Honeybush Pumpkin Chai from Adagio Teas. . . .

by Sophia

Back when I was a coffee drinker, I was definitely a pumpkin spice latte kind of girl. I always looked forward to pumpkin season. Since switching from coffee to tea, I still look forward to pumpkin season because I have run into a lot of awesome pumpkin teas. But something even cooler than that, I feel that tea opens the door to so many more fall-flavor options than coffee does. I have loved trying all the fall flavored teas, Honeybush Pumpkin Chai by Adagio being one of them!

This tea was very similar to Adagio’s other chai’s aside from the obvious honeybush in place of black tea and the added aspect of pumpkin. I have always been a fan of honeybush I think it lends a sweetness and nutty flavor that is hard to achieve with its cousin, rooibos. I also really like non-caffeinated chai’s because sometimes I am craving the traditional chai spices after dinner and want to enjoy them without the added caffeine.

So, this blend really is cool. I thought that the chai component was very spot on for Adagio- it was their usual blend, with a twist of pumpkin. I really like the mix of honeybush and pumpkin, I think that they compliment each other well. That, blended with traditional chai spices- ginger, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, etc. really do scream “fall”. Unfortunately it is springtime right now, but I can pretend it’s fall while drinking this- that’s easy to do!

I’m definitely liking this one.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy:  Adagio Teas
Description

Masala chai spices in a South African honeybush herb base, with a hint of pumpkin. This blend of honeybush, cinnamon bark, cardamom, ginger root, cocoa nibs & safflower is sure to delight. Beautiful clear and bright cup, with a crisp and tangy-sweet flavor. The heat of the spices is balanced beautifully with the natural smooth, mellow quality of the honeybush. Naturally caffeine free for an anytime treat. We suggest two heaping teaspoons per 6 oz cup. Sugar, cream or soy if desired.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sophia

Hi, my name is Sophia. I am a first time mother to a beautiful little girl who will be 1 in July 2017. I spend my days at home with her and when I get a minute to myself, I usually spend that time making, drinking, or researching tea! My love for loose leaf tea is relatively new. When I was pregnant with my daughter, my mother (a tea addict herself) brought me to DAVIDsTEA. I enjoyed a cup of their Coconut Cream Pie Oolong and was instantly hooked! Since then, my addiction has grown to fill entire cabinets, and shows no sign of stopping. I am the creator of the Facebook group CommuniTEA where we have one big tea discussion. It is a great group for those new to the tea-world. I feel strongly about spreading the joy of loose leaf tea. I like making instructional videos and helping those that are new to the art of tea-making so that they, too, can share in the happiness that tea brings. I am excited to see where this hobby takes me and I will continue to spread the joy!

This post was posted in Adagio Teas, Honeybush

On the Third Day of Christmas 52Teas sent to me. . .

by Sophia

On the third day of Christmas 52 Teas gave to me….Chocolate Hazelnut Strawberry Honeybush tea! When I scratched the label off of this one and started to be able to make out the name, you should have seen my face! I didn’t get a chance to try this blend back whenever it was available at 52 Teas because I don’t believe I had heard of the company yet. The other day I saw someone mention it on Steepster and I was really interested in trying it and wondered if I would ever get the chance. Imagine my shock when I saw it as Day 3’s blend!

                I don’t think I mentioned yet in these reviews, but I’m currently pregnant with my second daughter. I’m due in February! Because of my pregnancy, whenever I see a tisane (herbal, honeybush, rooibos, or fruit infusion) blend, I’m always really psyched because that means I can drink it as much as I want, whenever I want, being as they are naturally caffeine-free! So, I am very happy that this beautiful myriad of flavors are part of a honeybush base.

