Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tisane Description:
Enjoy the refreshing and cooling flavor of peppermint straight from the leaves. Peppermint can be enjoyed on its own or added to another tea blend. The soothing leaves lend well to any sweetener. We recommend a touch of honey and lemon when enjoying these herbal leaves hot or iced.
Ingredients: Peppermint Leaves
Learn more about this tisane here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Co-Op program here.
Taster’s Review:
Crisp and cool!
Yes, this is plain and simple pure dried peppermint leaves. That doesn’t make them any less enjoyable! The leaves produce a really invigorating yet soothing drink that is tasty served hot or cold. It’s especially nice after a spicy meal because I like the way peppermint tames the tummy after eating my chili! (And I love chili this time of year!)
The tisane tastes very refreshing. It’s a very uplifting drink. And mint is a big hit in this household – this is something I can brew and chill and know that my daughter will pour herself a cold glass of this rather than reach for a sugary soda.
To steep this tisane, I used below boiling water. I generally do this with all herbs, because it’s been my experience that boiling water can scorch the herbs and they end up tasting bitter. I don’t know if this is the case with all herbs, but I’ve noticed it with some herbs so I’ve just taken to the practice of using under boiling water for all herbals. 195°F ought to do it! I steeped 1 bamboo scoop of leaf in 12 ounces of 195°F water for 10 minutes and this produced a very minty cup!
Peppermint isn’t something I can drink all day long because it is a very strong minty flavor and after a while, it does end up getting a little too much. But like I said, I do like to have peppermint leaves on hand for after a spicy meal, and it’s also quite nice to sip on when I’m feeling a little under the weather (especially with an upset stomach) because it perks me right up.
It’s also nice when served with a little citrus. The description above suggests lemon, but my personal favorite is lime! I love the taste of lime with peppermint! Also, if you want to give a boost to your favorite green or black tea, add a little bit of peppermint leaves to the loose leaf green or black tea before brewing to add a bright twist to your favorite tea. It’s a good tisane to have on hand.
White Pear Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
Premium white tea from Fujian region of China infused with the taste of ripe pears. Warm and sugary aroma, like a freshly baked pear, with a pear skin crisp finish. Wonderfully smooth and rounded, perfect hot or iced.
Ingredients: White Tea, Apple Pieces, Natural Pear Flavor
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Co-Op program here.
Taster’s Review:
Recently, Simple Loose Leaf announced some changes to their program. This month’s teas will be the last of the “Selection Club” teas and next month is their flagship month of their new (and improved!) Co-Op program/membership.
How this plan will work (or at least, how I’ve been made to understand that it will work!) is this:
- Every month, you receive a box of samples of the latest teas that have been added to the Simple Loose Leaf store. Each monthly box will contain somewhere between 4 – 6 teas and these will be sample size (1/4 of an ounce. I like that size!)
- If you like what you taste, you can shop with Simple Loose Leaf to receive a full-sized package of the tea at a 50% discount off of Simple Loose Leaf’s regular retail prices. (That is to say that all your purchases outside of the sampler box each month will be sold to members at a 50% discount! I like that!)
- The membership price is $15/month and you can cancel at any time. There’s no contract or requirement outside of the $15/month. No annual fees. (Hey, that’s better than the deal I’ve got going with my cell phone! And I like tea better than I like my cell phone.)
- You can also buy gift memberships. (Nice gift!)
- To join or learn more, click here.
I’m personally really excited at this new plan because I’m a taster. I like the new sampler size of the teas that will be sent each month as part of the subscription.
Oh, don’t get me wrong, I loved their Selection Club, and this month’s Selection Club box was filled with many exciting tea selections. Like this White Pear Tea. It’s awesome!
By the appearance of the dry leaf, I would speculate that the base used for this tea is a Shou Mei base. The leaf looks like other Shou Mei teas that I’ve had and among the tea leaves are chunks of dried apple.
Why dried apple? Well, I don’t know for sure but here’s what I think (and my opinion is based on my experiences that I’ve had as a tea blender): the dried fruit that is added to a tea like this adds relatively little flavor to the brewed tea and basically the purpose of the dried fruit is not to “flavor” the tea but to add some visual appeal to it. And dried apple is much easier to find than dried pear and apple and pear look very much alike. In my experiences with blending teas, dried apple adds very little to the overall flavor of the brewed tea. It might add a delicate sweetness to the cup but not a lot of true apple flavor.
