Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Shanti Tea
Tea Description:
It is usually at the strike of midnight that the world begins to unravel into the beautiful and magical creation that it truly is. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this blend while the world’s magical nature reveals itself to you.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf of this Midnight Magic Green Tea from Shanti Tea has a strong floral note with a distinct vegetative note and just a hint of citrus. Once brewed, the rose remains strong, and the citrus emerges just a bit.
What I’m noticing immediately with this tea, and what I’m liking best about this particular tea from Shanti Tea, is that it is first and foremost a green tea. That is to say, this tea isn’t a strongly flavored tea where the taste of the tea has to compete with the flavoring.
The vegetative notes of the green tea are strong without tasting sharp. Yes, it is a grassy note, but its not a bitter grassiness. It’s actually quite smooth. It is lightly sweet, but I find that this tea tastes more savory to me than many green teas. It’s pleasantly brothy and my palate finds it very agreeable.
The rose is a faint note – it is much more distinct a scent than it is a flavor in this cup. It offers a touch of floral sweetness, but I’m not finding this cup to be overtly floral. The same is true of the citrus … the orange is delicate … oh, I can certainly taste it and it tastes really nice … but it doesn’t overwhelm the cup. I find that as I continue to sip, the sweet orange flavor reveals itself more, and by mid-cup, there is a really lovely orange-y flavor that accompanies the grassy notes of the green tea. The rose never really becomes more than an accent flavor, but it is quite lovely the way it is.
I found this to be an enjoyable cuppa – sweet, flavorful and one I’d be happy to sip on anytime!
Irish Cream Black Tea from Shanti Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tea Description:
The Irish love strong black teas, so be ready! There’s an enticing aroma of cream and a malty, earthy, creamy sweet flavour. It’s brisk and full-bodied. And organic to boot.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn how to subscribe to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!
This is the first tea that I am sampling from this month’s Amoda Tea Tasting Box. This box seems to be focused not only on St. Patrick’s Day, but also on spring.
When I first brewed this Irish Cream Black Tea from Shanti Tea, I thought it might be an Irish Breakfast type blend that has been flavored with a vanilla cream flavor … but as it turns out, it is more like an “Irish Cream” flavor … and I taste very subtle hints of cream liqueur along with the overtones of vanilla cream. YUM!
And this is indeed yummy! The cream note is well-defined, and it enhances the overall cup really nicely. It adds a pleasing creamy taste, eliminating the need to add dairy to the cup for that desired creamy note. The vanilla also accentuates the malty tones of the Assam tea in this blend. (At least, it certainly TASTES like Assam is in this tea!) The liqueur note is subtle, but, I like how it weaves its way in and out of the sip.
Because of what I believe IS Assam in this blend, it’s important not to over-steep this tea. I steeped my cup for 2 1/2 minutes and I’d say that is just about perfect. Any longer and I think this would have a slightly bitter tone, but, as it is, this is tasting just right. There is a moderate astringency to the cup.
This is an extraordinarily rich cup of tea – a great tea with which to start your day. Just enough sweetness to it … and a whole lot of gusto!
Chocolate Strawberry Mocha Tea from Shanti Tea
Tea 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!
Dragon Mint Rooibos Blend from Shanti Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Shanti Tea
Tisane Description:
Certification: Organic
Aroma: Minty
Infusion Aroma: Minty (hint of nuts)
Infusion Color: Deep Amber
Base flavor: Minty
Infusion Strength: Medium
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
Minty! This Dragon Mint Rooibos Blend from Shanti Tea is for those of us you who really love mint!
The mint flavor here is strong! So strong that it nearly overpowers the rooibos. And in my opinion, that’s not a bad thing, especially since rooibos aren’t my favorite thing. This blend has just enough rooibos to add just a little something extra to the cup – a pleasing nutty tone in the background – without adding that sometimes “off” or funky taste that comes from rooibos.
Then there is the PEPPERMINT! It is really zesty and invigorating! And yes, it does have a very minty taste, but, perhaps it’s that nutty note that is in the background … but I am not thinking “toothpaste” or “mouthwash” as I sip this. It is definitely fresh tasting … and leaving my mouth feeling fresh and clean. But it’s more like a breath mint to me than an oral hygiene product.
A pleasant cuppa served hot or cold!
Tulsi India Chai from Shanti Tea
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!