                Now, I am not usually a fan of chocolate in tea, but something that 52 Teas does is use cacao nibs and shells instead of actual chocolate chips, so I am not as afraid of their chocolate blends as I am with other companies. The chocolate is light here, not overpowering or artificial tasting. The strawberry and hazelnut are light, too. No one ingredient overpowers the other. Instead, there is just a little hint of everything combined with the sweet and herbal taste of honeybush. It’s really enjoyable, even though since I am a huge hazelnut-lover I wouldn’t mind if the hazelnut flavor was a little stronger. Other than that though, this is definitely something I would choose to drink again. I have been really happy with all the teas in this holiday countdown box and I have no doubt the fun will continue!

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Honeybush
Where to Buy:  52Teas
Description

This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sophia

Hi, my name is Sophia. I am a first time mother to a beautiful little girl who will be 1 in July 2017. I spend my days at home with her and when I get a minute to myself, I usually spend that time making, drinking, or researching tea! My love for loose leaf tea is relatively new. When I was pregnant with my daughter, my mother (a tea addict herself) brought me to DAVIDsTEA. I enjoyed a cup of their Coconut Cream Pie Oolong and was instantly hooked! Since then, my addiction has grown to fill entire cabinets, and shows no sign of stopping. I am the creator of the Facebook group CommuniTEA where we have one big tea discussion. It is a great group for those new to the tea-world. I feel strongly about spreading the joy of loose leaf tea. I like making instructional videos and helping those that are new to the art of tea-making so that they, too, can share in the happiness that tea brings. I am excited to see where this hobby takes me and I will continue to spread the joy!

This post was posted in 52Teas

Snickerdoodle from 52Teas. . . .

by Sophia

I am a fan of dessert blends, regardless of what the tea base is. Whether it’s caffeinated or not, I always tend to prefer something sweet & unique. 52 Teas definitely has some unique blends so they are usually my go-to. This particular tea, Snickerdoodle, is a Honeybush/Rooibos blend which means that it is caffeine free and perfect for a guilt-free after-dinner treat to warm you up on a cold rainy evening!

Smelling the dry leaf on this one, the cinnamon and cookies really shines through. Even more so once the tea has been steeped. Snickerdoodles are not my favorite cookie, i’m more into hot chocolate chip cookies fresh out of the over with a cold glass of milk! However, the flavors involved in a Snickerdoodle (cinnamon & sugar) make for an excellent cup of tea. Not only is this warm, cinnamon-sugary, and comforting but there is an actual “cookie” flavor to the cup. The Honeybush/Rooibos blend is subtle and smooth so if you tend to dislike rooibos you should still give this one a try!

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Honeybush/Rooibos
Where to Buy:  52Teas
Description

This tea is no longer available.  Click below for teas that are.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Sophia

Hi, my name is Sophia. I am a first time mother to a beautiful little girl who will be 1 in July 2017. I spend my days at home with her and when I get a minute to myself, I usually spend that time making, drinking, or researching tea! My love for loose leaf tea is relatively new. When I was pregnant with my daughter, my mother (a tea addict herself) brought me to DAVIDsTEA. I enjoyed a cup of their Coconut Cream Pie Oolong and was instantly hooked! Since then, my addiction has grown to fill entire cabinets, and shows no sign of stopping. I am the creator of the Facebook group CommuniTEA where we have one big tea discussion. It is a great group for those new to the tea-world. I feel strongly about spreading the joy of loose leaf tea. I like making instructional videos and helping those that are new to the art of tea-making so that they, too, can share in the happiness that tea brings. I am excited to see where this hobby takes me and I will continue to spread the joy!

This post was posted in 52Teas, Honeybush

Orange Cardamom Pistachio Honeybush from 52Teas. . . . . .

by ashmanra

I needed a special tea to go with Pad Thai Zoodles tonight. Zoodles are spiralized zucchini “noodles” used like you use pasta. There were carrots and sweet peppers, spring onions and chopped walnuts, along with potstickers and a lime soy sauce. Lots of flavor in the food means that some green teas would get lost as an accompaniment.

