Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Eteaket
Product Description:
Handle our Chilli Rooibos with care! The chilli highlights are built on a base of classic Rooibos tea and vivid wild cherries, rosebuds, safflower petals, peony petals and carrot flakes. This tea has serious attitude.
Taster’s Review:
This tisane was so unexpected! When I first read the label – “Chili Rooibos” – I had thought it would just be a combination of rooibos and chili peppers (which you can SEE in the blend!) but I wasn’t ready for the other flavors.
The cherry reveals itself from the beginning and maintains its presence throughout the sip. The aroma is sweet cherries, chili peppers, and that distinctive, woody note from rooibos. Once brewed, the tisane takes on a more mellowed, unified fragrance.
But it’s the flavor that really surprised me. At the very start, I can taste a hint of carrot. It’s such a delicate note and is quickly masked by the strong flavor of cherry. The carrot flavor seems to last for less than a moment, and if you’re not paying attention, you’ll miss it – because at the very next moment, the cherry springs into action, imparting such a sweet, fruity flavor that lasts well into the aftertaste.
The chili pepper weaves its way in and out throughout the sip and also lingers into the aftertaste. It imparts a “burning” sensation on the back of the tongue. But it isn’t a bad burn – it’s really very intriguing. I really LOVE the contrasts here between sweet and spicy. The sweet dominates over the spicy just a little bit, making this a tolerable spiciness.
The rooibos flavor is barely there… as in, I am having a hard time finding any rooibos flavor. I don’t get that funky rooibos sweetness, I don’t get that woody note, and I get only a little of the nutty undertone from the rooibos.
I, for one, really like this tea’s “attitude!” If you like sweet-spicy cuisines and/or teas, you should really give this one a try.
Jasmine Pearls from Eteaket
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Eteaket
Product Description:
To make our Jasmine Pearls tea, green spring tea is meticulously hand-rolled into delicate pearls before being hand scented six times with fresh jasmine blossoms. Words can’t describe this tea but we’ll give it a try…incredible!
Taster’s Review:
Ahh…. Jasmine! There are few teas that give me as much pleasure as an exquisite Jasmine Pearl tea like this one.
The green tea is a soft, supple tea with a very light astringency. It is not bitter, although I would recommend keeping an eye on the temperature and not let the water get too hot. When the water is too hot for delicate teas such as this one, the tender tea leaves become scorched and the resulting liquor will be bitter.
The leaves unfurl slowly, and it is fun to watch them do their dance in the hot water. As they unfurl, they release their flavor, giving each infusion a sublime flavor of sweet green tea and luxurious jasmine essence. The jasmine here is sweet with a hint of sharpness toward the middle of the sip.
With these particular pearls, I am finding their flavor to be rather subtle but in excellent balance. Neither flavor is competing for the attention, they work together to bring the palate the very best of both tastes. It is sweet and smooth. Ahh… I fall in love every time I encounter a lovely jasmine tea, and this one is certainly lovely! Thank you, Eteaket!
Yellow Gold Oolong from Eteaket
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Eteaket
Product Description:
There’s a new gold rush in town and while we can’t promise it will make you rich, this Yellow Gold Oolong tea will definitely make you feel like a million dollars. The hand-rolled leaves open beautifully to create a complex mix of sweetness and tangyness topped off with notes of fresh grass.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf looks like tiny, odd-shaped pellets and smells of freshly cut grass. It smells very fresh and green and beautiful – definitely very spring-like! The fragrance of the brewed tea is softened significantly, but still maintains some of that grassy aroma.
The flavor is very unexpected! From the scent, I expected this to be highly vegetative, but that is only one component of this complex tea. There is also a sweet, creamy note that not only tastes like fresh cream but also imparts a very creamy feeling on the palate. What differentiates this creamy note from a typical green Oolong is that it doesn’t taste buttery, it tastes more like cream. It’s very smooth and silky.
There is also a floral note that weaves in and out of the sip – possibly honeysuckle? It’s quite a delightful taste. The sweetness to this cup is incredible – I do not recommend adding any sweetener to this as you will overwhelm it. This is one tea that is perfect as it is!
An absolute delight to drink, this Yellow Gold Oolong!
Silver Needle from Eteaket
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Eteaket
Product Description:
Silver Needle tea is the most famous of all white teas, and for good reason. The delicate downy buds (packed with antioxidants and very low in caffeine) give a delicate but complex flavour with a hint of melon, fresh citrus notes and a lingering finish. Forget silver, this tea deserves a gold medal.
Taster’s Review:
The fragrance of the dry leaf is different from many white teas I’ve encountered – it has a light, leafy scent that is fresh and is intermingled with a delicate melon note! It smells very nice. It looks nice too: the thin spear-shaped leaves are soft and fuzzy. The look as fresh as they smell.
The flavor is very pleasing. It is not at all delicate like one might imagine a white tea would be. It has a strong fruity presence, as the description suggests I can taste hints of citrus and melon. There is also a vegetative note lingering in the background. There are even soft notes of spice that are somewhat uncommon for silver needles!
I really like this deliciously different silver needle. It tastes smooth and rich. There is no bitterness and no astringency. It is sweet, delicious and incredibly relaxing to sip. Ahhh!
Kingston Cooler from Eteaket
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: This tea is currently available to the Eteaket Cafe customers only
Company Description:
Our Kingston Cooler tea is an exotic taste of the Caribbean. Discover the hidden treasure of grapefruit and pepper hidden in this blend of green and black tea. It’s topped off with lemon grass, orange peel and carrot peel. Great served hot or cold.
Taster’s Review:
When I went to the Eteaket website to learn more about this tea before writing about it, I was unable to locate this tea anywhere! I emailed them and I was very pleased to see how promptly and courteously they responded to me. They informed me that Kingston Cooler is one of their “secret” tea blends that they offer to their cafe customers.
I realize I’m blowing the lid off of their “secret” here, but, this tea is just too good to keep a secret! This tea has a lusciously sweet and fruity taste that I really like. The citrus flavors are so bright and sunny that this tea even manages to shed some sunshine into this rather dreary autumn day. Not that I dislike autumn – nothing could be further from the truth – but, I sometimes find myself missing the sunshine too.
But I don’t miss the sun quite so much as I sip this tea! The flavor is so clean and crisp. The light-bodied green tea is the perfect base for the grapefruit, orange and lemon flavors here. It tastes fresh and has a bit of vegetative flavor, no bitterness and very little astringency.
This tea also has a very intriguing peppery note that emerges by about mid-cup. It adds a unique dimension of flavor and interesting contrast to the sweetness of the citrus fruit.
This tea is excellent as a hot tea, but as the name of the tea implies, this tea is great chilled too. Very refreshing with just the right of sweetness. It is juicy without tasting like an overly sweet soft drink. YUM!
Hopefully Eteaket will decide to start offering this tea online. In the meantime, if you happen to be in Edinburgh… I recommend you stop by their boutique and try this tea!