Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black & Green Teas
Where to Buy: Le Palais des Thés
Tea Description:
An ancient legend tells of how the Tibetan monks would prepare this blend of tea, plants and flowers in the greatest of secrecy. After several days of soaking, the leaves were carefully plucked out and put to one side. By this mysterious alchemy, the monks turned the tea into gold and gave it its exceptional scent.
Black and green tea blend.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
With my first few sips of this The des Moines from Le Palais des Thés, I kept trying to figure out what that familiar flavor was. It tasted kind of like bubble gum, with notes that are reminiscent of grenadine, and hints of citrus, vanilla and jasmine. Then I thought … this is like a Monk’s Blend!
Then I read the description (above) and it would seem that it is indeed a Monk’s Blend, but with one significant difference … the base of this tea is composed of not just black tea leaves, but also green tea leaves. Recognizing the green tea leaves before I brewed the tea, I decided to brew this at a lower temperature than was recommended on the packaging (I went with 185°F instead of the recommended 205°F) and brewed it for 2 1/2 minutes.
And I like the difference that the green tea brings to this cup. The base is lighter and crisper than the usually stronger, slightly more astringent taste that I might experience from a typical Monk’s Blend. And this allows me to explore the floral and fruity notes just a little more. This tastes more bubblegum-y to me, sweet and juicy and tasty … evoking thoughts of childhood … but without having the sugary gum stuck to my teeth!
I recommend tasting this tea before sweetening … I found it to be plenty sweet without any sweetener, and I think if I had added anything it would have ended up being way too sweet! This is really quite enjoyable as is.
A very pleasant Monk’s Blend type tea … but with a nice twist!
Peach Picnic Green Rooibos Blend from The Persimmon Tree
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Green Rooibos
Where to Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tisane Description:
Peach Picnic is a colorful, summer fruit-inspired blend of green rooibos tea, strawberries, peaches, and citrus flavors. This incredibly refreshing, nectar-like peach rooibos blend tastes great with a touch of honey, hot or iced.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
Tasty! I generally prefer green rooibos over the oxidized, red variety of rooibos, so when I saw that this Peach Picnic Green Rooibos Blend from The Persimmon Tree was a blend of green rooibos, as well as peach, strawberry and citrus flavors, I was happy to try it.
The cup has a light, refreshing taste. The strawberry and peach notes are sweet and juicy, with just a hint of tartness from the berry. The citrus notes give the cup a tangy, vibrant flavor that brightens the cup. The green rooibos adds a light, sweet taste that is a little nutty and a little woody.
All these flavors come together in a very interesting way. It’s sweet, fruity, and enjoyable. It makes a tasty enough hot drink, but I found that I preferred it iced. It’s very juicy and thirst-quenching!
This is one of those tisanes that you’ll want for the upcoming iced tea season … especially if you’ve got kids! This is a great alternative to over-sweetened sodas! It’s a definite crowd pleaser from The Persimmon Tree. Be sure to “like” them out on Facebook!
Black Raspberry Tea Blend from Trail Lodge Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green & White Teas
Where to Buy: Trail Lodge Tea
Tea Description:
This is one of our own tea blends. Green and white tea is combined with black raspberries.The combination of China green and white tea brews up to a light and sweet liquid that combines perfectly with black raspberries. Ingredients: Fair Trade Certified TM Organic China Green Tea, Fair Trade CertifiedTM Organic Pai Mu Tan, and dried black raspberries,and Organic Natural Flavoring
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
YUM! OK, first of all, I have to admit that I found the name a little confusing. I form a lot of pre-tasting conclusions and/or opinions about a tea just by reading the name of the tea, which is probably something I shouldn’t do. But I can’t help it. And when I read “Black Raspberry,” I jumped to the conclusion that this would be a flavored black tea blend. So imagine my surprise when I opened the pouch of this Black Raspberry Tea Blend from Trail Lodge Tea and immediately recognized the Pai Mu Tan and Green Tea leaves! Not so surprising were the big, whole, dried black raspberries … but I expected to find black tea leaves, not white and green tea leaves!
The aroma is positively delicious. It’s one of those fragrant teas that just got my taste buds excited by taking a whiff and taking in the amazing black raspberry notes. My mouth was watering, and I could hardly wait for the three minutes infusion time to pass. (I infused this tea using a low temperature water – just 170°F and steeped the leaves for three minutes, and I’m very pleased with the results!)
This is YUMMY! The green and white teas pair up to create a delicious base that is smooth and slightly creamy. The creamy notes accentuated the raspberry tones very well. The tea tastes a little vegetative, a little earthy, and very crisp and refreshing! It has a light taste that sort of dances over the palate; it’s invigorating … but not in the same way that a black tea invigorates and energizes… this is more of a gentle, inspiring invigoration. Like a sweet cleansing of the palate.
