Hello tea friends!
Today I will be drinking Cocoa Rouge, a herbal blend from The Jasmine Pearl Tea Co. Two of the ingredients are organic (Cocoa nibs and Rooibos) so it’s a partially organic and mildly caffeinated blend. With the cold weather on the way I have the desire to drink hot chocolate, that is why this blend caught my attention. Cocoa with vanilla and chicory sounds like a warming and sweet blend.
Opening the sample packet I can smell toasted chicory with a sweet vanilla undertone. The Rooibos is also rather heavy in this blend, in appearance and smell.
Steeping Parameters: 13g of loose leaf tea in 600ml of boiling water for 3 minutes.
Once steeped the tea bares a very dark brown tea liquid with a sweet vanilla and Rooibos scent. Not as toasted or chicory like as the raw scent.
The first few sips reveal a sweet and creamy vanilla tone that balances the natural sweetness from the Rooibos. Behind that there are dark, toasty cocoa nib and chicory notes that quickly lightens in the after taste. A few more sips bring out some dryness in the after taste but the velvety vanilla makes up for that. It is a Rooibos heavy blend but it’s not the main flavour and a lot of it has been toned down, so while I can taste it it’s not too sweet or chemical like which it tends to be. If you’ve had Rooibos before you will know what I’m talking about. As it cools slightly I am getting a real hot chocolate vibe from it. It’s sweet and the cocoa is thicker, plus the vanilla makes it more chocolate like.
Overall it was a pleasant blend, though I admit guilt for underestimating it from the start. As soon as I saw it was a Rooibos blend I immediately thought it’s either going to be too Rooibos heavy (which I severely dislike) or too chicory heavy to block out the Rooibos taste. I was wrong on both accounts. I can taste the Rooibos but the vanilla keeps the sweetness creamy and the chicory and cocoa give it depth and flavour.. The ingredients work well together to give an imaginative hot chocolate tea. It goes to show that you can never judge a tea by it’s ingredients alone.
Until next time, Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: The Jasmine Pearl Tea
Description:
Cacao nibs and hearty roasted chicory add lots of body to the rooibos base in this rich, satisfying blend. Vanilla extract helps give the mixture its warm flavor and adds depth to its enticing aroma. As a dessert blend, Cocoa Rouge can be drunk by itself, but the addition of milk and sweetener makes for an extra-delicious treat. Due to the cacao nibs, the blend does have some caffeine in it, so best to enjoy it well before bedtime.
Ingredients:
Cacao Nibs, Rooibos, Vanilla Beans, Carob, Chicory Root, Vanilla Extract.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Spicy Caramel Apple Cinnamon Herbal from Plum Deluxe
Living in the Midwest has spoiled me, you guys. I recently left my full-swing-of-fall homestate for a business trip to Texas, and was shocked when I stepped off the plane and was greeted with a wall of thick humidity the likes of which we hadn’t seen near the Great Lakes for months. You see, the second the first cool breeze and slightly orange-tinged leaf make their first appearances here in September, I’ve busted out my entire (vast– trust me.) collection of scarves, colorful tights, and obviously– autumnal teas 🙂
This limited 
edition autumn blend from Plum Deluxe hit all the necessary checkpoints for a perfect seasonal blend– spicy? Check. Slightly sweet? Yessir. Caramel-y smooth? Done and done. Upon first blend, my cup is evocative of an afternoon in the orchards– the apple notes are present and delightfully smooth. I will say the second steeping loses the apple for me, but the cinnamon remains, and it certai
nly can carry this tea on its own. Whether autumn is in full swing where you are, or you’re sweating it out in the sunshine and greenery, this tea is a great one to carry you through the season!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Plum Deluxe
Description
Nothing says fall flavor better than apples and cinnamon — and we’re taking it to the next level with the addition of fresh spices and a splash of caramel, to create the perfect tea paired for enjoying freshly harvested foods, carving pumpkins, going on a walk in the fresh autumnal air, or savoring your own special fall moments.
Even better, our spiced caramel apple cinnamon tea only has a pinch of organic rooibos tea as a base, making it caffeine-free, so you can enjoy it as an after dinner treat or a lovely bedtime companion.
This is a limited-edition tea available until Dec 31st, or while supplies last.
All Plum Deluxe teas are hand-blended and infused with love in Portland, Oregon. Each 1 oz tea packet makes 15-20 cups. All organic ingredients — no sulfites, no artificial chemicals, non-GMO.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pineapple Bacon Rooibos from 52Teas
My husband (type B, carnivore) and my brother (type A, vegetarian) are friends, but they don’t agree on many things. One of the few they agree on: me. I’m great and they know it.
The other thing they both like: facon. (Fake bacon.) They adore this strange compromise between bacon and fantasyland.
I’m not much of a facon person, but I think this tea is fascinating. This facon/rooibos/pineapple tea is totally unlike anything I’ve ever had. It’s juicy, salty, and throaty. It’s lush.
It’s also a little bit peculiar.
