Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: SerendipiTea
Tisane Description:
Escape for a short while to a secret place for which you only hold the key.
Ingredients: Chamomile (Organic), Lavender (Organic), Peppermint (Organic), Rooibos (Organic), Rose Petals (Organic)
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third tea/tisane from my June Steepster Select Box, themed “Around the Clock.” Of the three teas in this month’s box, this was the one I was least excited about, but as it turns out, I really am enjoying this … so much so that this one could easily become a permanent fixture in my cupboard. Yes, I like it that much!
One glance at the ingredients suggest that this is the evening tea of the Steepster Select Box: soothing, naturally caffeine-free chamomile and lavender, cool peppermint, and sweet rooibos and rose petals. This is definitely a tea made for bedtime.
I really like the way the ingredients work together in this blend. The rose and peppermint offer the strongest flavor, but, they also balance each other out so that it is neither too rosy nor too minty. The chamomile is subtle, but offers a sweet, apple-like flavor in the background. And thankfully, the lavender is not overdone here. I love lavender, but when lavender is too strong it imparts a very perfume-y taste, and while this is strongly floral, it doesn’t taste of perfume.
The rooibos is not a strong flavor here, and I’m okay with that too. It does offer a slight earthiness to the overall flavor, somewhat nutty and woody, but, these flavors manage to meld together with the stronger floral essences and create a very pleasing taste. The overall cup is definitely on the feminine side – sweet with exotic floral tones – and I find that helps to give the cup an almost nurturing effect.
I feel very calm and relaxed after sipping on this tea, and I find this enjoyable enough that I could easily enjoy this on a nightly basis. It’s really quite nice!
White Rose Tea from The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tea Description:
This fragrant white tea blend consists of all organic ingredients. Roses, jasmine, and lavender are combined with rejuvenating peppermint for a delicious and scented cup. Great for morning or evening enjoyment. Contains: green tea, rose petals, jasmine flowers, lavender flowers, peppermint leaves. Moderate Caffeine.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The aroma of the dry leaf is enchanting! It has a strong peppermint scent, but, because the rose is also quite strong, these two seem to contrast each other enough to offer a bouquet that is beautifully floral and yet, deliciously minty at the same time. In the background, I also smell notes of jasmine and lavender. It’s a very pleasing fragrance.
The infusion is also nicely fragrant, smelling a bit more of the rose than of the peppermint, which was what I was hoping for. But I purchased this tea based on the promise of a “White Rose Tea” … and not a peppermint one. I am glad that the rose is prominent, with notes of lavender and jasmine accenting the rose and a hint of peppermint in the background. It smells fresh and romantic, and evokes thoughts of summer when roses are in bloom.
With all these strong floral and peppermint notes, I expected the flavor of the white tea to be absent. But it is not. On the contrary, the flavor of the white tea is very well-defined with its sweet, slightly creamy attributes. It is a very nice base for the flavors of rose, lavender and jasmine – as well as the peppermint – to express themselves.
Not surprisingly, the rose is the strongest component of the cup. It actually starts out rather perfume-y, to the point of numbing the tip of the tongue with its sharp, perfumed quality. That being said, somehow, it is not an off-putting perfume-y taste. It doesn’t taste soapy, it is more reminiscent of rose water than of Aunt Bertha’s perfume. And once the tea has cooled slightly, the flavor tends to settle in, and allows the palate to explore the other notes with ease.
The jasmine and lavender are softer flavors, and I find they serve more as an accent to the rose rather than as individual floral notes. It becomes more of a medley of floral flavor with the rose as the main focus of that medley. The peppermint is also a softer flavor, and I found myself actually looking for it with the first few sips, it was that soft. Now that I am halfway through the cup, the peppermint is more apparent, although it is still not what I’d consider to be a strong flavor. This sometimes aggressive herb seems rather content to be a background note here, and allow the flowers to take center stage.
I find this to be a very enjoyable cup of tea. It offers a delightful sense of tranquility as well as romance, so pour two cups of this tea and sip it with someone special.