The raspberry is the star of this show, but, even though it is the “key note” here, it does not overwhelm the base of green and white teas. Trail Lodge Tea has achieved a delightful balance with this tea. This is one of the nicest raspberry teas I’ve tasted in a while. The raspberry is sweet yet tart, and there is that tingly, tart note that rests on the palate in the aftertaste … but, it isn’t as powerful as *other* raspberry teas tend to be. And as one who is not typically a big fan of tartness, I find this gentle tingly sensation to be quite refreshing and enjoyable.
My only complaint? This tea disappeared way too quickly from my teacup! It is one of those teas that I just can’t seem to stop sipping until it’s gone! Delicious!
Fruity Pebbles Green Tea Blend from Tiesta Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Tiesta Tea
Tea Description:
The 2008 World Tea Champion is a smooth and sweet blend of flowery fruit and sencha with a fantastic base that no one can resist. The synchronization of pineapple, passion fruit, and strawberry form a perfect fruity triangle.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh wow … this Fruity Pebbles Green Tea Blend from Tiesta Tea smells AMAZING! The dry leaf is very fragrant with floral notes and strong fruity tones. It smells like something you’d want to set out as potpourri to freshen your home!
I kind of chuckled when I read the name of this tea … of course, my thoughts turned to the popular rice cereal (which I LOVE but try to avoid because it isn’t the healthiest item in the cereal aisle, is it?) As I waited for the tea to brew, I found myself wondering just how similar it would taste to the cereal.
OK, so it doesn’t TASTE like the cereal. But, I can see the connection. The cereal is sweet and fruity … this tea is sweet and fruity too. But I like that I still taste TEA in there. There is a balance.
The green tea is soft and buttery, with subtle notes of vegetation that meld well with the notes of fruit and flower. I don’t notice quite as much of the white tea notes in this … the Pai Mu Tan is very subtle here, but, this blend would not be the same without it. It adds a lightness and a certain earthiness that directs the palate toward the “tea” notes, if that makes sense. The earthiness is what makes this taste more like tea than of a fruit drink.
The combination of pineapple, papaya and strawberry is delectable! It is definitely tropical-ish because the pineapple and papaya are strong here, but they do not overwhelm the delicious, sweet-tart notes of the berry. I like that I taste elements of each fruit in this tea.
The rose is a little less apparent, and its contribution is definitely seen and smelled more than it is tasted … but, there are very subtle floral tones to the taste and it really heightens the overall experience by adding just a hint of SOMETHING, you know? Just that subtle touch … makes a big difference to the cup.
I really enjoyed this tea immensely … I look forward to trying more of Tiesta Tea’s green tea offerings too … their Jolly Green Kiwi looks intriguing!
Alishan Charcoal Fire Medium Roast 2012 from T-Oolong Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type:
Where to Buy: T-Oolong Tea
Tea Description:
This quality Alishan Charcoal Fire Medium Roast Oolong is handpicked, handcrafted and produced from Alishan oolong. Use only the charcoal made of either Taiwan Longan wood or Taiwan Acacia wood to roast the tea (NOT by electric roasters), and follow old traditional method. This tea has a strong charcoal aroma and taste mixing with flavors of Alishan oolong. The aftertaste is enjoyable and long lasting. It tastes very smooth, sweet, rich and complex, and stands up very well to multiple infusions.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Today I reached into my grab bag of teas to review, and was thrilled when I pulled this, Alishan Charcoal Fire Medium Roast 2012 from T-Oolong Tea! Not only has my tasting from T-Oolong Tea been sorely underdone, but an oolong, Yes! Not only an oolong but a fire roasted oolong, yes again! This sounds so good that I hope it meets my high expectations!
I sneak a sniff as it steeps. I smell roasted fruitiness, and the aroma of a very clean spring from the mountains. Granted I do use good bottled water, but this aroma is not simply the water I use, its different, and reminds me of the natural stream I used to sip from with friends when I was younger, back in the days when I rode horses, daily. We knew of a stream – the best tasting water I have ever had, that we would ride to when we were parched.
So I have taken my first sip and oh my goodness, this is delicious! As I taste fruity notes, smokiness, and mineral notes. There is a wonderful sweetness to this tea, a brown sugar or German rock sugar sweetness, somewhere in between the two. I am not getting as deep of a sweetness of a brown sugar, but there is something a little more to it, like a caramel perhaps.
I also get a lovely white flower note as well as a green note, but not green like vegetal, more green like greens themselves, almost like dandelion leaves.
The after taste is clean, clear, and very refreshing! The sweetness gives way leaving a wonderful rock mineral note, floral, and that green bite, not bitter but tart.
The sad thing about this tea is that T-Oolong Tea is currently out of stock, I assume waiting on the 2013 batch, I am going to have to keep my eyes peeled for this one, this is absolutely a reorder worthy tea, and permanent stock worthy as well!
This tea is a must try for anyone who loves oolongs, especially darker roasted oolong tea.
Yes it certainly did meet my expectations, soared over them! I love this one.
