Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black & Green Teas
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tea Description:
The peachy aroma of this tea will make our mouthes water. Orchard fruit meets the Hawaiian tropics. There’s a subtle ginger spice that works really well with the succulent fruits and the unique tea base – Assam and sencha!
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
I love the dry leaf of this Bengal Peach Tea Blend from Tea Xotics. Big slivers of dried fruit, pieces of ginger, black and green tea leaves, petals and blossoms all tossed together in a deliciously fragrant blend.
The brewed tea smells of warm peaches with hints of ginger, evoking thoughts of a warm, gently spiced peach dessert. Mmm! The flavor tastes of peach and mango. The ginger flavor is delicate, adding just a touch of warmth rather than a heavy amount of spice. This doesn’t taste overly peppered with ginger … there’s just enough ginger to keep the flavors interesting so that it doesn’t taste too fruity.
The combination of black and green teas adds an appealing background of flavor as well. When brewed at a lower temperature, I find that I can taste both the black and green teas. I brewed this tea at 180°F in my Breville One-Touch – the package parameters suggest a temperature of 185°F but whenever I brew a blend like this in my Breville, I make it a practice to lower the suggested temperature by 5 degrees since the tea maker keeps the water warmer than a teapot would. I steeped the tea for 3 minutes, and I’m very happy with the results.
The black tea tastes lighter than a typical cup of Assam would. I taste a wine-like quality to the tea, and this complements the fruit notes quite nicely. As the tea cools slightly (hot, but not piping hot), I notice some of the malty tones of the black tea emerge. The green tea doesn’t add a lot of notable flavor to the cup, but it lightens the overall flavor and texture. I notice hints of vegetation in the distance, as well as a slight buttery note that works well with the sweet, caramel-y malt notes.
A very tasty blend. It’s delicious hot and also quite nice iced!
Jungle Monkey Chai Rooibos Blend from Tea Xotics
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tisane Description:
What happens when you add a banana to your chai? You get this! Kind of. A spicy cup with a cocoa, banana, and cinnamon edge and a creamy coconut feel. Sweeten it up to take the edge off the spice.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
Yes, August has come and gone, and I’m now reviewing my first of the August teas from my Amoda Box. That’s because Amoda updated their website (and it looks fabulous, might I add!) and I wanted to wait until the new website was up and running before I started reviewing the teas from August.
It’s a rare thing when the first tea that I try from my monthly Amoda Tea Tasting Box is a tisane! But, this Jungle Monkey Chai Rooibos blend from Tea Xotics just sounded too yummy to not try immediately: a rooibos based masala spice blend, combined with chocolate, banana and coconut? Oh YUM!
And it is indeed yum!
The aroma of the blend is spicy … the cinnamon really pops out and grabs me. The chai is definitely a cinnamon-y chai, with the cinnamon serving as the strongest flavor in the masala blend. I also taste peppery notes, and hints of clove.
The coconut is the next flavor I notice … it adds a creamy texture and taste to the cup. The banana comes through next, and it’s a subtle banana note. The chocolate is there too, and I taste it … I just wish … I was tasting MORE chocolate. (Remember this chocoholic’s chocolate rule of thumb: some chocolate = good, more chocolate = better.)
The flavor of the rooibos comes through here too, which I found kind of surprising given all that’s going on in this chai blend. I expected the flavor of the rooibos to be buried beneath all the other flavor components. But, I taste the woody notes of the rooibos, and even that funky note of rooibos that I usually don’t really care for … but somehow … it works in this blend. I guess with the tropical notes of banana and coconut … that funkiness just sort of works.
Overall: this is a really tasty blend. I like the chocolate but I wish there was more of it. I like the banana and the coconut … and the spices. It just really … works together really very well.
This is the first tea that I’ve tried from Tea Xotics … and I’m really glad that Amoda Tea decided to make them their feature blender for the month of August, because I am really looking forward to what the other blends have in store for me!
Yunomi Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club: Ureshino Gyokucha Ochatama
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Yunomi
Tea Description:
A very interesting green tea. It looks like Chinese gunpowder tea in that the leaves are rolled up into little balls. This particular one from our supplier Chakoan has a strong savory umami aroma that is similar to gyokuro.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Yunomi’s Monthly Mystery Tea Sampler’s Club here.
Taster’s Review:
I don’t recall ever trying a Gyokucha tea before tasting this Ureshino Gyokucha Ochatama from my monthly mystery Tea Sampler’s Club from Yunomi.
That’s one of the reasons that I love tea sampler clubs like this … I get the opportunity to try teas that I might not have tried otherwise. In fact, when I first saw this package, I thought it was Gyokuro, and it wasn’t until I opened the pouch and saw the tiny pellets that resemble Chinese Gunpowder green tea that I realized that this is NOT a Gyokuro!
But even though this looks a lot like a Chinese Gunpowder (in shape, but the color of the leaves here are a much more vivid green) … it doesn’t taste like a Chinese Gunpowder. It tastes more like a Gyokuro … although it is a bit lighter and crisper on the palate.
