Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: SerendipiTea
Tisane Description:
Escape for a short while to a secret place for which you only hold the key.
Ingredients: Chamomile (Organic), Lavender (Organic), Peppermint (Organic), Rooibos (Organic), Rose Petals (Organic)
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third tea/tisane from my June Steepster Select Box, themed “Around the Clock.” Of the three teas in this month’s box, this was the one I was least excited about, but as it turns out, I really am enjoying this … so much so that this one could easily become a permanent fixture in my cupboard. Yes, I like it that much!
One glance at the ingredients suggest that this is the evening tea of the Steepster Select Box: soothing, naturally caffeine-free chamomile and lavender, cool peppermint, and sweet rooibos and rose petals. This is definitely a tea made for bedtime.
I really like the way the ingredients work together in this blend. The rose and peppermint offer the strongest flavor, but, they also balance each other out so that it is neither too rosy nor too minty. The chamomile is subtle, but offers a sweet, apple-like flavor in the background. And thankfully, the lavender is not overdone here. I love lavender, but when lavender is too strong it imparts a very perfume-y taste, and while this is strongly floral, it doesn’t taste of perfume.
The rooibos is not a strong flavor here, and I’m okay with that too. It does offer a slight earthiness to the overall flavor, somewhat nutty and woody, but, these flavors manage to meld together with the stronger floral essences and create a very pleasing taste. The overall cup is definitely on the feminine side – sweet with exotic floral tones – and I find that helps to give the cup an almost nurturing effect.
I feel very calm and relaxed after sipping on this tea, and I find this enjoyable enough that I could easily enjoy this on a nightly basis. It’s really quite nice!
Cucumber Mojito Green Tea from Inspired Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Inspired Leaf
Tea Description:
Crisp, refreshing mint and lime mojo. Amazing on the rocks! Inspiration No. 26: Tea makes your eyes twinkle.
Ingredients: Organic green tea, peppermint, cucumber, lime pieces, lime leaves, lime juice, stevia, natural flavors.
Caffeine level-low.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is very refreshing! Perfect for this time of year, when the weather is warm and you’re in search of a bright-tasting, cooling, vibrant cup of tea! This tea is definitely all that!
I am sipping a small cup of this hot at the moment (mostly because I couldn’t wait for it to cool!) and saving the rest to let it cool so that I can enjoy it iced. I don’t like to add ice to my tea, because even if I brew it at double or triple strength, I find that the ice just waters it down too much for my liking, and I suppose I could go through all the trouble to make tea ice cubes, but, that seems like more trouble than it’s worth in this household, since I’m the only one who drinks tea on a regular basis, and there are other people who are using the ice cube trays!
Instead, I prefer to brew the tea at normal strength and let it cool to room temperature before refrigerating, and then serving it chilled, straight, no ice. Sometimes, I might add a thin slice of citrus, but with this tea – no need. The lime is already in there!
And the lime is zesty without being too tart. It isn’t overly assertive, and neither is the peppermint. The mint IS the strongest flavor here, but, I like that it’s been tempered with the other ingredients, and it isn’t overthrowing the whole balance. I can even taste the cucumber here! I had, of course, hoped to taste the cucumber, but, I wasn’t so sure that the delicate, refreshing taste of cucumber would shine through the strong notes of lime and peppermint. It certainly doesn’t overpower them, but, its there, and it adds a very lovely element to the overall cup.
And, let us not forget about the tea! This IS a tea, after all, and I expect to taste it. The green tea adds a fresh, slightly vegetal taste to the cup. It is somewhat buttery and sweet, the mouthfeel is soft, and I like the way that the green tea seems to complete the cup in a very enjoyable way.
One thing I would like to point out here though, is that I wish that they did not add stevia to this blend. In fact, I wish that other tea companies would stop doing this too. It seems to be a growing trend, adding stevia to enhance the sweetness. I like to decide on my own how sweet I want the tea to be, and then I like to add the sweetener of my choice. I find that most stevia leaves a funky, somewhat metallic aftertaste that I’m not crazy about, and while the aftertaste here is not badly affected, I do taste the stevia, and I wish I didn’t.
While this cup is delicious served hot, it is best enjoyed iced, in my opinion, served as I indicated above: brewing at normal strength, bringing to room temperature and chilling in the fridge. It is a perfectly refreshing drink for these warm summer months that await us!
