Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Red Leaf Tea
Tea Description:
This Turkish version of green tea, though delicate, features cured apple pieces and safflowers into a delicious tea blend. Our growers are able to customize the curing of their harvests and add a wide variety of flavors to their stronger blends. For tea lovers, blends such as Turkish Green Apple Tea is full of great tea taste from the first sip to the very last.
Green tea, apple pieces, and safflowers with apple flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Turkish Green Apple from Red Leaf Tea is a very light flavored tea with apples being only a slight flavor in the overall profile. It tastes more of buttered spinach and has a slight salty taste as well. The apples taste to be semi fermented in a sense, as they taste in a hard apple cider yet in this blend very delicate and only a slight bit tart.
This is a soothing tea that is very delicate in its nature, calming and relaxing. I would not want this in the morning but is a wonderful tea to sip while laying in bed decompressing and reading a favorite novel.
If you want that more robust flavor be sure to wait and allow the tea to cool more before sipping as this tea tends to take on its stronger characteristics as it becomes more room temperature, even the mouthfeel becomes heavier as it cools a bit.
There is a creaminess to the mouthfeel, and even a slight cream flavor. Buttery, creamed, spinach with an apple appeal. Haha, get it?
Strawberry Shortcake from Angelina’s Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Angelina’s Teas
Tea Description:
STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE
(Black Tea with natural flavors)
Country of Origin: Sri Lanka
Region: Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula or Uva districts
Shipping Port: Colombo
Grade: OP (Orange Pekoe)
Altitude: 4800 – 7600 feet above sea level
Manufacture Type: Orthodox
Cup Characteristics: A full bodied sweet and creamy cup. Perfect with a dash of sugar and a splash of milk. This ones
amazing over ice.
Infusion: Bright and Coppery.
Information: Who doesnt love Strawberry Shortcake? Fresh strawberriespastry icing sugarfresh cream. In a word, scrumptious. The original recipe can be traced back to a 19th century American food writer named Eliza Leslie. Her shtick, (even back then all food writers and celebrity chefs had one) was to incorporate various elements of French cuisine into American cooking. Her recipe called for a special pastry crust that was a cross between traditional pastry and cookie dough, cut into rounds with mashed strawberries sandwiched between them, covered in icing sugar. Phew! The recipe spread like wildfire and spawned many variations. One that saw the addition of fresh whipped became the Strawberry Shortcake most of us are familiar with today. This tea has all the great flavors of the sweet creamy dessert with none of the calories, (read guilt free). Dessert in a teacup. Nothing could be finer.
What type of tea do we use, how do we flavor the tea and why do we use natural flavors?
Firstly… we only use high grown teas from the top 3 tea growing regions of Sri Lanka – Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula and Uva. These three high-grown districts produce flavorful teas that have classic Ceylon tea character which is noted by floral bouquet and flavor notes, touches of mild astringency, bright coppery color and, most importantly – perfect for use as the base tea of our flavored teas. (We have tested teas from various other origins around the world as base stock for our flavored teas, but none of these teas made the grade.) Dimbula and the western estates of Nuwar
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Strawberry Shortcake from Angelina’s Teas is another excellent creamy strawberry tea, and many of you know how much I adore a good strawberry tea, especially if it is sweet, and creamy!
I have a handful of favorite strawberry teas and I have to say this one rivals them all. Considering the cost point of just a tad over 2.00 USD per ounce, this one may be the best so far. Not that I mind paying more for a better tea, but this is right at the level of my favorite strawberry teas that are more expensive.
I love that Angelina’s puts so much effort into their tea descriptions and has such a huge assortment of teas, tea ware and goodies on their site. I could spend an entire day just browsing!
This is a stash keeper in my book. Fresh juicy strawberry flavor with a creamy dessert finish.
Not a lot to say about it other than it is delicious and I love it.
If you are a fan of creamy teas, strawberry teas, or creamy strawberry tea then grabs some!
Almond Cookies from Georgia Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Georgie Tea Company
Tea Description:
A delicious green tea with a smooth coconut flavor backed up by roasted almond undertones.
Ingredients: green tea China Sencha, coconut rasps, almond flakes, flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Holy Almond Cookie! Almond Cookies from Georgia Tea Company has really made me fall in love! Georgia Tea Company – be put on notice, I will be making an order with you again soon!
I have never ordered from Georgia Tea Company before but considering this tea, which is amazing, and their more than fair prices, I am holding myself back from ordering more now!
