermostat on my Breville to 190°F) and let it steep for 8 minutes. Because this is rooibos, you can let it steep longer without worry of bitterness – very few tannins in rooibos! So you can let this steep for 10 minutes or beyond!
After finished steeping, strain and let cool for 5 – 10 minutes and enjoy! A teensy bit of sugar will help enhance the ‘soda’ experience of this tea, but it’s also quite delicious without the sugar!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Flavored Herbal/Green Rooibos Blend
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea will be available in very limited quantities beginning December 28th at 52Teas!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Santa Berry Tea from Kent & Sussex Tea & Coffee Co.
Now THIS is a fruit flavored black tea I can get behind! Oh! Maybe that is because it doesn’t have hibiscus in it! Santa Berry Tea from Kent & Sussex Tea & Coffee Co, that is!
Santa Berry Tea from Kent & Sussex Tea & Coffee Co smells like fruity candy straight out of the bag! I think it is the fruity combo of orange, cranberry, strawberry, and raspberry. It’s truly a delight!
Once infused the cranberry is the more intense of the fruit to awaken the nose and tongue! The cardamom provides a hint of spice which is nice. The strawberry and raspberry seem to fuse together and that glorious orange peel MUST be from that same orange the company uses in their Orange Cookie Black Tea that I am a bit obsessed with lately! Santa Berry Tea from Kent & Sussex Tea & Coffee Co is really something special! Of course, I am partial because it doesn’t contain hibiscus! That in itself deserves two thumbs up! But I’m genuinely stoked about the flavor of this tea! It’s great!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Kent & Sussex Tea & Coffee Co.
Description
Santa Berry- Cranberry and Raspberry Black Tea
This Black tea is mixed with sweet strawberries, raspberries and tangy cranberries for a tea that feels like it should be served with a scoop of ice cream and a cup of egg nog! Slightly spiced notes from the cardamom seeds and a creamy texture from the toasted almonds.
Type of Tea– Flavoured Blended Black Tea
Ingredients– Blended black tea, orange peel, almonds, dried cranberry pieces, cardamom pods, freeze dried strawberry pieces and raspberry pieces.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Fall Blend Alert! Cranberry Autumn from Harney & Sons
Ah, fall. Cooler weather signals the slow switch from iced or cold brewed teas to hot cuppas throughout the day. I find myself excited about teas that are fruity but earthy, deeper but still bright. Happily, Cranberry Autumn from Harvey and Sons perfectly fits that description.
Cranberry Autumn has light, citrusy notes from the orange as well as a good bit of tartness from the cranberry and hibiscus, but the base tea keeps the other flavors grounded. It has a good bit of depth with a slight woody note that works well with the other flavors.
This tea is a fall go-to for me. It’s something I will happily steep in my cup again and again as the days get shorter and my need for something to warm my hands and spirits gets stronger. Cranberry Autumn has earned its place in my tea cabinet.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Flavored Black Tea
Where to Buy: Harney & Sons
Description
Ideally sweet and tart, our Cranberry Autumn is a black tea artfully blended with cranberry and orange flavors. You’ll find it a full bodied brew that is exceptionally smooth and delicious in fall, or anytime if you’re a cranberry fan. Kosher.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
