Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Yerba Maté
Where to Buy: Whispering Pines Tea Company
Tisane Description:
A wonderful and highly energizing blend of Yerba Mate, Safflower, and citrus hints to enjoy hot or cold. This very unique blend is the perfect thing to keep you going!
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
Nice!
I am really enjoying the combination of the slightly smoky, slightly earthy taste of the Yerba Maté together with the citrus notes in this Painted Paradise Tea from Whispering Pines Tea Company.
Yerba Maté is not always a flavor that I favor, because it can sometimes come off as too earthy for my taste. But in this blend, there seems to be a pleasing balance between earthy notes and the sweet citrus tones. The citrus notes really brighten up the cup and keep the earthiness in check.
It is a little bit sweet, tangy, earthy, vegetative and even just a wee bit smoky. It’s a well-rounded cup, and it’s very invigorating! I love the citrus tones to this … just the kind of tisane you want to sip when you want to start the morning off right! It has a nice sweetness to it – no additions needed – and it tastes great hot or iced too.
Tropical Paradise Oolong Tea Blend from The Rabbit Hole
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to buy: The Rabbit Hole
Tea Description:
Stranded on a desert island and you can only take one tea…this is it. Perfect hot or iced and great when you need a tropical time out minus the credit card bill.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yum! This is one of the tastiest tropical teas I’ve come across in a while! I love the way the Oolong tea, the coconut, the pineapple and the orange meld together in this Tropical Paradise Oolong Tea Blend from The Rabbit Hole!
There are a lot of tropical flavored teas out there, but I find that they are usually crafted with a base of black or green tea … it’s not often that I find a tropical Oolong, and perhaps that’s why I’m liking this one so much. The sweet flavor of the Oolong unites with the sweet notes of pineapple, orange and coconut in a really pleasant way, and the buttery smooth texture of the Oolong really emphasizes the coconut notes. And I like that I taste the Oolong front and center here … the flavors are strong, but the Oolong is not overpowered.
There is a very nice balance of coconut, pineapple and orange. As I mentioned before, I think that what really brings the coconut into the foreground is the Oolong. That rich, silky texture of the Oolong really plays to the slick coconut mouthfeel, giving the overall cup a very creamy taste and feel that is very luxurious and delectable. The pineapple is sweet, and the orange adds a bright note to the drink.
This is tasty served hot, but its AMAZING iced. And the Oolong tea allows for multiple infusions … increasing the value of this tea! This one will take your taste buds on a tropical vacation!
Real Red Paradise Tea from Tea & Botanicals
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Tea & Botanicals
Tisane Description:
Red Tea is naturally caffeine-free red tea blended with colorful flower petals and tropical flavors. Red Tea has reputed health benefits, as it is antioxidant rich and also contains vitamins and minerals.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
Visually, this is a very pretty tisane. Amongst the needle-like reddish-brown rooibos leaves, there are beautiful petals of blue, red, and yellow. There is really very little aroma to the dry leaf, which is a little disappointing because with a name like “Real Red Paradise Tea,” I was kind of hoping for a beautiful, exotic fragrance. The brewed tea has a slightly stronger scent, smelling of a tropical fruit medley – not like any one fruit in particular, its more like a tropical fruit punch.
The flavor is surprisingly good. I say that because, with most rooibos blends I want a strong flavoring, because I don’t usually like to taste the flavor of oxidized rooibos. They are nutty, a little woody, and there is often this really funky sweetness that lingers into the aftertaste. It’s not really the most pleasant flavor.
But, somehow, this all works together very well. F0r starters, I don’t taste that funky sweetness nor do I taste a funky lingering aftertaste that I normally associate with red rooibos. I do taste the nutty tones, but somehow these typical rooibos flavors just work well with the flavors and more importantly with the level of flavoring that this tisane possesses. I taste sweet, nutty flavor, and unlike some other red rooibos blends I’ve tried in the past, this tastes very pleasant!
The tropical flavors are very light. I don’t know that I taste any one type of tropical fruit specifically. Every once in a while I think I taste pineapple, but, it tastes more like a harmony of fruit notes … and it’s a very delicate taste, like it’s off in the distance, just barely tempting the palate with sweet, fruity goodness.
And what I’m really enjoying most of all is how well these whispers of tropical fruit mingle with the floral notes … the rose is especially noticeable. The sweet notes from the rose together with the soft tropical fruit is really quite delightful.
Not a bad tisane, quite enjoyable. Nice for a quiet evening, when you just want to sit back and relax.
Apple Pearadise from Big Tea House
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Big Tea House
Tea Description:
Fun fruity flavors of apple and pear burst into your senses! A perfect way to have your green tea with a twist! Apple Pearadise loose green tea fusion is sure to satisfy.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a really tasty combination of flavors.
What I’m liking best about this blend is that while the apple and pear flavors come through very well, the flavor of the green tea is the strongest note. The green tea is lightly grassy, sweet, and smooth. It has a well-rounded flavor and a soft mouthfeel.
The apple and pear go together so well. Pear is typically a difficult flavor when it comes to tea, more often than not, the pear flavor is so delicate that it is almost indistinguishable. But, here, it is as though the apple is helping to highlight the sweet, luscious flavor of the pear.
The overall flavor is sweet, fruity, and pleasantly vegetative. A very nice green tea that is delicious served hot, but even better iced! The green tea notes soften just a little bit when it cools – not so much that you can’t taste the green tea, but the grassy tones become a little softer and smoother. And the fruit flavors really seem to pop when it cools.
This one is a winner!
Green Paradise from Mark T. Wendell
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Mark T. Wendell
Product Description:
Our newest flavored green tea offering is a blend of select sencha style China green tea leaves, pieces of strawberry, raspberry, rhubarb and cornflowers. Visually appealing with its red, white and blue pieces contrasting the dark green tea leaves, this blend has a fresh green tea taste with a delicate sweetness. This blend makes a refreshing iced tea with interesting fruit notes in each glass.
Taster’s Review:
To the eye, this blend is really beautiful with its many petals and fruit pieces tossed among the long spears of green tea leaves. This pretty, deliciously fragrant tea brews to a clear, light green color. Some of the strong aroma is lost in the brewing, but it still smells quite enticing.
With my first few sips, I tasted green tea. Not very much fruit flavor at all. But as I continued to sip, the flavors developed. Now that I’m about half-way through my first cup, I find that the fruit flavors are there, but this is still – first and foremost – a green tea.
And that’s just the way it should be. I like it when tea companies recognize that we’re drinking tea and they choose to not make their blends taste like a kid’s fruit drink. The green tea here is sweet and crisp. It is light and fresh, like the sweet air of summertime. And while the summertime slowly begins to fade as autumn approaches – I am happy to welcome the season of fall, but I find great enjoyment in this tea that seems to be a celebration of summer.
Of the fruit flavors, the strawberry is most prominent. It is lightly sweet and juicy. The raspberry adds a hint of tartness, as does the rhubarb. I like that these flavors are subtle, because normally, I would shy away from rhubarb flavored teas because they tend to be a little on the tart side. Not a bad thing, as I’ve really enjoyed the tart rhubarb blends I’ve tried thus far, but I seem to have a built-in, automatic response to the idea of tartness in a tea. But because these flavors are a little subdued, the tartness does not overwhelm my palate. The aftertaste is sweet with a berry tartness that tickles the tongue.
A really delicious tea. This is a tea that I’d recommend to those who like a little flavor with their tea … and not the other way around! This one is spectacular iced!