Chocolate Strawberry Mocha Tea from Shanti Tea

by teaequalsbliss

mochaTea Type:
Oolong Tea

Where To Buy:
Shanti Tea

Product Description:

Directions…
2 – 3 min, milk not recommended
Ingredients…
Tea (Camellia Sinensis), Coffee Beans, Cacao pieces, rosehips, safflowers, natural essences
Tasting Notes…
Certification: Conventional
Grade or Quality: full leaf
Aroma: chocolately, smoky, coffee notes
Infusion Aroma: smooth chocolately aroma with mild smokiness and pronounced coffee
Infusion Color: dark amber
Base flavor: chocolate mocha, earthy
Infusion Strength: strong, full bodied

Tasters Review:

Oh.My.Gawd!  YUMSVILLE!  I know a lot of people are either a coffee person OR a tea person…of course I would say I was a tea person!  But any time a company combines the two – I am intrigued!

The aroma of this is amazing! Juicy-sweet strawberry, Smooth and Sweet Chocolate, Hearty Mocha/Coffee! WOW!

The flavor is wonderful, too! All of the above in addition to semi-smoky Oolong!

It’s sweet, it’s juicy, it’s smooth, it’s slighty smoky, it’s coffee-bean, it’s a DREAM.

This is TOP NOTCH and takes you on a flavorful RIDE! LOVE it!

teaequalsbliss

Co-Founder/Co-Creator of Sororitea Sisters at Sororitea Sisters Jennifer (TeaEqualsBliss) is in her upper 30s and lives in the eastern snowbelt area of the US with her husband, 3 dogs, and cat (however the number of furkids can change at anytime as she LOVES providing a forever home for many shelter animals. Her several interests include music, movies, veganism, sports, traveling, collecting Baseball Cards and Unicorns, Radio, Computers, Crafting, and of course…TEA. She started drinking tea at the tender age of 3 thanks to her Grandmother and her love for tea has gotten stronger with each year! In addition to being a co-founder/co-creator of Sororitea Sisters - her main site is MyBlissfulJourney.com. Find out more about Jennifer on MyBlissfulJourney.com.

This post was posted in Oolong, Shanti Tea, Tea Company, Type Of Tea

Tulsi India Chai from Shanti Tea

by liberteas

tulsi-india-chai

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Tulsi & Rooibos

Where to Buy:  Shanti Tea

Tea Description:

Ingredients… Tulsi, Cinnamon, Rooibos, Ginger Root, Cardamom, Fennel, Pink Peppercorn

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This Tulsi India Chai from Shanti Tea is a really tasty twist on what I’ve come to expect from something labeled “chai.”  Usually, when I think “chai” … I think of a black tea base with the usual spices:  ginger, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon.  And while this blend does have three of the four usual spices … instead of black tea, it offers up a blend of rooibos and tulsi as the base for this chai.

The result is a naturally caffeine free blend that is spicy and sweet and really very delightful.  The tulsi gives it an herbaceous taste without pushing that herbaceousness into the “medicinal” zone, it tastes light and fresh and crisp … exhilarating!  There is a refreshing minty taste, notes of savory/sweet basil and this melds so beautifully with the spices.

As for the rooibos – well, I don’t really taste them here, and that’s just fine with me.  Rooibos isn’t my favorite taste anyway … and I like this blend just the way it is.

My favorite thing about this blend is the fennel … it gives this cup a snappy-sweet licorice-y taste that I’m really liking.  The cinnamon, cardamom, pepper and ginger work very harmoniously to provide a warm, comforting taste without tasting over-the-top spicy.  Instead, I’d call this well spiced … certainly warm and zesty without leaving my palate feeling overwhelmed by spice.

A very pleasant way to enjoy chai later in the day when you don’t want to load up on the caffeine … but still want that great taste of chai spice!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Rooibos, Shanti Tea, Tea Company, Tulsi, Type Of Tea

Smoky Jasmine from Shanti Tea

by liberteas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Shanti Tea

Tea Description:

A nice compliment to jasmine green teas, this smokier version is made with a Chinese green tea that has a distinctively stronger profile. A perfect tea for after meals, goes well with unsweetened pastries.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This is a very unusual jasmine tea.  Unusual, but I like it.  Of course, I expected it to be unusual, based on the name.

The smoke here is light … and with the first few sips, I was of the opinion that the name Smoky Jasmine is a bit misleading, because there really isn’t a strong, smoky presence in this cup.  There is a light smokiness that presents itself at the start which develops as I continue to sip.  By mid-cup, the smokiness is more apparent.

And the smoky notes offer an interesting contrast to the sweet flavor of the jasmine flower.  I find that it seems to emphasize some of the sweeter tones of the jasmine, offering a flavor that is sweet, almost dessert-like, but still very much jasmine.  No soapy taste, no sharp tones.  Just a new way to explore the lovely essence of jasmine.

I am really glad I got a chance to try this jasmine tea.  I don’t know that it is my favorite jasmine tea, but, I do enjoy it for it’s interesting twist on the classic.  Nice, and something I’d be very happy to drink again!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Green Tea, Jasmine Tea, Shanti Tea, Tea Company, Type Of Tea

Serengeti Black Tea from Shanti Tea

by liberteas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Shanti Tea

Tea Description:

A strong and earthy black tea from Tanzania; milk and sugar or honey is strongly recommended for this one.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Wow!  What an amazing black tea!

The flavor is bold and rich and malty, reminding me just a bit of an Assam … but smoother!  It has less astringency than a typical Assam, and a very well-rounded presentation.  It feels so full on the palate!

It has that biscuit-y quality to it that I find so desirable in black teas. It also has a delightful sweetness to it that really melds well with the biscuit-y tones, creating a rich, flavorful note that evokes thoughts of freshly baked scones. YUM!

It would make a perfect breakfast tea, and it takes the additions of milk and honey very well, but if you want a tea with a stronger edge, add nothing.  It tastes great either way!  I personally prefer it with about a half a teaspoon of turbinado sugar as it softens it just a bit and also enhances some of the caramel-y undertones.

I really love this tea.  This is the kind of tea you want to wake up to every day!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Black Tea, Shanti Tea, Tea Company, Type Of Tea

Kong Fu Black from Shanti Tea

by liberteas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Shanti Tea

Tea Description:

Leaf Aroma: peaty, earthy, smoky Infusion Aroma: earthy, slight smokiness

Infusion Color: Amber

Base Flavor: thick earthiness

Infusion Strength: Strong

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I am loving this tea!

But I’m not surprised, when I read the name “Kong Fu” I immediately surmised that this would be similar to Fujian teas that I’ve tried and loved.

The description above is pretty much spot on, except that I don’t get the thick earthiness in the flavor.  Instead, I taste a lovely dark chocolate-y, cocoa-y kind of flavor with an undertone of caramel.  It is rich with some earthy tones but not quite as strong as I would think that “thick earthiness” would imply.

There are notes of smoke to this infusion as well, and they marry with the chocolate-y notes quite nicely.  There are also some malty tones to it that complement the caramel sweetness.  Remarkably smooth and robust, this cup possesses very little astringency.

Such an incredibly delicious cup of tea!  This is a cup that I could easily drink every day and never tire of it. It’s that good.

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Black Tea, Shanti Tea, Tea Company, Type Of Tea