Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Zest Tea
Tea Description:
At Zest, we start every morning with a Mojito. This aromatic blend of young hyson green tea, peppermint, lime, and pomegranate will bring back memories of lounging on a beach, or maybe whatever memories you have left of college. Either way, our Pomegranate Mojito Green Tea is an amazingly refreshing blend, great for any time of day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Zest High-Octane Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I took the opportunity to taste this tea several times before I sat down and write a review about it, and I’m glad that I did. This is one blend that took a little “tweaking” on my part to find the right brewing temperature and time to get the most out of the tea.
Normally, I’ll brew a green tea from 175° – 180°F. I found that this tea works better with the lower temperature. I usually steep a green tea for 1 – 2 minutes, but I found that this tea required about 2 1/2 minutes to get the most out of the pomegranate, lime and peppermint flavors. I tried a 3 minute steep time too, and I wasn’t very happy with that result, so my recommendation for this tea is a temperature somewhere between 170° – 175°F and a steep time of 2 1/2 minutes.
And while it does seem like this is a lot of effort to put forth to find the “sweet spot” brewing parameters for a tea, it’s well worth the effort! This is a tasty green tea!
The peppermint is the prominent flavor of this cup, with notes of lime weaving their way in and out throughout the sip. The green tea notes are sweet and buttery. The pomegranate is a little more difficult for me to discern, but after a few sips, I started to notice hints of pomegranate arriving at the tail of the sip. The aftertaste is mostly pomegranate and lime with a crisp, clean minty note.
Of the three teas that I’ve reviewed thus far from Zest Tea, I think this one is my least favorite. I really enjoyed the Blue Lady and the Apple Cinnamon black teas, and I’m enjoying this one as well, but, there is something about this tea that is less appealing than the other two. A slight “chemical-y” off taste to it that I didn’t notice with the other two teas. It is a very slight taste though, and I still find the lime and mint notes to be quite delightful as well as the notes of pomegranate in the finish and aftertaste. It’s a tasty tea, it’s just not my favorite.
I also really like the energizing BOOST that I get from these Zest Teas!
Whole Leaf Green Tea with Essence of Key Lime from Eden Grove
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Amazon Trading
Ingredients:
Green Tea with natural Key Lime Flavor
Learn more about Amazon Trading here.
Taster’s Review:
This Whole Leaf Green Tea with Essence of Key Lime from Eden Grove is one of the nicer lime flavored green teas I’ve encountered. What I’m enjoying most is that the lime is gentle – it isn’t too tart or sour tasting lime flavor, and it doesn’t overpower the flavor of the green tea.
The lime adds a bright lift to the cup. It’s not a strong flavor – just enough to enhance the cup without becoming too obnoxious about it. And this is something that I’ve noticed with the other teas from Eden Grove. The teas with “essence” tend to take a rather subtle approach to the flavoring of these teas. Eden Grove allows the tea to be the real star of the cup while allowing the “essence” to boost the flavor level without overwhelming the tea. I like that a lot!
The green tea is soft and has a lightly vegetative taste. It isn’t grassy nor does it have an overpowering vegetal note. It’s a sweet, fresh “leafy” sort of taste, reminiscent of lightly buttered, steamed spinach. It’s mild and has a very pleasant, creamy buttery note. There is a nice contrast between the sweet of the green tea and the sunny tartness of the lime.
A really pleasant cuppa – good served hot … but I think that this one gets even better as it cools. It makes a great iced tea.
Lemon & Lime Twist Black Tea from Ahmad Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Ahmad Tea
Tea Description:
The zesty flavour of lemons lend this tea a warm aroma and generous flavour.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I generally go into a tasting of a bagged tea with a certain amount of diffidence. If my experience with tea over the many years that I’ve been drinking it (more years than I care to admit to!) have taught me anything, it would be that even though there are some bagged/sacheted teas that have been quite lovely, I can’t say that they compare to the quality of most loose leaf tea. As a rule, I prefer loose leaf tea. Loose leaf is just better.
That said, for the most part, I’ve enjoyed teas from Ahmad Tea – even their bagged varieties! And this Lemon & Lime Twist Black Tea is tasty. The bright, citrus-y notes are very uplifting, and the black tea is brisk and flavorful.
Citrus flavors and tea is a classic combination, I mean, who hasn’t twisted a slice of lemon into their cup of black tea (or a glass of iced tea)? The sunny flavor of lemon really elevates a cup of pure black tea. Here, the lemon is given a twist of lime to create a very enjoyable, tarty note that isn’t so tart that I’m puckering when I sip it.