Now I do adore almond cookies, when I get one served to me at an Asian restaurant I squeal. I always seek out a better almond cookie in stores, and I am always looking for the perfect almond cookie tea. I have found mostly tisanes that make me happy when it comes to this flavor. Yet now, this beautiful green tea, with the sweet yummy goodness of almond! You know, as for the coconut, I don’t really get it as coconut like I do in other teas. However it must play some form of a good supporting role to the other elements in this tea because this is one of the best almond cookies I have ever had! Err, umm, I mean almond cookie teas!
I can taste the almond, obviously, the green tea gives a wonderful flavor and a healthy base, and yet I swear I can taste the crispy crumbly cookie in here too! You know how good almond cookies have that buttery, crispy, crumbly texture? That is this tea! And if I had to describe this tea any other way I would go with vanilla cake batter.
I think that the green base is affording the tea some of that buttery quality. You know quite honestly, I don’t want to explain this tea anymore. Call me selfish but I just want to sip on this all day, in bliss, and I think I am going to go order more, I mean its so inexpensive its crazy!
IN LOVE with this tea!
Organic Gyokuro from Aiya
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Aiya
Tea Description:
Organic Gyokuro is one of the rarest teas in the world. Aiya has exclusive experience working with Japanese farmers to achieve this high-level of Gyokuro which meets international organic standards. Fresh shade grown leaves are carefully handpicked to maximize Gyokuro’s natural sweetness.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Organic Gyokuro from Aiya tea is truly a tea to experience. There is a velvety feel in the mouth when sipping this Gyokuro from Aiya. I love grassy teas, this is a true vegetal delight without being too heavy, yet its not so light that you need to search for the flavors.
The vegetal notes are similar to steamed spinach, a little on the sea-weed side, I get kelp in that aspect. It is lightly buttery, but more creamy than buttery. It has a soothing quality that reminds me of the feeling I get when I eat oatmeal, but it tastes nothing like oatmeal. It just has that warm feeling, like a comfort food, this is a comfort tea.
I feel very centered and balanced when I sip this tea, and it makes me feel like I am doing something really wonderful for my body, and mind. Gyokuro is known for its balance of sweet and bitter, even when steeped properly there is a slight astringency in the sip. Yet, it is sweet as well, which brings this perfect harmony to the cup. Its the perfect balance indeed.
Interestingly there is a long lingering flavor left on the palate that is reminiscent of roses. Overall it is very green tasting, but I do love this lasting floral note.
There is just something special about Japanese Green Tea, something that only high quality companies that have high standards can bring us as tea lovers. Aiya brings us some of the best examples of excellent Japanese Green Tea.
Lemon Souffle from White Lion
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: White Lion Tea
Tea Description:
White tea leaves, tart juicy lemons, vanilla and caramel essence.
Available in loose leaf, and sachets.
Sample size also available.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I have searched high and low for a tea like Lemon Souffle from White Lion. This tea is exceptional. I knew I wanted something creamy, because I am a big fan of lemon desserts, and I knew I wanted something some what sweet for that reason. I also knew I did not want the tea so sweet that it was cloying or unnatural flavored. I wanted to taste the lemon but I didn’t want it to make me pucker. Even though the description does say “tart juicy lemons”, it is not a puckering sour lemon. I wanted to be able to taste the base tea, and therefor I really did not search out white bases too often because I was concerned that the base would get lost among the flavorings. With the exception of a handful of companies, blended teas are not often accompanied by quality base teas, rather the companies defer to the flavoring components to make up for the base. Not in this case! What we have here, is a perfect creamy lemon tea in a flavorful white base.
The vanilla and caramel essence do not take over the cup, but rather play supporting roles, helping the tea taste like a lemon creme brulee or lemon cream tart.
I had ordered only two sampler sized teas from White Lion and the box I received was simply awe inspiring! Now I admit, I am a sucker for a pretty package, but for ordering only a mere two samples, which arrived in such lovely tins, the box that it arrived in was nothing sort of complete elegance! You can see photos of the packaging here. Forgive my iPhone photos please. My photos truly do not do the package justice.
After sampling the Lemon Souffle I knew I had to make a larger order right away because this is THE lemon tea that I have been looking for!
Customer Service from White Lion has been excellent thus far. They were out of the glass jar containers I so desired and offered me an option to wait for more to be in stock or to have my tea shipped in their plastic containers. I opted to wait, as I really do love those corked topped glass jars.
For the record, the other tea that I bought a sample of was also amazing and I ordered a larger jar of that as well.
If you want a tea, in a tasty white base, that reminds you of a gourmet lemon cream dessert, then don’t hesitate to try Lemon Souffle from White Lion. You will feel like royalty when you open your box, and be quite pleased with yourself for placing an order when you sip their teas!