Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Functional Tisane
Where to Buy: Naked Teas Galore
Tisane Description:
This is crafted ever so carefully to ensure that no one ingredient overpowers another. Wow! What a blend. Balanced spice, herbaceous nettle and a subtle apple-like flavour brought by the chamomile. Soothing mint and sweet liquorice to finish.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
I wasn’t all that excited to try this Detox Tea from Naked Teas Galore. For one thing, it’s an herbal tisane, and for another it’s a functional herbal tisane. Two strikes against it right from the start, and then it’s a chamomile blend too. Yikes!
But I tried to remain positive and give it a try. After all, Amoda Tea has been pretty good at selecting teas and even tisanes that make me happy that I’m a subscriber. I mean, hey, if I wasn’t happy as a subscriber, I would have cancelled the subscription a long time ago. (Speaking of subscribing, I highly recommend signing up for December’s box … it sounds like it’s going to be a winner!)
But, let’s get back to this Detox Tea, shall we?
This is actually a lot tastier than I thought it would be. Normally, when I think “Detox Tea” or even “Functional Tisane,” I think that I’m in for a medicinal, herbaceous tasting drink. Fortunately, this tastes neither medicinal or herbaceous to me. The spices here are in the foreground, tasting more like cinnamon, cardamom, cinnamon and licorice than it does nettle or chamomile.
Oh sure, I can taste notes of the chamomile, and even hints of the herbaceous character of nettle and peppermint and dandelion root. I taste notes of citrus from the lemongrass. And all the flavors meld together in a way that is very tasty and not at all medicinal.
I like that the apple-y notes of the chamomile marry with the citrus tones of the lemongrass and the bright goji berry to create more of a “fruity” quality than distinct individual notes of each of these. The same is true of the spices. It doesn’t taste too much like any one of the spices, instead, I taste a medley of warm, zesty spice.
One of the nicer Detox tisanes that I’ve tasted … this is a detox I can stand behind, because this tastes really nice!
Yunomi Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club: Autumn Houjicha from the Takea Family
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Yunomi
Tea Description:
Houjicha is made by roasting ryokucha (green tea) over a strong fire. The greatest characteristics is in the roasted flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Yunomi’s Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club here.
Taster’s Review:
I absolutely LOVE the aroma of the dry leaf of this Autumn Houjicha from the Takea Family … part of August’s Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club package from Yunomi! It SMELLS like autumn! I can smell the roasted leaves, and it smells a bit like the smoke wafting out of a fireplace … but there’s something else about the fragrance of this tea too that is evoking the spirit of autumn for me. It … makes me think of the leaves as they change from green to orange, yellow and red before they fall to the ground. It reminds me of the smell of the crisp air that surrounds me as I go for a walk on an autumn afternoon. Yes … all of this from just a quick whiff of the dry leaf of the tea!
The flavor is also very autumnal with it’s roasty-toasty taste. This is one of those teas that you want to pour into a cup and then just cuddle under a blanket and enjoy the splendor of autumn from your favorite space in front of the fireplace.
This is toasty and nutty in taste. It has a nice sweetness, reminiscent of honey but not quite as thick. It also has notes of caramel … but this would be a very light, thin caramel … like the taste the sugar begins to take on just as it’s starting to break down from the heat when you’re making homemade caramel. It isn’t an overpowering sweetness … just enough to keep me coming back for more!
It has a warm, roasted taste to it … and as I sip it, I’m contemplating how this will taste when I add some genmai to it for my review of the Genmai later this month. The Genmai was also in this month’s Yunomi Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club package, so I’ll get to make my own “custom” genmaicha using some of this delicious Houjicha (as well as the Bancha that I reviewed previously.)
I’m thinking that this was a perfect tea to include in this package to enjoy during these first few days of autumn … because it’s such a lovely celebration of the season! I love this!
Creamy Cacao Delight from Hale Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green & White Teas
Where to Buy: Hale Tea Company
Tea Description:
Creamy white cacao pretty much sums it up! Lingering white chocolate flavour and notes of vanilla bean meld naturally with subtle hints of the green and white tea at its base. This is a velvety soft tea that’s surprisingly light.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
Amoda Tea has made some changes with their monthly Tea Tasting Box, and it sounds to me like these changes may be for the better! First of all, the amount of tea will be less per tea – which is fine by me because I am more of a taster than one who likes to keep large amounts of tea on hand. Second … the cost of the monthly box is less! I can live with that! Ha! Finally, Amoda will no longer be selling the tea to the public … oh, they’ll still assemble the boxes, but if you want more of any particular tea after sampling it, you’ll be forwarded to the tea company that sells the tea to order directly from them.
So far, I’m really happy with these changes!
For the month of September, the featured tea company is Hale Tea Company. The first tea that I chose to sample from this company is Creamy Cacao Delight, because … well, did you happen to see the word Cacao in the name? Yeah, I like that word. That word says to me that this tea will be a yummy, chocolate-y tea. And that brings a big smile to this chocoholic’s face!
