Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Nature’s Bloom Pu’erh Tea: is the ultimate blend of our select loose Pu’erh leaves expertly combined with our organic Jasmine, Lavender and Rosebud herbal teas. Our Pu’erh is handpicked, dried, and rolled tightly and neatly into strips. Subsequently, the leaves undergo a microbial fermentation process which makes this a unique, dark tea. Our Jasmine buds are beautiful and tight until infused when they burst into a beautiful flower with a lovely and soft fragrance. Lavender is a flower purple in color with an invigorating fragrance and subtle flavor that will linger on the palate. While the third bloom in this one of a kind blend is our Rosebud. A staple of Chinese medicine, Rosebuds have been found to contain vitamin C which boosts the immune system and promotes healthy skin and bones. The marriage of the bold earthy Pu’erh with this fragrant and soothing herbal trio will thrill the palate with a bouquet of flavor that you will enjoy every day of the week.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yep, I did it again. I put off trying this Nature’s Bloom Pu’erh Tea Blend from Nature’s Tea Leaf because it’s … well, because it’s Pu-erh. While I have come to the point where I very much enjoy Pu-erh and Pu-erh blends, I still have not been able to get past that point where my initial reaction is hesitation and yes, even a little bit of repulsion when I’m given a new Pu-erh to try.
And … I’ll say it again, I enjoy Pu-erh!
But, I had a couple of really negative experiences with my first pu-erh tastings and the memories of those negative experiences have lingered even though my positive experiences with Pu-erh greatly outnumber the negative ones!
All that said – this flowery Pu-erh blend is absolutely LOVELY! The aroma is very interesting because it is both floral and earthy, giving it an almost “greenhouse” kind of scent. What I mean by that is that this reminds me of the fragrance that I’d experience if I were to go to a nursery and go into their greenhouse. Scents of earth and flowers fill the air! This is also a visually stunning blend with whole rosebuds, jasmine buds, and lavender buds generously added to the dark pu-erh tea leaves.
And I love the flavor. I did a quick rinse of the leaves – just 10 seconds! – and then I brewed the first infusion for 1 minute. The first cup is earthy – but not overwhelmingly so. The notes of rose, jasmine and lavender are in pleasing balance with the earthy tones. The pu-erh is rich and mellow and very smooth, and the floral tones – which can sometimes be sharp – are sweet and those sharp tones have been softened by the pu-erh, creating a flavor that is just pleasantly sweet, floral and very relaxing to sip.
As one who tends to shy away from the sometimes overtly earthy tones of Pu-erh, I appreciate how the floral tones lighten some of those strong earthy notes. At the same time, I like that the floral notes do not overpower the cup. This is a really delightfully balanced tea blend.
Organic Silver Needle White from Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Organic Silver Needle White Tea has exquisitely shaped buds enveloped in white down. This white tea excites with its savory aroma, rich body and a sweet flavor with rounded finish that is soft and airy on the palate. White Teas which include our Organic Silver Needle variety are known to promote weight loss and stimulate the metabolism. This low caffeine antioxidant packed tea is delicious hot or cold and can be enjoyed any time of day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Soft, Fuzzy, Pillowy, Billowy, White tea is what Organic Silver Needle White from Nature’s Tea Leaf is! Its so pretty to look at. Delicious to smell, even in its dry state. I love touching and examining the silvery white needles. This is very much a tactile tea leaf.
The steeped leaf smells slightly minty, and very sweet. The flavor is also lightly minty, but just delicately so. The sweetness does translate into the taste beautifully, but a a mid-range vegetal note is also present. There is a very brothy mouthfeel to this tea and it almost has a creamy feel in the aftertaste. I could see this tea being a major part of a soup broth if you are into using tea in cooking. This is definitely a greener tasting white than I have had before and has a nice lingering aftertaste that lasts longer than most.
This is right up there with some of my favorite white teas because it offers something different from others I have had before. It is unique and it is Organic which makes it even better in my book!
The sweet notes I have been tasting have had me perplexed for a bit, as they are not honey notes, or even that of cane sugar, nor molasses, its more of a fruity sort of sweet, like raisins perhaps, yet it does not taste fruity. Also there is absolutely no astringency in this cup.
This tea is a little more pricey than others but it is organic, and it is delicious, therefore it is worth it!
Organic Silver Needle White Tea from Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Organic Silver Needle White Tea has exquisitely shaped buds enveloped in white down. This white tea excites with its savory aroma, rich body and a sweet flavor with rounded finish that is soft and airy on the palate. White Teas which include our Organic Silver Needle variety are known to promote weight loss and stimulate the metabolism. This low caffeine antioxidant packed tea is delicious hot or cold and can be enjoyed any time of day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I opened the pouch of this Organic Silver Needle White Tea from Nature’s Tea Leaf, I knew I was in for a treat. The dry leaf is so beautiful – so fluffy, so soft, beautifully pale green with silvery tips! – and the fragrance was sweet and fresh. The leaves look so fresh and perfect!
And the tea they produce tastes as good as the dry leaves look. Sweet with notes of light vegetation, and a hint of hay. I’ve compared the flavor of silver needle tea as the taste of the air that surrounds a field of freshly cut hay and that is true of this tea also. I love the fresh taste of this tea, it’s so crisp and pure and light!
And even though it is a delicate taste, there is a certain invigorating quality to it as well. It’s a gentle vigor, like something that softly calm and relax you while still allowing you to maintain a certain level of alertness. It doesn’t leave me feeling overly stimulated – most white teas don’t! – but, it isn’t something I’d necessarily drink right before bedtime as it may cause me to stir a little longer than I want to when I try to get some shut-eye.
I prefer a high-quality Silver Needle tea like this one to be served while it is hot, although it does make a very refreshing iced tea as well. It doesn’t need sweetening – I find that adding sugar or other sweetener to a delicate white tea will overwhelm it – instead, allow the natural goodness of this tea to come through unadulterated.
I love this Silver Needle from Nature’s Tea Leaf … and I’m LOVING that it’s organic! Another great tea from this company – if you haven’t tried anything from them yet, I highly recommend visiting their site the next time you’re in need of some top-notch teas!
Daughter Rings Green Tea from Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Nature’s Tea Leaf
Tea Description:
Daughter Rings Green Tea is from the Yunnan province of China. These hand selected green tea leaves are carefully hand-rolled into an enchanting ring shape. Daughter ring has a fresh, bright and almost fruity taste. The flavor is quite mild with vegetal notes becoming more prominent with cooling.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
These little tea leaves that have been shaped into little rings are so adorable! Before brewing, I looked at these Daughter Rings from Nature’s Tea Leaf … marveling at how the tender Green Tea leaves were carefully shaped into perfect little rings. It’s fun to watch them brew too! They slowly unwind, as if they are dancing in the hot water.
The tea brews to a very pale yellowish-green color. The flavor is very agreeable, with a delicious vegetative tone with sweet notes of fruit … I want to say it tastes a bit like sweet apple melding with notes of mild vegetable. There are also very faint floral tones to this … like a background note of flower. It is a light, invigorating taste. It’s on the mellow side.
As the tea cools, I find that the flavor changes slightly, becoming less sweet and slightly more astringent. It never becomes bitter, but, there is a slight shift in flavor. The astringency here is slightly dry and cleansing. The aftertaste is sweet with notes of fruit.
A very pleasant tea … it’s a little different from other green teas out there, but, similar enough to other green teas that it’s easily recognizable as one. A nice tea for those times when you want something just a little out of the ordinary.
Chocolate Mint Whisper White Tea from Nature’s Tea Leaf
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.