The first thing I noticed when I tasted it was a distinct nutty tone. It starts out sweet, and then transcends to a strong savory note. The finish is clean and there is a dry astringency.
There is relatively little aftertaste here, just faint notes of a grassy taste that rests upon the tongue. The taste is very clean … and it’s a very “cleansing” sort of feeling that I get from this tea.
I’m really enjoying this Japanese green tea. A very interesting tea, indeed!
Poppy Fields Tisane from Indie Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Tulsi & Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tisane Description:
Tastes like jujubes
Sweet aroma of berries, apple and chamomile. Slightly sweet on the tongue, lightly minty with a tart finish. This tea is full-bodied and rich. Sip this tea and it will calm your body and relax your mind. ahhhhh.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
So, I’m a bit behind on my Amoda Tea reviews! This Poppy Fields Tisane from Indie Tea came in my July Tea Tasting Box, but, I’m just now getting around to reviewing it. What can I say, when it comes to tisanes … I always seem to be reluctant to try it!
But this is one of the prettiest teas I’ve seen in a long time! Big flower buds of chamomile, poppy and rose. And BONUS: No Hibiscus! Yay!
I was excited to see Tulsi as one of the ingredients in this tea (here, it was called “holy basil”) because I have enjoyed the tisanes with Tulsi that I’ve tried. I like the herbaceous, slightly minty, slightly spicy taste that Tulsi brings to a tisane.
In this tisane, the Tulsi offers subtle hints of the minty basil tones which are especially noticeable in the finish. I’m noticing more of a peppery warmth during the sip from the Tulsi than the cooling mint taste. But I like the way the Tulsi comes through in this blend, because there is a strong fruity character to this cup, and the spice gives it some added interest and depth.
The description from Amoda Tea suggests that this tastes like Jujubes … and I don’t know that what I’m tasting is Jujubes. I’ll be honest and mention though, that I’ve not had Jujubes since I was young. They were never really a favorite candy of mine (I didn’t like the way they stuck to my teeth). But I did like their bright, fruity taste, and while this tisane does have a fruity taste to it, I can’t say that this reminds me of that candy.
But it is sweet with lots of fruit notes: apple, orange, and hints of lemon. I don’t really taste a lot of ‘berry’ as mentioned in the description by Amoda, but, I do notice the tartness that lingers in the aftertaste. Given the sheer number of flowers in this blend, I did expect it to taste more floral than it does. It does certainly present a floral note to the palate, but, it’s a smooth, subdued floral taste rather than the sharpness that I often associate with floral tones.
Then again, everything about this particular blend is very calm and relaxed. The flavor is gentle and mild. It is a really tasty tisane … certainly better than I expected it to be given my hesitancy to actually try it. I like the fruity overtones, I like that it doesn’t taste overly herbaceous or medicinal, and I like that there is a pleasant warm yet sweet taste to it … without adding sugar.
As I mentioned in my review of The Road To Hana (also from Indie Tea) – a tea that also came from my Amoda Tea Box for July – I have already tasted and reviewed the third tea that came in my box: Lover’s Lane. I was really happy to see that Amoda Tea focused in on Indie Tea, because they are a company that I really like. They are a fun company with a youthful vibe … I like the jovial attitude they give their teas!
So this tea review gets me all caught up with my July reviews for Amoda Tea … and a good thing too, because I have August’s box waiting for me! I can’t wait to try the teas in that box from their featured blender: Tea Xotics … a company I’ve not yet tried! Yay!
Slumbering Slope Tisane from Bird’s Eye Tea
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Bird’s Eye Tea
Tisane Description:
Ingredients: Chamomile, Skullcap, Catnip, Spearmint, Rose, licorice
This is a simple blend to help calm the body at the end of the day. My sister grew the catnip for this blend. The skullcap and chamomile come from farms in Oregon. I like to use a variety of mild relaxants when I make any evening teas because everyone has a really specific combination of tensions in their body. Some folks hold tension in thoughts, others in their muscles.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Learn more about subscribing to Bird’s Eye Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I put off trying this Slumbering Slope Tisane from Bird’s Eye Tea for a while … and the reason is chamomile. I don’t dislike chamomile (although at one time I did dislike it) but, it’s also not my favorite herb. And … I usually only prepare a chamomile tisane later in the evening, when I want to start getting ready for rest because chamomile does have that relaxing effect. Actually, it makes me sleepy. But, usually, when I’m getting ready for bed, I’m not really thinking about preparing a tisane … although I think I should get myself into that habit.
And this would be a great tisane with which to get into that kind of habit! This is a tasty tisane. The chamomile is the strongest flavor, followed by the spearmint. I like that the spearmint is there to add a nice minty tone to the taste, but, it isn’t an overpowering taste, as I think a stronger minty flavor would be a bit more invigorating than it should be for a blend like this.
I can taste the rose, and again, I like that this is a soft, sweet rose note. The licorice is faint, but, it adds a hint of sweetness and an interesting contrast without coming off too zesty.
Everything about this blend is calm and soothing. It is a very relaxing blend that is not too medicinal or herbaceous tasting, and not overly sweet. It has a pleasant, easy to drink flavor. I like it.