Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Chocolate Mint Whisper White Tea is an exclusive blend of a select White Peony tea with pure peppermint leaves and rich Belgian chocolate. The whole leaf tea is evenly mixed with fresh cut mint leaves that are dried naturally to preserve their flavor. Belgian semisweet dark chocolate curls are expertly combined to provide the drinker with a tea that is decadent in aroma but with a flavor that is fresh and minty with hints of rich and velvety chocolate.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I gotta tell ya, the more I try chocolate blends from Nature’s Tea Leaf, like this Chocolate Mint Whisper White Tea, the more I’m liking them. First of all, I love the big curls of chocolate that this blend has. Not just dark Belgian chocolate, but, white chocolate curls too! Sure … the chocolate melts and there are some that will argue that the melted chocolate in the tea clouds up the tea. And it does. But, I don’t care! It’s CHOCOLATE! And when this chocoholic sees cute little chocolate curls mixed into the dry leaf of a tea … the inner child in me squeals with delight.
The White Peony tea leaves seem to respond to this blend differently … that is to say, this doesn’t taste like a typical Bai Mu Dan. There are similar qualities, of course, like the straw-like taste (imagine the air that surrounds a dry hay stack) but, I don’t really notice a vegetative quality or other notes that I often associate with a white tea. But one thing that I do notice here … is an earthy undertone to the white tea that is often overlooked. So … while the ingredients in this blend may have overwhelmed some of the nuances of the white tea, it has also brought forward some flavors of the white tea that is not usually noticed. Like I said … the tea responds differently to this blend … and I, for one, like it.
The mint was a little … difficult to detect with the first few sips. The whole “Whisper” in the name made sense … because the peppermint was indeed a whisper of a taste. And now that I am more than halfway finished with my cup of tea, I notice more mint taste than i did with my first couple of sips … it is still quite a delicate flavor, noticed mostly when I suck in a breath and allow the air to flow over my palate. It is then that I notice a crisp, clean note that is distinctly mint.
This tea is deliciously chocolate-y, and what I really liked about this blend is that even though it was a white tea, it had a pleasing amount of chocolate flavor … but not so much that I lost sight of the fact that it was tea that I was drinking. I liked that I could taste the white tea, and I liked that this tea offered me a different perspective of white tea. A very interesting blend – one that I’d recommend to any chocolate lover.
Blackmint Oolong Blend from Whispering Pines Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Whispering Pines Tea Company
Tea Description:
A warming blend of o’olong tea, mint and cinnamon! Crisp, smooth, minty perfection at its finest!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Blackmint Oolong Blend from Whispering Pines Tea Company threw me for a loop when I first tried it. I visited the website and looked under black tea blends, and found two with mint … one with an Assam base and one with a Lapsang Souchong Base. To tell the truth … this tea didn’t taste like either!
So I emailed the company for verification, and they got back to me promptly (I love it when a company makes themselves available promptly to their customers like this one does! It makes me feel comfortable doing business with a company when they’re there to answer questions … and they do so right away!) and they told me that Blackmint could be found in their Oolong section!
That surprised me, because while the tea base tasted smooth and had a thick, somewhat creamy mouthfeel the way dark Oolong teas do, it had a certain strong quality to it that I wouldn’t normally associate with an Oolong. This tea has a very pleasing, rich flavor that would satisfy even those who usually prefer black teas over Oolong. The flavor isn’t quite black tea-ish … but, it has a bolder flavor than many Oolong teas that I’ve tried.
And to be paired with the minty duo of spearmint and peppermint, it would need to have a strong character! The minty flavor is powerful, but, not overpowering. I love the way the mint and the Oolong work together – it makes a minty … creamy kind of taste that reminds me a bit of the creamy consistency of a minty milkshake (you know which one I’m talking about right? I passed by some golden arches yesterday and the sign in the window says they’re back for St. Patrick’s Day!)
The cinnamon in this tea … is less noticeable. Perhaps this is because the mint and the Oolong are both so prominent that the cinnamon plays more of a background note, but, I tasted some earthiness from the cinnamon but not so much of that zesty cinnamon edge. However, I can’t say that I missed the cinnamon because I found this tea to be so enjoyable just the way it was.
A really delightful blend … I’m really glad I got the opportunity to try it.
Cranberry-Mint African Redbush Tea from MarketSpice
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: MarketSpice
Tisane Description:
Tart yet minty. This tea is a blend of African RedBush, Cranberry and Peppermint flavoring. High in anti-oxidants and naturally caffeine free.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
This Cranberry-Mint African Redbush Tea from MarketSpice has a really interesting combination of flavors … and it’s not what I expected at all!
I expected to taste a strong minty taste, and maybe a hint of sour cranberry. And while the mint is indeed strong … that isn’t the first note I experience. I taste a warm, nutty flavor from the rooibos. It is a distinct rooibos flavor, but, at the same time it doesn’t taste like a typical rooibos. It doesn’t have that sour wood taste, or the sometimes funky sweetness that I often associate with rooibos. Instead … it is more of a taste that is sweet, almost honey-like (reminding me a bit of honeybush rather than rooibos!) and a warm, nutty flavor. Hints of wood but not a sour wood.
