Today I was craving a sweet something or other and thought with this new health kick I’m on- that I would try to curve this craving with tea. I’ve done it before but always end up justifying a cookie and the end of the cuppa. What can I say? Shortbread cookies just to with tea beautifully!
Looking over my teas that I needed to pay some attention, I came across this blend, Hawaiian Pineapple Mango Green- a green tea blended with pieces of pineapple and mango. Figured that combination of flavors would be perfect to keep me from reaching from the cookie jar. . .and I was right!
With water prepped right around 180F and then steeped for about 3 minutes- the tea just didn’t have the umpf of flavor I was looking for. I could taste the green tea base, which was pleasant enough, but I wasn’t getting the pineapple or the mango. I decided I could wait a few more minutes and steeped the tea for about 8 minutes. Took another sip and was greeted with that sweet pineapple and mango flavors I was looking for. The flavors were sweet and I found myself not needing the cookie after all.
I can imagine this tea would be delicious in the summer iced giving you all the tropical vibes you can handle!
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: The Tea Farm
Description
Try our Hawaiian Pineapple Mango Green Tea as an iced tea as a delicious afternoon iced tea!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
French Breakfast from Fava Tea. . .
Picture this: you’re sitting on the banks of the Seine, sipping a hot beverage and eating a buttery, flaky croissant. Gentle French music is playing in the background (from where? who knows!) and cute dudes in berets are slowly strolling past. Oh, and the world is also lightly sepia-toned and everything is in bloom, 24/7, 365.
This is what I picture breakfast in France to be like, friends. SO REALISTIC, I know.
Now, though my delusions are certainly of grandeur, this tea certainly isn’t very far off. Gently maple-y with subtle pastry notes and a beautiful sprinkling of cornflowers, this tea is hearty and bold while still being the tiniest bit floral and unassuming. Kind of like what I picture the French to be, in my most stereotype-y imagination. This brew is a nice counterbalance to its heartier European friends, English and Irish Breakfast respectively. And while I generally find teas from Fava to be a bit on the weaker side (unfortunately– I want to love this local-to-me company, but much of their offerings leave something to be desired), this brew is a bit stronger than others of theirs I’ve tried, and thus, it made it an easy choice to reach for in my morning-sip-down.
Now, if anyone wants to fund my ACTUAL, hypothetical trip to Paris, I’ll be over here in my daydreaming, sipping away.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Fava Tea
Description
A superior blend of vanilla, and sweet, smooth black tea. This blend is accompanied by tiny bits of pineapple and cherry to add a distinct flavorful sweetness and burst of character! An excellent choice anytime of the day that takes cream and sweetener well. French Breakfast Superior has been described as a cup of relaxation in a world of chaos. We hope you enjoy as much as we all do.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pina Colada Honeybush from 52Teas. . . .
I have very few herbal or caffeine free blends. They tend to be…bleh. I find that so many of them just taste like chamomile and…whatever. Or they are red rooibos and let me tell you, honey, me and red rooibos just DON’T get along.
When I got this, I didn’t think of it as a caffeine free option for evening, but rather as a nice change for summertime drinking, and planned to ice it, but OH MY GOODNESS. I made my first pot of it tonight and it was so much more than I was expecting.
First let me start off by saying that I don’t think I have ever had a pina colada, though I am aware of the ingredients. Daughter and I sang a bit of the Pina Colada Song to set the mood. (I like Pina Coladas! And getting caught in the rain!) I think this should probably be made a prerequisite before being allowed to sip.
Oh, but that sip! What a nice surprise! Yes, it is a little boozy tasting, but it is a just right boozy taste. I had a rum raisin tea not long ago that would have set off a breathalyzer. Yuck! But this was just perfect to showcase the fruit and coconut. Because I really feel that the fruit, coconut, and booze flavors were in perfect balance. The honeybush base is so nice. Why, oh why isn’t honeybush used more?
It was brilliant without any sweetener of any kind. As a night time tea, this is important to me since I have occasionally noticed that sugar tends to keep me up as badly as caffeine does.
So I am going to need a lot more of this tisane because I am going to need some big old iced pitchers of it when the weather gets hot and sticky, and some big old pots of it to send me off to bed satisfied and chill. It is currently unavailable but hopefully will be hitting the website again REAL SOON.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Honeybush
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea is no longer available but click below for the blends that are.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pineapple Mimosa from The NecessiTeas. . .
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!
Sparkling Pineapple from Fava Tea. . . . . .
Later last year, my husband and I took an INCREDIBLE honeymoon to Costa Rica. We saw sloths. We hiked through the cloud forest. We slept on a hammock in a rainforest canopy. It. Was. Awesome. But one thing that will stick out in my mind forever and ever til the end of time? THE PINEAPPLE. It was fresh and sweet and abundant every morning, and better than any pineapple I’ve ever had.
So you can imagine since returning, I’ve been on the hunt for any pineapple even remotely as good as our honeymoon treat. I haven’t totally succeeded yet, but it’s been a delicious pursuit. This sweet and fresh herbal tea from Fava makes a great, pineapple-y iced tea. It leans more generically-fruity than specifically pineapple to me, but it has depth of flavor that almost mimics a sweet wine– perfect for a non-alcoholic summery treat. I don’t pick up on anything sparkling, but their name suggestion has got me thinking that this would make an incredible mixer for some plain sparkling water.
Now, sipping this at home? Awesome. Sipping this on a hammock overlooking a beach in Central America? Get me on a plane, stat!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Fava Tea
Description
Our Sparkling Pineapple Herbal is like nothing you have ever tasted before! This light, fruity and elegant herbal tea is a delicious pineapple overload! We blend white cornflower blossoms and yellow marigold blossoms which undertone the sweet pineapple with a floral compliment. Delicious hot or iced this is one you’ll want on hand all year long!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!