White Rose Tea from The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tea Description:
This fragrant white tea blend consists of all organic ingredients. Roses, jasmine, and lavender are combined with rejuvenating peppermint for a delicious and scented cup. Great for morning or evening enjoyment. Contains: green tea, rose petals, jasmine flowers, lavender flowers, peppermint leaves. Moderate Caffeine.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The aroma of the dry leaf is enchanting! It has a strong peppermint scent, but, because the rose is also quite strong, these two seem to contrast each other enough to offer a bouquet that is beautifully floral and yet, deliciously minty at the same time. In the background, I also smell notes of jasmine and lavender. It’s a very pleasing fragrance.
The infusion is also nicely fragrant, smelling a bit more of the rose than of the peppermint, which was what I was hoping for. But I purchased this tea based on the promise of a “White Rose Tea” … and not a peppermint one. I am glad that the rose is prominent, with notes of lavender and jasmine accenting the rose and a hint of peppermint in the background. It smells fresh and romantic, and evokes thoughts of summer when roses are in bloom.
With all these strong floral and peppermint notes, I expected the flavor of the white tea to be absent. But it is not. On the contrary, the flavor of the white tea is very well-defined with its sweet, slightly creamy attributes. It is a very nice base for the flavors of rose, lavender and jasmine – as well as the peppermint – to express themselves.
Not surprisingly, the rose is the strongest component of the cup. It actually starts out rather perfume-y, to the point of numbing the tip of the tongue with its sharp, perfumed quality. That being said, somehow, it is not an off-putting perfume-y taste. It doesn’t taste soapy, it is more reminiscent of rose water than of Aunt Bertha’s perfume. And once the tea has cooled slightly, the flavor tends to settle in, and allows the palate to explore the other notes with ease.
The jasmine and lavender are softer flavors, and I find they serve more as an accent to the rose rather than as individual floral notes. It becomes more of a medley of floral flavor with the rose as the main focus of that medley. The peppermint is also a softer flavor, and I found myself actually looking for it with the first few sips, it was that soft. Now that I am halfway through the cup, the peppermint is more apparent, although it is still not what I’d consider to be a strong flavor. This sometimes aggressive herb seems rather content to be a background note here, and allow the flowers to take center stage.
I find this to be a very enjoyable cup of tea. It offers a delightful sense of tranquility as well as romance, so pour two cups of this tea and sip it with someone special.
PecaMint from Design A Tea (Also Known As PeacaMint)
Tea Type: Rooibos
Where To Buy:
Design A Tea
Product Description:
“PeacaMint” Tea – Was our 2008 Holiday Blend. A smooth mix of earthy pecan flavor with that seasonal and traditional peppermint hint, makes for a “manly, yet soft” concoction. Blended in a Rooibos base and being naturally caffeine free, this holiday blend is PERFECT for cuddling up on a sofa and watching the snow fall outside your window. Which is always better than watching it snow inside your house I guess!
Tasters Review:
I’m assuming, although I don’t know for sure, that this one did so well, they now offer it full-time! What once started as a holiday blend – seems to have people talking year-round! OR…at least it has ME talking about it year-round! I LOVE THIS Flavored Rooibos!
This has some hearty peppermint on top of a decent amount of pecan and rooibos which makes for a unique combo of flavors! If you have tried Pecan Butter and then had something pepperminty afterwards you might get the idea of this flavor, here! It has ‘just enough…EVERYTHING” for my personal palate! It’s refreshing – yes! But it’s also quite fulfilling, too, like you just had a nice dessert! The peppermint lingers long after the cup is finished.
I think this is just dandy!
Guayusa Tea With Mint from Stash Tea Company
Tea Type:
Guayusa
Where To Buy:
Stash Tea Company
Product Description:
GUAYUSA (gwhy-you-sa) is a rare herbal tea produced from the leaves of a holly tree (ilex guayusa) native to the Amazon Rainforest of Ecuador. Guayusa is naturally caffeinated and has an awakening effect similar to coffee and yerba mate. For this signature blend, Guayusa is paired with peppermint and spearmint for a refreshing, rejuvenating blend.
Tasters Review:
Many of you know I LOVE Mint! The MORE Mint the Merrier for me! With this Guayusa with mint from Stash it has more mint than Guayusa and I am totally fine with that! The mint is strong but refreshing! I like this a lot!!! It’s Crisp, clean, helps clear the senses, too! This is a wonderfully flavored Guayusa! NICELY DONE Stash!!