I decided to take it and shove it in people’s faces. My roommate says it smells like “green olives.” My husband says it smells like “throat soothing medicine.”
I don’t know if it’s something I’d purchase, but I am so glad I got a chance to try it. This tea is so original. I’ll enjoy the rest of my sample.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea was reblended by request from one of our start-up Kickstarter contributors. I started with organic red rooibos and added bacon and pineapple flavors. I also added freeze-dried pineapple bits and vegan bacon bits – this blend is 100% vegan but I can’t be 100% certain that it’s 100% gluten-free. I’m not sure if the vegan bacon bits are gluten-free and the packaging didn’t assist me in finding out. The company that I ordered them from wasn’t any more helpful. (Sorry!) So if you’re one who needs to avoid gluten, I wouldn’t recommend this tea. I do take very special care to avoid cross-contamination – so the other teas are fine – but this tea, I’m not 100% sure of it’s gluten-free-ness.
The original description of this tea goes like this:
Did you think we were done playing with bacon teas?
So did I. But check this out: I was thinking about how much I enjoy a Hawaiian pizza or just a nice ham with a pineapple glaze and nice juicy pineapple rings baked on it… My wife is of the opinion that meat and fruit should not be mixed, but… well, nobody’s perfect, right? Anyway, I was thinking that if ham and pineapple is good, pineapple and BACON would be even better. And when I was thinking about what base tea to use, it occured to me that the woodiness that I personally somewhat dislike about rooibos might go well with pineapple and bacon, and oh boy does it! Juicy pineapple, salty bacon and refreshing rooibos are an amazing combination. Not to mention that it’s a guilt-free indulgence.
I stuck pretty close to the recipe for this blend. After reading my review of the original blend – read it here – I seem to recall the original blend tasting a bit too sweet, kinda like pineapple bubblegum with bacon flavoring which is just a little bit weird. Fortunately, I’m not really tasting that now which I’m grateful for. I taste pineapple – it’s the strongest flavor component and I taste bacon. The bacon flavoring does lend a certain ‘salty’ factor to this blend but you might want to add just a teeny pinch of salt to the cup to enhance that salty bacon flavor. But I don’t taste “bubblegum” or that sweet, sugary note that a ‘bubblegum’ description would seem to imply.
I am enjoying the balance of flavors better here than I think I did with the original blend – so overall, it’s a win for me. And hopefully our contributor enjoys it too and it’s a win for her!
Taster size is approximately 15g.
organic ingredients: rooibos, freeze-dried pineapple, vegan bacon bits and natural flavors.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Mocha Mate from Blackbird Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh Tea, Rooibos & Yerba Maté blend
Where to Buy: Blackbird Tea Co. or Black Bird Tea Co. Etsy
Tea Description:
In Argentina and Uruguay, maté is traditionally sipped through a metal straw in a cured gourd. Try that in rush hour traffic! Our interpretation is a blend of roasted maté mixed with rooibos, black pu-erh tea, and a kick of chocolate, lemongrass, cinnamon and ginger. Drink it throughout the day for a chocolaty, spicy pick-me-up.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When this tea first arrived, I was so excited! I have a tea that I love from Adagio Teas that is a version of a Mocha Mate. I can take that tea down in no time flat.
I quickly grabbed this tea and throw it in my Breville One Touch choosing the herbal setting (seeing how their is Mate in it). Poured myself a huge cup of it and sat down to write the review and then it hit me. The smell. The smell of my arch enemy. The smell one of the only teas I have trouble drinking. Yes. This tea had rooibos in it.
Unfortunately for me, I am not a rooibos fan. We each have our own teas that we adore and love and then there are the teas that really aren’t our cuppa. This one falls into the latter category. From the other flavors I was getting when I did try a sip, this tea is phenomenal. The spices and chocolate mix so well together and produce this vibrant and invigorating flavor with a sweet lemon like kick.
But with the rooibos in there, I think I need to find this darling a new home. Rooibos and I just have never gotten along. But from what I tasted, the rest of the tea is amazing. If you like rooibos blends, check this one out. I bet it would be delightful to you!
Harvest Apple Spice Tea from Tea Forte
Tea Type:
Rooibos
Where To Buy:
Tea Forte
Product Description:
rooibos, organic cinnamon, apple chunks, hibiscus, natural apple flavor, clove buds, natural cinnamon flavor, other natural flavors
A naturally-caffeine free blend with the taste of crisp sweet apples and the luscious warming of spices, for a cup reminiscent of Mom’s apple pie.
Tasters Review:
‘Tis the Harvest Season! I thought I would celebrate with this time of year with this tisane from Tea Forte.
Harvest Apple Spice from Tea Forte smells like Cider and Cologne.
It steeps up rather dark!…not a VERY Dark Brown but Medium to medium-dark brown.
The spice is just enough and nice. The apple is juicy, plump, and not overly tart. The hibiscus is barely there and I am totally fine with that.
This is also part of Tea Forte’s WARMING JOY Gift Box. I love the presentation of their gift boxes! They are beautiful!
Overall I was pleasantly surprised by this one!
