As I get older (hello, 30, comin’ round the mountain), I’ve noticed my body just can’t handle alcohol the way it used to. I’ve never been a huge drinker, but I enjoy a hearty glass of red wine with a big ol’ steak, or a fresh and fruity mimosa paired perfectly with a late-morning brunch. But in the interest of hangover-after-one-glass-of-wine-is-no-longer-worth-it, I’ve been abstaining mostly from alcohol as of late. I occasionally miss the special-ness of a fancy cocktail at a fancy event, but you guys. FOMO-no-more, I have found the perfect replacement.
Some of my very favorite tea companies (The Necessiteas being one) have blended up some spectacular brews that, on ice, make for a killer mocktail. This blend, Pineapple Mimosa, hits that brunch-tastic spot just perfectly. An herbal blend chock-full of fruit and beautiful marigold and cornflower petals, this one brews up to a beautiful golden liquor that looks like a dead-ringer for your favorite cocktail, served in a fancy glass. There’s a definite sweetness there, but a nice tempering of the fruit as well (perhaps from the addition of ginger?) that gives it a little more depth of flavor, mimicking something like a dry-but-fruity white wine. Even tastier is this one mixed with a plain sparkling water for just a hint of fizz.
If you’re like me and choose to stay away from alcohol, but still love the special-ness of a fancy beverage in the summer, look no further! The Necessiteas has the perfect solution.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Fruit Tisane
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas
Description
I am a total brunch girl or at least a brunch cocktail girl! I love testing champagne cocktails with different tropical flavors the same way I do with tea. I decided to stick with pineapple for this blend because of it’s delicate taste. But it was the ginger that really blew up the whole combination and turned this fruit infusion into something spectacular! Ginger was the missing puzzle piece to complete this yummy champagne “mocktail”. It’s all there, the fizz, the slight ginger spice and the sweet pineapple flavor balancing everything out.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pomegranate from CHASH The Fine Tea Co. . . . .
“If ‘Tea Makes Everything Better’ shouldn’t we be drinking better tea?” This is what CHASH is all about. This tagline is found on their packaging and prominently displayed when you go to their site. When I first saw this quote on my tea sample packet, all I could think is “I don’t know if their tea is better yet, but I will say their packaging is a step above the rest”. Without even trying the tea and with one mere tea sample in my hand, I was impressed with the high quality material, the beautiful green color of the package, and the lovely golden teacup with a small cutout so you can see the tea. Call me shallow but I was immediately intrigued. I guess I figured if they put that much effort into displaying the tea, they were bound to care about the tea quality itself, right?
I was even more excited when I realized (thanks to the little teacup window), that this tea, Pomegranate, was on a base of bamboo leaves. I have not had many bamboo teas, but the ones I have had, I have always enjoyed. This gave me a chance to revisit this uncommon ingredient, presented in a new way. This time bamboo leaves were combined with pomegranate bits, pomegranate blossom, papaya bits, rose blossom and redcurrants, to make this tea.
Since there was no steeping instructions other than 95C, I steeped this for 4 minutes, which may have been on the lighter side as it brewed up a very light color. Nevertheless, this tea has a definite fruity flavor to it, even if it is on the lighter side. Think the sweetness of pomegranate without all the work of having to break all the seeds out of the fruit – that is what starts your sip. The pomegranate then morphs into a red currant flavor, a little less sweet, and a little more intense. There is also a sugary sweetness here that lingers around the top of each taste which could be from the mild sweet flavor of the bamboo leaf or from the various fruit pieces.
All in all, this tea captures the fruity pomegranate flavor nicely, while adding some depth to the drink overall with the addition of other components. Like I said, it is on the lighter side so if you are looking for a flavor punch, you won’t find it here.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Tisane
Where to Buy: Chash Tea
Description
This tea is not currently on the site but click below for teas that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Orange Date Cake from Steeped Tea. . . .
Orange Date Cake from Steeped Tea. Whit a name like that I knew I HAD to try it! Best part was it’s dairy and guilt free! It contains Date Bits which are made up of Dates and Rice Flour, Currants, Sunflower Oil, Orange Wedges, Cinnamon Bits, Fig Bits which are made up of Figs and Rice Flour, and flavors.
I was super excited that they used the Rice Flour as the ingredient for the cake likeness and not actual cake chunks that could contain dairy and/or eggs! And I was also stoked that they used Sunflower Oil for the anti-caking agent and clearly noted that on the bag!
Orange Date Cake from Steeped Tea was pretty fantastic! I have to admit I was completely blown away with the flavor of these natural ingredients! The Dates and Figs were so wonderfully sweet! The Orange was juicy-citrus at it’s best! The Cinnamon played an important part, too, and was hefty on it’s own. YUM!
This is a VERY LARGE and CHUNKY blend of ingredients. You can see everything without looking real close.
It has sweet and almost caramel-like notes to it in addition to a brown sugar flavor without it actually having any added sugars! Only the natural sugars from the dried fruits here, folks!
Yeah! Totally LOVING this Fruit Tea/Tisane. I don’t know if I have ever said that about a fruit based tea. This was a beautiful surprise!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Tisane
Where to Buy: Steeped Tea
Description
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