In steps this delightful Honeybush. I think my daughter put it best when she said, “Mom, this tea is more complicated than a woman.”

On top and up front we taste orange, with the cardamom warming the back of the sip. This is some of the warmest cardamom I have had. I usually perceive cardamom as lemony but this one had me checking the package to see if maybe there was just of hint of some kind of chili pepper in here. No, just tasting the cardamom. And it’s just a little nutty. In other words, it was the perfect accompaniment to the meal and had hubby picking up the (empty) pot looking for more. Guess I better make another pot!

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Honeybush
Where to Buy:  52Teas
Description

This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

ashmanra

I am a music teacher, tutor, and former homeschool mom (25 years!) who started drinking loose leaf tea about seven years ago! My daughters and I have tea every day, and we are frequently joined by my students or friends for “tea time.” Now my hubby joins us, too. His tastes have evolved from Tetley with milk and sugar to mostly unadorned greens and oolongs. We have learned so much history, geography, and culture in this journey. My avatar is a mole in a teacup! Long story…

This post was posted in 52Teas, Honeybush

White Chocolate Samoa from The NecessiTeas. . . .

by VariaTEA

After learning of The NecessiTeas, I was so excited to place an order. I just NEEDED to try all the amazing flavors the company offered. This is one of the teas that really caught my eye. Unfortunately it is also one of the teas that was sold out when I placed my order. Luckily I have a Fairy Godmother…or Fairy Godsisters, I should say.

The smell of the coconut is what hits first. However, in flavor, the caramel takes over. It is a little bit chocolate but the caramel is what shines here. Coconut and white chocolate does contribute a creaminess but not as much flavor as I anticipated it might given the smell. The base is rich in honey notes but also has a baked good quality when coupled with the other ingredients.

Like so many other NecessiTea blends, I think this captures it’s namesake quite well. I could always do with a little more white chocolate and a little more coconut but this is still very flavorful and made for a nice treat.

Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:   Honeybush
Where to Buy:  The NecesiTeas
Description

Growing up I was a Girl Scout and I was great at “selling” cookies. I would polish off a box of Samoas after school while working on my homework. Chock up another “sale” my parents had to chip in for. Gone are the days when it was okay to eat an entire sleeve of cookies. So here’s my guilt-free version of the classic Samoa. As always, I like to put a spin on things so I used white chocolate instead then added sweet caramel and toasted coconut to recreate an old favorite.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

VariaTEA

Hey there! My name is Rachel. I’m a twenty-something from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who loves dogs and has a bit of an obsession with tea. As a child I hated the stuff since all I ever knew was Red Rose (no offense to Red Rose). However, a few years ago that all changed. I was on a diet and desperate for new flavors without adding calories and that’s when I turned to tea. I started off by going to DAVIDsTEA and Teavana for all their dessert-inspired flavors, and since I didn’t know any better, I bought 100 grams each of about twenty-something different teas. This was okay for the teas I liked but for those I didn’t I needed to find some way of getting rid of them. Enter Steepster.com. This is where I met some incredible tea friends, discovered tea swaps, and learned of so many amazing tea companies. My desire to try all the teas grew and since joining three years ago I have tried over a thousand different teas. I have learned what ingredients I love and I have learned what flavors I don’t like. I determined my go-to brewing method is Western-style with no added milk or sweeteners, though I also enjoy cold brewing, iced teas, teapops, lattes, and smoothies. I have yet to brew gong-fu style but I hope to do so just as soon as I get the proper teaware to do it. About a year ago, I actually stopped drinking tea but as my stash of over 200 teas started aging I decided I needed to respark my interest. I chose to take a 365 days of tea challenge on Instagram in which I post a new tea picture every day. So far it has been rather successful as I find myself drinking (and buying) more and more tea each day. Plus it enabled CuppaGeek to find me and invite me here to SororiTea Sisters.

This post was posted in Honeybush, The NecessiTeas