You know the Old El Paso taco shell commercial where they’re trying to decide between hard shells and and soft shells for tacos and then the cute little girl comes along and asks “Why not both?” and the whole city celebrates this great revelation? That is what coffee-flavored teas make me think of – someone trying to bridge the gap between the coffee camp and the tea camp, bringing us all together with one hybrid beverage. Such is the case with this Coffee or Tea? drink from TeaTaxi.
This blend is made of black tea, broken cocoa bits, brittle pieces, chocolate chips, roasted coffee beans, and free-dried yogurt granules. I set up half my sample (about 1-1.5 tsp) in vanilla almond milk yesterday to cold brew overnight and the rest was steeped per the package directions, 3 minutes in almost boiling water.
Now I don’t drink coffee so I am probably not the best person to determine accuracy of flavor but the hot tea definitely has the taste of the roasted coffee beans (at least it reflects how they smell) combined with chocolate. It is a medium-bodied tea with strong flavor which makes for easy drinking. It is a touch bitter but that is balanced by the slightest bit of brittle peaking through. It is by no means a cup of coffee but it does have more coffee to it than the other coffee flavored teas I have tried.
This cold brewed in vanilla almond milk is not my favorite. I think the vanilla of the almond milk is just far too strong and it butt heads with the more roasted quality of the coffee beans. I thought it might make for a sort of coffee with cream vibe but instead the two flavors just don’t blend at all and the vanilla drowns out the chocolate that worked so well with the coffee in the hot tea. So this was a bit of a fail, more because of the flavored almond milk than a reflection of the tea itself.
I am definitely a member of the tea camp and though coffee-flavored teas catch my interest, I am usually never a fan. Though this is not one I intend to stock anytime soon, I will say it is one of the better coffee-flavored teas I have had. The combination of the coffee and chocolate with the hint of brittle in the hot tea reminds me ever so slightly of a more roasty coffee crisp bar or perhaps dark chocolate covered coffee beans.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea Taxi
Description
This chocolaty black tea with a high caffeine content offers the best of both worlds.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Rebel from Wild Leaf Active Teas. . . .
My friends at Wild Leaf Active Teas have done a stellar job at creating bagged teas that have gorgeous tea leaves in them. No crushed up leaves in their offerings!
I’ve tried almost all of their teas and a few of them have a permanent spot in my tea stash. My two favorites right now are Slim and Smart. Slim (flavored puerh) has become a huge part of my daily routine. Smart– green tea, peppermint, and Ginkgo Bilbao- is slowing becoming my tea of choice right after lunch. I have yet to be disappointed by any of the flavors and am thinking I may need to place other order shortly.
Not to long ago, my lovely friends at Wild Leaf told me they next time I ordered, they would include a sample of their latest creation they are working on- Rebel. So I quickly put together an order and a few days later, an incredibly generous sample of Rebel was at my door.
Rebel is a unique blend of Black Tea, Organic Black Currant, Organic Banana, Organic Orange Peel, Organic Coffee Bean, Organic Rooibos and Natural Flavorings. Yes, this tea has red rooibos in it, my arch enemy. The dreaded ingredient that I find in so many gorgeous blends that my heart hurts when I see the name. My taste buds just have a problem with red rooibos and so does my sense of smell. I can instantly pick up on this herb when I find it in blends and decide- I should just give it a try one more time. . . . then I smell that familiar off smell, and nope. My brain shuts that idea down in a heart beat.
So when I saw Rebel had red rooibos, my heart sank. But the list of other ingredients, kept me going. Not only does this tea have coffee beans, but it has banana, and orange peel. I had to check this tea out no matter the outcome. First whiff of this tea and even though I can pick up that familiar red rooibos smell, what I’m really picking up is a banana coffee note. Which makes my heart soar! I’m a huge banana fan and once was a huge coffee drinker.
Brewed this tea up with freshly prepped boiled water and allowed the tea to steep for 4 minutes. Allowed the tea to cool for another 2 minutes or so after that. Brought the mug up to my face to take one more whiff of the aromas and again, that same banana coffee aroma was present but this time there was also this wonderful black tea tone I was picking up.
First sip in and I was able to pick up all of the flavors in this blend. The three strongest are the black tea, banana, and coffee, which are not much of a surprise, and deliver an amazing albeit unique (in a good way!) taste.
What did surprise me was the addition of this rich earthy tone that worked so well and had me greedily drinking sip after sip. There was also a lovely citrus hint now that added a unique twist to the end of each sip. I will say that I could pick up the red rooibos flavor, but it was slight and my tastebuds loved all of the other flavors and how they mingled together so well, that looking past that odd taste wasn’t hard.
My final thoughts: I do wish the red rooibos wasn’t in this blend at all, but I’m sure there is a reason why the herb is in the blend. And to be honest, that could be where that earthy tone is coming from that I’m digging. All in all, such an amazing array of flavors. When Wild Leaf first told me about this blend, I was stoked. Now that I’ve had it, I will be stalking their site until I can get my own. Though incredibly appreciated, my sample size just isn’t big enough. I needs more!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black/Rooibos
Where to Buy: Wild Leaf
Description
This tea is not available but will be soon. Click below for blends that are available.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