There is a nice sweet contrast here to offset the tartness just enough to where my tart-sensitive palate can handle it. I am getting a tangy-tart taste, notes of sweetness, and there is even a slight bitterness to this. The bitterness is not coming from the black tea although, I wouldn’t recommend oversteeping this tea. I taste the pith of the fruit and that’s where the slight bitterness is coming from. I can taste hints of that fruit pith, and it isn’t an off-putting flavor. Actually, it’s a bit grapefruit-y! I like it.
A really enjoyable cuppa … this is a tea that I wouldn’t mind having with me when I travel – the fact that it’s bagged would provide me with the convenience I need when I’m on the go, and it has a pleasing flavor. This one is also really refreshing iced.
Cucumber White Tea from Tazo
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Learn more about Tazo here.
Tea Description:
A replenishing blend of delicate white tea, real cucumber and lime peel.
Taster’s Review:
I had my reservations about this tea. First of all, when I think Tazo, my first thought is of Steven Smith, who started Tazo. And then I’m reminded that this company was later acquired by Starbucks and in my opinion, they ruined it.
So, now, my happy thoughts of Tazo and Steven Smith (aka the rock star of tea!) have been tainted by Starbucks and speedy, spendy coffee. But as I prepared this Cucumber White Tea from Tazo, I decided not to let my notions (be they ill-conceived or not) affect my opinion of this particular tea experience. I would do my best to go into this moment with an open mind.
When I opened the pouch, I smelled the lime. The cucumber, not so much. The taste is similar: I taste lime. I don’t taste a lot of cucumber here. I do taste some white tea notes: fresh, light, and almost melon-esque with hints of the air in the countryside after a hay field has been cut. I can also taste SOME cucumber notes … but they are diminished by the presence of the lime.
The lime tastes tart and slightly bitter. I can taste the pithy taste of the lime peel. But it also has a bright, juicy taste too … I can taste all of the lime here, as well as the crisp notes of the white tea. I just find myself wishing I tasted more cucumber. After all, this tea is called Cucumber White Tea.
Overall, it’s not a terrible tea. It has a light, refreshing taste with a bright acidity from the lime. Not bad … just not great.
Key Lime Coconut Black Tea Blend from Herbal Infusions
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Herbal Infusions
Tea Description:
If you can’t escape from the day to day grind this season then we’ve got the perfect blend for you! Dan has crafted a refreshing and full bodied tea that blends the best of the islands (key limes and coconuts to be specific) with the exotic flavour of a full high altitude premium Ceylon tea.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
As I type this, it’s snowing outside. In this part of the Pacific Northwest, we don’t get a lot of snow. We get rain, but, snow we get maybe once a year, and usually, a big snowstorm like this one … we get maybe every other year or every third year. I guess it’s pretty much what most of the rest of the country is experiencing, right? Lots and lots of snow.
So, as it’s snowing outside, I thought I’d enjoy something warm and tropical inside to get my mind off of that cold weather. This Key Lime Coconut Black Tea Blend from Herbal Infusions seemed to be just what I was looking for! It’s a tasty blend of a classic flavor combination: Lime and coconut – with lots of black tea flavor to remind you that you’re drinking tea and not a tropical cocktail!
The black tea flavor is the strongest note of the cup, and that’s the way I usually want it to be. When I drink tea, I want to taste the tea. Here, I do! The tea used in this blend is a Ceylon, and it’s a medium-bodied, brisk tasting tea. Even tempered and pleasant to taste. There is a dry, tangy astringency toward the tail that I’d categorize as moderate or medium.
The lime notes are tart, a little bit sweet, and even a tad bitter. The bitterness here reminds me a bit of a grapefruit. The lime really elevates the cup – it perks up the flavors of the cup. The aftertaste has a very bright, citrus-y taste.
The coconut is more of a background note. It’s not a really strong, well-defined coconut taste. This doesn’t have that slick, creamy coconut flavor that many coconut teas have. It’s a softer coconut taste: sweet and reminding me a bit of toasted coconut rather than fresh coconut. Toasted coconut has sort of a dry flavor, not quite as creamy and that’s what I taste here. A sweet, sort of toasty, nutty flavor, rather than the sweet, creamy, slick and almost milky sort of coconut taste.
It’s a tasty tea and the flavor gets better as the tea cools. This would make a really nice iced tea.