To brew this tea, I grabbed my Kati brewing system and scooped out a heaping bamboo scoop into the basket of the Kati and then I added just a wee bit more tea leaf. Not quite a half a scoop … not even quite a fourth of a scoop. Just a wee bit. Then I heated the water to a low temperature (170°F) and poured the water into the tumbler and let the tea steep for 4 minutes.
The brewed liquid has a really delightful aroma. It smells like warm pear with delicate notes of white tea. It’s a sweet, fruity and really quite delicious fragrance!
The flavor tastes as good as the aroma! The white tea is a delicate flavor: sweet and hay-like. It’s smooth, not bitter and if there’s any astringency to this, I’m having a hard time finding it! Maybe a twinge or two of pucker in my cheeks at the very end of the sip. It’s a very flavorful white tea.
The pear is also quite flavorful and I’m happy to say that it has an authentic pear-like flavor. It reminds me of the flavor of a baked or poached pear (not the spice part but the sweet, soft part of the fruit).
Having tried quite a few pear teas in the past and occasionally being disappointed by the pear flavoring, I am happy to say that this has a really amazing pear flavor. If you’re looking for a really good pear tea – this is it!
Shou Mei White Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
White tea, considered by many tea experts to be the finest tea on earth, comes primarily from the Fujian Province in China. It is very lightly processed with sunlight and low temperatures. A standard grade Chinese Tea, Shou Mei White with its downy silver tipped leaves has a sweet, floral aroma and a mild, smooth, lightly sweet, pale yellow liquor.
Ingredients: Shou Mei White Tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Receive 25% savings on the Selection Club from Simple Loose Leaf. Just type in SISTERSELECTION25 in the coupon field and save 25%! This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve been drinking quite a few flavored Shou Mei white teas lately, but it’s been a little while since I’ve had a pure Shou Mei. So I was happy to be able to reacquaint myself with an unadulterated Shou Mei!
I’m very pleased with the quality of these leaves. The leaves are soft and are covered in fluffy fuzz, and the leaves vary in color from pale green, silver, and light brown. This is not the “typical” Shou Mei that sometimes looks and feels like dried, brown leaves. This appears to be a higher quality tea leaf to me.
And the difference is not only evident in the appearance of the leaves but the flavor of the tea. I steeped these leaves at 170°F for 3 minutes. The liquid is a pale amber color and has a delicate, hay-like aroma.
The flavor is sweet, fresh and light. It has a crispness to it, evoking thoughts of a cool spring morning. It makes me think of the dewdrops on fresh new leaves in spring. There is also a distinct “hay-like” flavor, like the air after a cutting of hay. I spent my adolescent years in an area that grew a lot of hay and alfalfa and you could always tell when the local farms cut their hay as the hay cut imparted a distinct essence to the air that was not only experienced by the nose but also the taste buds. That’s what I’m tasting (and smelling!) with this tea now.
It’s quite a pleasant cup of Shou Mei! And this tea offers multiple infusions. I’m currently on my third infusion, and the flavor just will not quit! (A good thing, because I’m really enjoying it and I’m not ready to stop drinking it!) A great choice for this month’s box from Simple Loose Leaf!
Four Seasons Oolong Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
Four Seasons of Spring is named because it produces four flushes (or harvests) each year that have a flavor and quality of that of a spring flush. This varietal was cultivated in Taiwan from a strain of TieGuanYin (Iron Goddess of Mercy), in the 1980s. This delightful oolong varietal has been cultivated for its sweet, floral flavors and expertly processed by hand. It is light yet buttery with lingering flowery finish of morning gardenias and warm milk.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Receive 25% savings on the Selection Club from Simple Loose Leaf. Just type in SISTERSELECTION25 in the coupon field and save 25%! This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Taster’s Review:
This Four Seasons Oolong from Simple Loose Leaf is absolutely delightful!
The appearance of the dry leaf is quite what you’d expect from a Four Seasons Oolong – beautiful, forest-y green leaves that have been rolled into small pellets. The aroma is a strong, flowery essence.
To brew this tea, I grabbed my gaiwan and I measured out 1 bamboo scoop of tea into the bowl of the vessel. Then I heated freshly filtered water to 180°F and poured water into the vessel and let the tea “rinse” for 15 seconds. Then I strained of the liquid and discarded it. I poured more hot water into the gaiwan and allowed this first infusion to steep for 45 seconds. For each subsequent infusion, I added another 15 seconds onto the steep time. I combined two infusions into one cup, so my first cup was composed of infusions 1 and 2, while my second cup was composed of infusions 3 and 4 … and so on.
