I’ve decided to hot-brew the rest of the iced teas for this countdown. I figure it would be the best way to capture the flavors as they were intended by the blender … plus there’s a little less wait time! I now only have to wait as long as it takes to hot brew the tea (much faster than cold-brewing!) and then the wait time to let the tea cool. A couple of hours in the fridge will do the job.
I hot-brew this like so: I drop the pouch in 1 quart of boiling water and let it steep first for 2 minutes. Then I bring another quart of water to a boil and re-steep the pouch for 3 minutes. This produces a very flavorful half-gallon of tea. I probably could get away with adding 1 quart of ice or cold water to the first 1 quart of brewed tea and still have a flavorful pitcher of iced tea, but, I feel like I’d be missing out on a lot of flavor that way. When prepared this way, the flavor is strong but it isn’t too strong either.
Root Beer Float Iced Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
As some of you are probably aware, I’ve already tasted and reviewed 52Teas “original” Root Beer Float flavored black tea, but this tasting is my first of the SBT iced tea version.
This is good. I think that the aforementioned original Root Beer Float tea is a tad more … something. Perhaps it’s the marshmallow root that is in the 52Teas version that I don’t think is in this that is making the difference. This still tastes root-beer-ish and there is a certain creamy element to the taste here, but, it isn’t as creamy and “fluffy” as the 52Teas version.
However, this is very tasty. I am getting a delicious root beer flavor. I even taste notes of “carbonation” in the taste, where I can taste the ‘bubbly’ taste of a root beer. And I do taste a light creaminess to this as well, giving it a sort of “float” type of taste. And yes, I can taste the black tea in the background too.
Overall, this is a very refreshing, delicious tasting iced tea.
On the Sixth Day of Christmas, Della Terra Teas Sent Me This Tea …
Day six! Are you having as much fun counting down the days as I am?
Mouse King’s Cuppa
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Della Terra Teas
Tea Description:
Want to be as warm as a fluffy goose on this 6th day of Christmas? Sip down this one!
Feel like a king, a Mouse King even, right from the infamous Nutcracker ballet! This delicious spiced cranberry tea certainly is fit for a king!
Taster’s Review:
The last couple of days, I have been wanting a cranberry tea. I couldn’t find one in my stash (that doesn’t mean that I don’t have one there, just means I didn’t find one!) so I was really happy when I opened today’s package from Della Terra Teas and found this Mouse King’s Cuppa – a spiced cranberry tea! YUM!
The aroma that wafts from my teacup is a warm, cinnamon-y scent. Interestingly, this seems to be something that many of the teas in this year’s Christmas countdown box from Della Terra Teas have in common. Then again, this time of year inspires those warmly spiced teas. I don’t smell a lot of cranberry fragrance. Maybe a faint berry scent, but nothing too obvious.
The flavor is really nice. Up front, I taste the sweet flavor of the cinnamon. The cinnamon here is less spicy than it is sweet, but it certainly does still have some of it’s gently soothing and warming qualities to it. There are hints of other spices here too, perhaps clove. There is a warm, cozy background flavor.
Shortly after my palate recognizes the cinnamon, the tart notes of cranberry come through. The tangy berry notes are a delightful contrast to the the sweet notes of the cinnamon. This drink evokes thoughts of a winter-y party punch where someone steeped some spices in cranberry juice.
But the black tea is not lost in the medley of flavors. It is a mellower black tea flavor, yes, but, I can definitely taste it. It’s got a smooth, mild black tea taste. Part of me wonders how this combination of flavors might work with a more robust tasting black tea – perhaps something malty like an Assam.
As it is though, I enjoyed this cranberry tea! Another great gift in my box of goodies from Della Terra Teas!