Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Mountain Witch Tea Company
Tea Description:
Quench your thirst with our special prickly pear tea blend. We infused our finest black tea with the flavor of Mojave Desert prickly pear for a delicious & unusual tea. Made with our best black tea, natural & artificial flavors, marigold & safflower petals, citric acid.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I can’t say that I’ve ever had anything like this one before. I’m not sure what Prickly Pear is supposed to taste like so I did some research and it from what I can gather it is supposed to taste similar to watermelon with a slight bite like kiwi fruit. I’m not sure if that is what I’m tasting but this is really good!
Another offering from the Mountain Witch tea Company and I am impressed. So far I’ve had three or four of their teas and they all seem to have a nice fresh crisp taste to them without having the artificial flavoring chemical taste. I can’t say this is one of my favorites of theirs but it makes an amazing cup of iced tea!
The tea itself has a sweet yet tangy flavor to it. I don’t pick up any kind of black tea base. I do pick up a melon like flavor that has hints of a peach or apricot flavor with a side note of honey. I know, it sounds really different but the flavors work. The description says that it is a unusual tea and I agree with that. This is a great light tea for the spring/summer months. The dry leaves have a peach and honey like aroma to them. I would love a candle that smells exactly like these tea leaves.
Sweet Desert Delight (aka Desert Blend) from Zhi Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Zhi Tea
Product Description:
Sweet Desert Delight, Another Zhi Signature Blend that takes flavor to new heights.
We blend our organic red rooibos (pron. “roy-bos”), coconut pieces, cacao nibs, anise pods, cinnamon, safflowers and stevia leaf to create a world-class organic taste sensation.
This is truly an oasis for the senses. Relish in the heady aroma of the steeping brew.
Inhale deeply. Pour a mug. Savor. Imbibe. Repeat. Indulge. Relax!
No sugar and no caffeine. Naturally sweet and healthy; from Zhi to you.
Taster’s Review:
My tin of this tea says “Desert Blend,” but the ingredient lists are identical, so I’d say that they’re the same blend … just perhaps a misprint on the label. Hey, it happens.
I’ve reviewed this tea previously, but, it’s good enough to deserve a second write-up. Really, though, I can’t say that my thoughts about this blend have changed all that much since that first review. I am still really enjoying this tisane.
The base of this tisane is rooibos, and while rooibos isn’t my favorite tisane base, here, it seems to work. The rustic, nutty flavor of the rooibos melds well with the flavor of the coconut and the deep chocolate-y tones from the cacao nibs.
The coconut is the strongest flavor, and it is sweet and creamy. The chocolate flavor is a bit more subtle, and it gives the cup an interesting dimension with its bittersweet taste. The cinnamon isn’t a spicy, “red-hot” kind of cinnamon; instead, I’d describe it as warm, mild spice. The anise gives a licorice-y kind of snap to the flavor and is a nice accent to the warmth of the cinnamon. Together, these ingredients all play off each other very well, making this a tasty cup to curl up to on this cold autumn night.
If I were to offer any criticism about this tea, I would say that I’d rather it not contain stevia, because I just don’t care for it. It has an off-putting aftertaste. Fortunately, it isn’t a particularly strong flavor in this blend – and the other ingredients here do their part to make this an enjoyable cuppa.