The aroma of the dry leaf is deliciously creamy with vanilla top notes and notes of chocolate. My mouth started watering the moment I opened the pouch! Once brewed, I notice less of the vanilla tones and more of the chocolate-y notes.
The flavor … oh my goodness! This is yum. As I’ve mentioned before (even in this article!) I’m a chocoholic. But, white chocolate … doesn’t always do it for me. I’d much rather have dark chocolate. I generally find white chocolate to be too sweet, and I enjoy the contrast of bitter and sweet in a darker chocolate. But … I’m liking the sweet creamy notes here just fine!
There is a lovely balance between vanilla and chocolate notes to provide a very rich, creamy, decadent taste. The white tea and green tea provide a nice base for the chocolate flavors, because it doesn’t overwhelm the chocolate, but it’s also not allowing itself to be overpowered. I taste both teas – the green tea is fresh and vegetative and the white tea has a crispness to it, as well as a hay-like note that tastes really quite nice with the white chocolate tones.
And as the description above suggests, the overall tone to this cup is light. It isn’t a heavy feel on the palate, and this I like because even though it’s white chocolate … it’s a flavor that I often find “too much” because it is a very sweet form of chocolate-y taste. The lightness allows the goodness of white chocolate to come through without all that heavy sweetness.
This is a light, sweet, delicious way to experience a balance between vanilla and chocolate. YUMMY! And … this one must be resteeped! The chocolate-y flavors really intensify with the second steeping.
Yunomi Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club: NaturaliTea #01 – Organic Handpicked Midori First Flush
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Yunomi
Tea Description:
2013 harvest from Naturalitea. Handpicked from a select number of the Kinezuka family and partners’ best fields at the very beginning of the shincha season this is the youngest tea leaf you can find.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Yunomi’s Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club here.
Taster’s Review:
I know that I’ve mentioned before just how much I love receiving a monthly mystery tea sampler’s club package from Yunomi every month. And this Organic Midori First Flush tea from NaturaliTea (if you’re looking on the website, this is the #01 tea from NaturaliTea) is an example of why I love receiving these teas. This is SO fresh. I absolutely love it when I can see and taste the freshness in a tea.
The color of the dry leaf is so vibrant and they are a dark, forest-y green. I can smell the vegetal quality of these leaves, it smells like something in between just-cut spring grass, freshly steamed vegetables and kelp. It has that aroma that is just ALIVE with vegetation.
And the flavor is equally as fresh tasting. It has a sweetness to it and a sharp bitter taste of a good quality Japanese green tea. The bitterness offers a really lovely, savory contrast to the sweetness of the young leafy taste. I like the balance of savory to sweet here … it is neither too sweet nor too bitter … it is just a pleasure to sip!
It has a light, brothy character to it … it just FEELS good when I drink it … I can feel it rejuvenate me as I sip. It tastes fresh and it refreshes the palate as it washes over the tongue. This tea … just speaks to me of springtime: from the taste of the young leaves of the spring harvest to the fresh fragrance and flavor. It is a very refreshing beverage!
Yunomi Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club: Kesennuma Kuwacha Sencha Mulberry Leaf Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Yunomi
Tea Description:
Rare Japanese mulberry tea, or kuwacha (桑茶), is very similar to a light sencha without the caffeine.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Yunomi’s Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club here.
Taster’s Review:
I was a little unsure about trying this Kesennuma Kuwacha Sencha Mulberry Leaf Tea from the Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club from Yunomi, because I can’t recall actually having tried a Tisane made from just mulberry leaves before. I probably have had tea blends with mulberry leaves … but, I can’t recall trying a straight mulberry leaf tisane before.
But, I decided what the heck, I was going to give it a try, because everything that I’ve tried thus far from Yunomi I’ve enjoyed … so I put my faith in this company and hoped that they wouldn’t let me down.
And you know what – they didn’t! This is really quite nice. The aroma of the dry leaf is very pleasant with its sweet fruity notes and leafy/grassy tones. And the dark green, finely chopped leaves resemble a Japanese Sencha. Once brewed, the tisane keeps some of the fruity notes, and the leafy/grassy notes become more distinctive.
The flavor is very reminiscent of a Japanese Sencha, believe it or not! I was actually quite surprised by the flavor … I didn’t expect it to taste so much like a Sencha! It is sweet, slightly buttery, with fruity notes. It has a light character to it (although, if you want it stronger, you can add more leaf!) and the texture isn’t quite as brothy as a Sencha tea might be but … the grassy/leafy notes of the Sencha are there. This might actually be a little sweeter due to the fruity quality, and I’m noticing less (as in very little if any) savory taste to this. It’s more like a sweeter version of a Sencha … without the invigorating caffeine.
This tisane is perfect for those of you who would like to enjoy a green tea later in the evening but don’t want the caffeine … this has such a “green tea” taste to it that you’d think you’re drinking green tea … but you’re not! It’s really quite wonderful!