Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
You can also learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
I recently ordered a few of the newer iced tea flavors that Southern Boy Teas has added to their line, and I’m excited for that order to arrive. This Almond Milk Flavored Iced Tea is the last of the “new-to-me” iced tea flavors that I have in my cupboard right now. Don’t take that as my way of saying that I’m running out of tea (nothing could be further from the truth), but I have run out of new to me iced teas … at least until that order arrives.
And to be honest, I wasn’t sure how I’d like this tea. I mean, I like almond milk alright, I guess. I’m not a big drinker of milk (almond or otherwise), and really, milk’s only purpose as far as I’m concerned is to pour over cereal or to add to tea when I’m feeling like I want a latte. The latte doesn’t happen very often, because I really would rather drink a tea straight up. Every once in a while, though, I’d like that creaminess of a latte, so on those occasions, I do add a splash of milk to my tea. But they are rare occasions. I’m just not all that into milk.
But I am in to tea! So, I figured hey, I like tea and the black tea base that 52Teas/SBT uses for thier Southern Boy Teas iced teas is quite a lovely black tea. Rich and flavorful, not overly astringent, and not bitter. And since I don’t hate almond milk, I thought that this tea had a pretty good chance of success.
And I am actually liking this a whole lot more than I thought I would. In fact, after I poured my first glass of this tea to sit down and write this review, I had to stop writing and go and refill my glass because I was enjoying it so much. At this rate, I might very well have the half gallon pitcher of tea nearly empty by the time I finish writing the review.
I can really taste the almond here, and there is a lovely creamy element to the cup as well. It tastes sweet and nutty and it’s a very refreshing drink. The black tea base is tasty and melds in a pleasant way with the almond milk flavor. It reminds me a lot of a lighter version of Thai iced tea, and I suspect that is why I’m liking it so much. Thai iced tea – serious yum. This … is also serious yum!
Now I’m thinking I wish I would have tried this tea before I placed that order, because I want more of this! This is great!
Product Review: Organic Golden Amber Bottled Iced Tea from Tazo
Product Information:
Oolong tea unfolds its floral honey and light caramel essence, resting on a blanket under the midday sun and sprinkling sweet sugar cane on a pillow of daydreams.
Learn more about this product here.
Taster’s Review:
My oldest daughter brought me a bottle of this tea recently, so I figured I’d give it a try. I can’t recall ever having tried a RTD Oolong tea, so this may very well be a first for me!
The first thing that I notice is that there is no sediment at the bottom of the bottle. This appeals to me immediately, because that sediment … just isn’t attractive. Yeah, I know, just give it a shake and then it dispenses the sediment throughout the tea. But, I’m drinking that! I strain the tea that I brew myself before I drink it because I don’t like floaties in my tea. The fact that the sediment is there means floaties if I shake it into the tea, or if I don’t, I may be sacrificing flavor. I don’t like either option.
So, when I find a RTD tea without the sediment, I’m a happy tea drinker. I’m also happy about the ingredient list here:
Water, Organic Oolong Tea, Organic Cane Sugar, Citric Acid.
Woot! I’ve been kind of hard on Tazo products in the past, and for good reason, but, this one … this one may just be worthy of some praise.
My first impression: Not too sweet! I’m liking that immediately. It has a light sweetness to it, it doesn’t taste syrupy or like it’s more sugar than tea. That’s my biggest problem with the RTD teas. They’re way too sweet. I am liking that while there is a pleasing honey-caramel sweetness to this, it isn’t an overpowering element, and I think that some of these sweet notes are coming from the Oolong tea and not the sugar.
My biggest complaint about this is probably that it’s chilled. Sure, I like iced tea. It’s a great refresher. But, I think Oolong needs to be served hot to get the most flavor out of it. I have on occasion made iced Oolong tea, but I usually use a Formosa Oolong for this because the deeper flavor of the Oolong isn’t too transformed by the chill. Something happens to the flavor of tea when it goes from hot to cold. Sometimes … it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. With Oolongs, I find that the flavors begin to mute and there is such a lovely complexity to an Oolong that you don’t want to obscure it by chilling it.
But, I am still getting a nice Oolong flavor here. I’m picking up on some floral notes and hints of fruit notes (peach). It’s sweet and it has that thick texture that I’ve come to expect from an Oolong.
I’d give this tea extra points for the fact that it’s a RTD that’s not too sweet. Bonus points for that! I’d subtract a few points, though, because I’m missing the complexity that I seek when I sit down to enjoy an Oolong. That said, it’s a refreshing beverage that if I were to see this in the refrigerated section of a convenience store and I’m thirsty, I just might grab it based solely on the fact that I’m pleased that it’s not overly sweet, it’s made from organic ingredients and there’s not a heavy sediment collection at the bottom of the bottle.
Taiwan AliShan Jin Xuan Oolong Tea (Competition Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
AliShan is one the famous oolong tea growing areas in Taiwan. Located at altitude of 1500m, the mountain has a rich soil and ideal climactic conditions. The cool climate and moist from daily mists make the plants to grow very slowly and produce tender, flavourful tea leaves and buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh. My. Goodness! YUM!
By now, I’ve tried several different teas from Cameron Tea, and I’ve been quite delighted with the teas that I’ve tried! But this one … this is the best thus far. Not surprisingly, it is an AliShan Oolong. A Jin Xuan AliShan at that. What that means, essentially, is that this is a Milk Oolong. And it’s one of the finest Milk Oolong teas I’ve encountered in quite some time!