Yeah, yeah, those of you who are familiar with my posts are probably also very familiar with how I steep my Oolong teas. To those of you who are, I apologize for sounding somewhat redundant! The brewing steps above are written for those who might not be as familiar with my brewing style.
Anyway … I find that the fragrance of the brewed tea is still very floral but the scent is somewhat subdued compared to that of the dry tea leaves. This aroma translates to the flavor, because I’m tasting flower! The description above suggests gardenias and yeah, that’s what I’m tasting. I’m also getting a sweet, creamy flavor and texture. The texture is soft and smooth and creamy! Quite lovely!
I love the way the floral notes mingle with the creamy notes, because I find that these somewhat vanilla-like tones soften the sharp notes of the flower. I like that the creaminess here is not a heavy taste. It doesn’t seem to coat my taste buds the way some creamy Oolong teas can. Oh sure, I do love those sumptuous, creamy Oolongs but it’s nice to have a lighter approach now and then!
The first cup was finished before I knew it (hey, it’s good stuff!), and I found that my second cup was even nicer than the first. The floral notes are stronger but the creaminess is still there to soften the sharp notes. It is smooth and luxurious to sip from start to finish. And I found myself picking up on some hints of apple and melon around mid-sip. This cup seemed fresher and more round, with better developed flavors.
My third cup surprised me! I didn’t expect it to be creamy. By third cup with many Oolong teas, the creamy notes have waned, but I’m still getting a fairly strong cream flavor. Oh, sure, it has softened somewhat, it isn’t quite as strong as the first two cups, but I’m still getting a pleasing note of vanilla-esque cream. The floral notes are still there, and in the distance, I started to pick up the faintest hint of vegetation. The aforementioned fruit notes were beginning to emerge a little more, but these were still somewhat distant as well.
Overall, one of the nicest Four Seasons Oolong teas that I’ve tried. Another big win from this month’s box from Simple Loose Leaf! Have you subscribed yet?
Assam FTGFOP Black Tea from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
A rich, whole leaf Assam with dark leaves and golden tips produces a bright copper, full-bodied tea. Floral and citrus hints are followed by a malty aftertaste. Lovely with milk and sugar, and a wonderful stand-alone tea.
Ingredients: Assam Fine Tippy Golden Flower Orange Pekoe Black Tea
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Receive 25% savings on the Selection Club from Simple Loose Leaf. Just type in SISTERSELECTION25 in the coupon field and save 25%! This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! That’s the first sound that came out of me as I took a sip of this tea. There is something that is just so … delectable when it comes to a high quality Assam tea like this one from Simple Loose Leaf. Is it the sweet caramel undertones? The malty notes? The hints of cacao that intermingle with the notes of fruit and flower and earth? Or is it a combination of all these?
For me, it’s how the cup comes together. It’s the sum of the parts. The tea is rich and full-bodied. It has a certain gusto to it that invigorates me, which is why I tend to reach for teas like this as my first cup of the day.
I also love the sweetness of the tea. The creamy caramel low notes meld with the malty notes of the tea to create this decadent sweetness that compliments the cacao notes. Then I taste the notes of flower and fruit in the distance. It’s earthy and warm. And as you’re starting to feel just a little cozy with the sip, those fruit notes come through to add a touch of brightness to the cup.
But how to brew it? I have found that Assam teas tend to be rather finicky. They don’t like to be kept in hot water too long or they’ll become quite bitter on you. Sure, this is true of many teas, but I find it to be particularly true of Assam, and even a matter of 15 – 30 seconds too long can mean a cup that’s more bitter than you want it to be.
For Assam, I go with 205°F rather than the full-on boil, and then I steep the tea for no more than 2 1/2 minutes. If I steep the tea in my Breville One-Touch tea maker (which is what I did today), I steep the tea for only 2 minutes. 500ml of freshly filtered water with 2 bamboo scoops of tea in the basket and I pushed the button to make my magical machine go. Two minutes later, I was treated to a fragrant, delicious cuppa!
This is a really good Assam. I like this tea best served hot, and it takes the additions of milk and honey well if that’s what you like in your tea. I personally like this straight up, it’s edgy and it gives me a good shake awake. When I want an indulgent treat, I sometimes drizzle some pure maple syrup in my cup and yum!
Another awesome tea from Simple Loose Leaf! Have you joined the Selection Club yet?