Jacqueline’s Tea from Jacqueline’s Tea Room (available from iHeartTeas)
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy:
This tea is part of the Sweet Set Sampler from iHeartTeas.
Learn more about Jacqueline’s Tea Room here.
Tea Description:
Black tea with Lavender flowers and honey bee pollen.
Taster’s Review:
There were a couple of teas in this sampler that prompted my purchase, but, I have to admit that this wasn’t one of them. I think it was the English Garden that really struck my fancy, and it was the name of the tea, really, that made me want to try it. I find it somewhat amusing and even a little disturbing that after all this time, and after all the teas I’ve tasted, that I am still swayed by something as cosmetic as the name of a tea.
As far as this tea goes, I don’t think I even read the description of this one before I brewed it! I don’t know, “Jacqueline’s Tea” just didn’t sound all that exciting to me. I just happened to grab a black tea from my pile of samples that I need to try. If I had taken the time to read the description, I probably would have been much more eager to try it. Lavender and pollen? AWESOME!
Normally, I associate pollen with the stuff that makes me feel icky in the spring and summer months. But, when it’s used for culinary purposes, I really love pollen. I was absolutely blown away by these Fennel Pollen Shortbread Cookies. Pollen offers a sweetness like honey, but with more complexity. Here, it has some lovely floral intonations, which enhance the flavor of the lavender quite nicely.
The black tea is mild and smooth. On Steepster, I compared this tea to an impressionist painting. If you stand up close to most impressionist art, it looks muddled, like a confused set of brush strokes. But if you take a few steps back, the subject matter comes in to focus, and you see the brilliant beauty of the artwork. This tea is like that. The first couple of sips, the flavors seem kind of blurry. I tasted the black tea and I tasted sweetness, but, my palate seemed a little confused by it all. Then, after a couple of sips, the flavors come in to focus. The black tea: mellow and unassuming. The lavender and the pollen: sweet and floral, with the pollen notes highlighting the lavender in a way that I don’t think I’ve experienced lavender before.
This is not a tea that I’d recommend for the “gotta-get-moving” first thing in the morning cup of tea. This is more like a tea you want to sip when you just want to sit back and contemplate.
If you’re a fan of lavender, this is a tea I recommend trying. It is a different way to experience lavender, and it’s definitely worth experiencing!
White Lavender from SerendipiTea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: SerendipiTea
Tea Description:
White Tea gently blended with French lavender. Soft, light, romantic.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I am usually fond of lavender blends, so I was pretty sure I’d enjoy this White Lavender from SerendipiTea. I have had some lavender blends where the lavender was way too much, though, and the cup ended up tasting more like the air in the soap shop in the mall than tea.
However, I think SerendipiTea approached this combination very well. White tea is usually quite subtle, so they used a light hand when adding the lavender so that these two flavors can meet somewhere in the middle. The cup has a nice balance of fresh, soft white tea flavor and soothing lavender.
A sense of calm envelops me as I sip this. The white tea is so light and almost creamy, which adds such a pleasing element to the overall cup. It is mild … gentle … mellow. It soothes and relaxes me, a perfect cup to enjoy later in the evening when you’re starting to wind down.
Very nice.
Monarch Blend from Ovation Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Ovation Teas
Tea Description:
Black tea blended with lavender, rose petals, mango, peaches, and marigolds with mango & peach flavoring.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This blend seemed to be a very busy blend – it had a lot of flavors and flowers and to be honest that was my attraction to it. I like when I come across a blend with a lot going on, as I like to sort of “test myself” to see if I can taste all the flavors.
This is really GOOD! And, yes, I can taste all the flavors! The mango and peach flavors are well-balanced, and they give a pleasing, nectar-like sweetness to this cup. Very fruity, but what I like is that the hint of rose and lavender in the background cut through some of the fruit notes and give it some contrast.
The black tea is not overwhelmed by all these flavors, either. It is smooth and rich, not what I’d call robust or bold, really, but, mellow and well-rounded. This is a very well-crafted blend by Ovation Teas … I become more impressed with Ovation Teas with every new blend that I try from them.