So sweet and creamy and oh-so-good!
Since this is an Oolong, I approached the brewing the same as I would just about any other Oolong: in my gaiwan. But instead of combining the first two infusions in one cup, I combined the first five infusions in my YiXing mug that is designated for AliShan Oolong tea.
And the combination of the first five infusions is lusciously sweet and smooth. It has a flavor that is somewhere between milk and sweet cream with hints of vanilla. The texture isn’t quite as heavy as whole milk. It’s probably more like the texture of a 2% milk. Which is a nicer, creamier texture than the milk that is usually served in this house.
We get 1% milk. I personally prefer 2% milk. But since I’m not a big milk drinker nor do I consume a lot of cereal, I don’t balk too much at the 1% milk. What I’m driving at here is that I like the texture of this tea better than I like the texture of the milk we buy. Although … I’m not sure how Oolong tea would work on cornflakes.
The flavor is so sweet and delicious. The floral notes in this cup (the first five infusions) are mingling with the creamy tones, and in this cup, the creamy notes are stronger than the floral notes. The creaminess lingers, but it never feels overwhelming to the palate. It is quite enjoyable.
I can also taste hints of fruit in this cup, but they are distant. It’s actually quite a complex cuppa, but I find the creamy notes so delightfully decadent that it’s hard to focus on anything but the sweet, creamy notes!
Since I LOVED that first cup so much, I decided to go ahead and infuse those leaves a little more, and I brewed a second cup – a combination of infusions 6 – 10.
And believe it or not … the second cup was nearly as lovely as the first! Still very creamy! The creamy notes are more distinctly vanilla this time around … making this cup even more delicious in my opinion. The (still) subtle floral notes of the cup seem to emphasize the vanilla.
I taste hints of a melon-like flavor in the distance, the aforementioned fruit notes that I noticed in the first cup are slightly more distinct now … but only slightly. This tea is still more about the creamy notes than it is about either flower or fruit. This cup is a little more astringent than the first. I noticed barely any astringency in cup #1 and now there is a mild astringency to this cup.
If you are a fan of Milk Oolong teas … this tea should be at the very top of your MUST TRY list. Trust me. You’ll be thanking me after you try it. And you’re welcome!
Orange Creamsicle Flavored Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
You can also learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
Ahhh! This is yummy!
As the temperature outside continues to rise, I need something cold and refreshing to sip! I generally prefer hot to iced tea but, over the past couple of years, I’ve come to appreciate having a pitcher full of iced tea chilling in the fridge. I try to keep a pitcher in there at all times, and during the warmer days of summer, I usually need to refill that pitcher daily.
To make a pitcher of this Orange Creamsicle Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas, I hot brewed the sachet. I think I may have to order another package of this so that I can experiment a little and try it cold-brewed as well. By cold-brewing one of Southern Boy Teas/52Teas iced tea sachets, I can get a full gallon’s worth of tea out of the package, however, when I first try a tea from SBT, I have learned that it’s best to start out with a hot-brew and then experiment. The hot brew will tell me whether or not it’s worth my while to experiment.
In other words, the hot brew tells me whether or not the flavors are there. I’ve learned the hard way that with some of the SBT teas, cold-brewing just doesn’t do the tea justice. So, when I’m first trying a tea, I hot brew it so that I can sit down and write a review about it. If I like it well enough to “experiment” then I order another package.
And I like this. There is a good balance between black tea taste and the flavors of orange and vanilla. It’s not overwhelmingly orange and vanilla Some flavored teas seem to go overboard with flavoring and you don’t end up tasting a lot of tea, I like that I’m tasting TEA here!
The taste is sweet but it’s not cloying. The black tea is brisk and full-flavored, not too astringent, and not bitter. It’s a very pleasant, refreshing beverage. And let’s face it, summer’s coming whether I’m ready for it or not. At least I’ll be “armed” with some nice iced tea choices, thanks to Southern Boy Teas!
Pumpkin Pie Crepe with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce Flavored Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
So, I’m thinking that this tea, this Pumpkin Pie Crepe with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce Flavored Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas has the longest name ever for a tea, right? If you know of a longer name … let me know!
I hot brewed this tea because I wanted to be sure to get all the flavor out of it that I could. I find that when I cold brew, the flavor is a little more subtle. Usually its still good, but for the strongest flavor, hot brew is the way to go. At least that’s what I’ve found with the Southern Boy Teas line of iced teas.
I don’t know if what I’m tasting is a pumpkin pie crepe that has been topped with vanilla bean ice cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. Then again, I haven’t ever had a pumpkin pie crepe that has been topped with vanilla bean ice cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce. I would definitely order said crepe if I ever saw it on a menu though.
What I am tasting, though, is an interesting medley of flavors that is a little bit of pumpkin, a little bit of vanilla, subtle notes of spice, hints of chocolate and notes of black tea in the background. It’s TASTY. I like all these flavors that I’m tasting in this glass of iced refreshment. It’s certainly an interesting combination of flavors, that’s for sure.
By the way, 52Teas/Southern Boy Teas has another Kickstarter campaign going on, this time to bring iced green tea (as well as white and honeybush iced teas) to the SBT line, as well as enable the company to become organically certified (they’ve been using organic products, but, its costly to become certified organic!) plus help to get Southern Boy Teas out to more customers. Check it out, and please consider contributing to helping this small business.