Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Pluff Iced Tea on Foodzie
Product Description:
Pure Red Tea. Smooth, Naturally Sweet, Caffeine Free!
Batch Notes: Caffeine Free. Smooth and aromatic, with a lightly citric sweetness and rich character. Blends well with light sugar for the ultimate red iced tea. Geography: Harvested from the rugged Western Cape Province- windswept and mountainous, a diverse land that produces the world’s finest red tea. Origin: South Africa.
Taster’s Review:
I’ll admit that I didn’t have high hopes for this tisane, and that’s what has kept me from brewing it until now. As some of you are aware, I am not particularly fond of rooibos. I usually like rooibos alright when it’s part of a blend, but, pure, unflavored rooibos? Not so much. And that’s just what this is: pure, unflavored rooibos.
I hot-brewed this last night according to the instructions, using a little less sugar than called for (I used only 1/4 cup turbinado sugar instead of the suggested 1/3 cup). Each of these large teabags makes a half gallon of iced tea. After brewing this tea, I refrigerated it overnight to enjoy today.
The good news: This is not as bad as I thought it would be … it’s actually pretty tasty. It tastes light and sweet, with nutty and woody notes, and a hint of fruit in the background.
The bad news: I still get a bit of that “funky aftertaste” that I often associate with rooibos. But with a little sugar, it is less apparent.
This is not not my favorite iced tea (but they can’t all be my favorite, can they?) but it is certainly enjoyable. It has a light, refreshing taste, and it’s a nice way to keep cool without feeling weighed down with a heavier, caffeinated tea. And because it’s naturally caffeine free (and very healthy too), it’s one you can feel good about serving to the kids. Especially delicious when served with thin slices of lime.
PRODUCT REVIEW:Chai Tea & Cashew Artisan Brittle from Morning Glory Confections
Where to Buy: Morning Glory Confections
Product Description:
Morning Glory’s Chai Tea & Cashew Brittle takes the warm, complex flavors of chai tea and combines them with buttery cashews for an experience that evokes the coziness of winter nights.
Taster’s Review:
About a month ago, I noticed this brittle was featured on the homepage of Foodzie. You know I had to try it!
And I am so glad I did. It is absolutely delicious! This brittle has an amazing set of flavors: salty, sweet, spicy. The contrast between these flavors is so delicate. The spicy tones from the chai tea don’t smack you upside the head, but instead, they sneak up underneath the sweetness of the brittle and the mellow nutty flavor of the cashews, developing slowly. The spicy flavors are so intriguing in their development that it keeps me munching on the confection and wishing I had more when it disappeared.
This is one of the best brittle candies I’ve ever tasted. It has an amazing complexity! As you may know, I previously reviewed the New Mexico Chili & Pumpkin Seed Brittle from the same company on my Hungry in Portland blog, and honestly, I can’t tell you which one of these I like best! They are both so delicious – certainly NOT your run-of-the-mill brittle confections that you might find in the candy aisle of the grocery store.
If you’ve a sweet tooth and love contrasting flavors like sweet and salty or sweet and spicy – you MUST try this brittle! You will love it.
Mint Chai from The Chai Cart
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Chai Cart
Product Description:
This blend of full-leaf black tea, dried mint and ginger makes a bold yet refreshing cup of Mint Chai. The fragrance of these invigorating yet soothing herbs will calm and recharge you. The key to a good, wholesome cup of chai is the tea itself. Our tea comes from organic estates in Assam, the source of India’s most famous tea leaves. Our tea and spices are perfectly balanced to create a soothing and inspiring cup of Mint Chai that can only be found at The Chai Cart. Reuse the tin container as gift/jewelry box or to store spices.
Taster’s Review:
I was excited to try this chai, especially after my SororiTea Sister’s glowing review of it. And it IS indeed delicious, and after trying it, I can see why she loves it so much. The mint is strong but not overwhelming while the spices are moderate.
The black tea offers a substantial, bold taste to the cup. There is a fair amount of drying astringency to the tea but no bitterness. A good, solid black base that can be tasted amongst the strength of mint and ginger.
As I said previously, the mint is strong, but it isn’t overpowering. Sometimes, mint can be a rather selfish herb when used in tea and it can overwhelm other ingredients, but here it’s balanced well. The ginger peeks through the minty taste, and the peppery flavor of the ginger compliments the crisp mint flavor. I can also taste an occasional hint of lemongrass … just a hint.
And as much as I’m enjoying this cup, I feel like it’s missing some spice. The spices aren’t as well-rounded as I would like. Perhaps its because I tried The Chai Cart’s Masala Chai blend first, and it was so pleasantly spiced, I think I was expecting the same Masala spice blend used here. That being said, I like this for what it is.
I have tried this Mint Chai twice now, the first time I prepared it, I brewed it extra strong and served it latte style with some steamed, frothed milk. While I did enjoy it prepared this way, I found that the milk was a little too much for this chai, the mint tasted a little muddled and the rich flavors of the black tea were masked.
This time, I decided to go “non-latte” and I like it much better this way. It even has enough flavor to it that it doesn’t need sweetener, although a dollop of honey would bring out some of the more delicate notes.
The mint and the ginger together make this a perfect choice to sip after meals. It is very soothing and delicious.