Then I notice the fruity notes of the cranberry. It is tangy and tart, but the sweetness from the rooibos curbs some of the tart flavor. I really like how cranberry and rooibos taste together. I don’t think I really realized it until I tried this tisane … but these two components work very well together.
Almost at the mid-way point of the sip, I notice the mint. It is cool and crisp … but it isn’t a strong, distinctly peppermint kind of note. The flavor of cranberry as well as the strong presence of the nutty tones of rooibos has managed to tone down the peppermint just a smidge, to give it a sweet, cooling effect without overwhelming the palate with minty taste.
The flavor is really surprisingly smooth. It almost reminds me of a latte … there is almost a creaminess to this cup (and no, I didn’t add milk!) It’s really very pleasant … a very surprising, delicious cup of rooibos! I’m really enjoying this.
Amore’ from The Persimmon Tree
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tea Description:
The Amore loose leaf white tea features a beautiful blend of organic flower-scented white loose-leaf teas, wild roses, organic peppermint and seasonally selected botanicals.
With its refreshing and aromatic qualities, drinking a cup of Amore white tea makes a great occasion for an after meal pick-up, or for sipping in the evening with someone you love.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Amore’ from The Persimmon Tree is a beautiful tea to look at and I find it to be so soothing, relaxing, and just calming. I always have a cup of tea beside me on the table when I fall asleep at night, even if I don’t finish it, I just like to know a cup is there. This tea will be a perfect bedside companion!
Delicate big white tea leaves that look all fluffy like clouds or a big squishy pillow, pretty roses, the soothing, breathe easy aroma of mint, what more could one ask for at night?
I have found that I do not love mint teas the way that I once did, yet my love for floral teas has developed more. I still like mint, but I appreciate the floral aspect of this tea more so than the mint aspect that I used to love. I feel the balance in this tea airs a bit more on the mint side but the floral does come through wonderfully as does the white base.
Everything about this tea tastes natural. I have done a lot of essential oil and herb blending in my days and I can say that I do not detect anything less than natural in this tea blend. Plus organic elements are used which I respect greatly!
I have taken some quotes from The Persimmon Tree’s “About Us” page located here and I could not agree more!
“Simply put, tea is one of life’s rewarding pleasures. It makes us feel better by giving us a relaxing escape from life’s hectic pace.”
“A cup of tea can wake you up in the morning, compliment your afternoon, or take you away to a restful place in the evening. The tea-brewing ritual is one that can be therapeutic, enjoyable, social, and even sacred.”
I could not agree more especially when it comes to this tea, being so soothing, relaxing, calming. I think I like this even more than a chamomile tea for bedtime although I swear I do taste chamomile in here.
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Also as an added bonus The Persimmon Tree is offering SororiTea Sister readers a special discount which you can use between now and 1/31/2012. Just use the code SororiTea-Amore-0113 at check out for 20% off this Amore White Tea!
Orange Blossom Chamomile from Petali Teas
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tisane Description:
Ingredients: German chamomile, mint, orange peels and blossoms, malva and lemongrass.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third tea that I received in my December Amoda Box (Yeah, I am behind, I
know) The other two teas that came in December’s Amoda Box were Black Tea Merlot from Vintage TeaWorks, which I did not review after receiving this box because I had reviewed it previously, and Minty Winter Wonderland from Tiesta Tea.
This Orange Blossom Chamomile from Petali Teas is a surprising blend. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not a big fan of herbal blends, preferring teas with the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant, but, I must admit that I do find herbal tisanes to be a nice, caffeine free alternative for evenings. And this herbal from Petali Teas is really tasty.
When I opened the pouch, I was astonished at how good the dry leaf smelled. It smelled sweet and orange-y … reminding me a bit of orange slices (you know those jelly candies that are an orange gel that is covered in sugar? Yeah, those … that’s what this tisane smells like to me) and since I love orange slices, my mouth started watering when I first smelled this … and I started craving orange slices. Since I didn’t happen to have any in the house, I decided to brew a cup of this to see if it would help curb my craving.
Sadly, it did not curb the desire for candy, but, I will say that it is a tasty cuppa. Citrus notes are strong, and it’s not just orange that I taste. I taste hints of lemon and even a touch of lime. The orange is the strongest note, but, I like how this is almost like a citrus punch kind of flavor, rather than focusing just on the orange. I also taste a very light floral note to this.
The ingredients list peppermint, and while I don’t taste a distinct minty note that screams PEPPERMINT to me, there is a certain zesty … crisp, cool note to this that I attribute to the peppermint. That is to say … this doesn’t taste overwhelmingly minty … but there are qualities to this that are minty. Perhaps the strength of the citrus is such that it overpowers the peppermint … and for this particular tisane, that works for me, because it is … after all, called Orange Blossom Chamomile and not Peppermint Chamomile. It should be about the citrus. But I do like the minty characteristics in this blend.
Overall, I found this to be enjoyable … one I’d be happy to enjoy again.