Peppermint Bark is a holiday classic which is why chocolate peppermint teas flood the market at Christmas time. Almost each company has their own take on it and any holiday celebration doesn’t really feel complete without a peppermint bark tea latte. As such, these types of teas are cold weather teas in my mind.
So about a week ago when we had an unseasonably cold day, I set up a cold brew of Sunshine Cottage’s Peppermint Bark Tea in chocolate milk. I then forgot to drink it that day. Then the weather got significantly warmer and I just didn’t want to drink it tbh. Instead I favored my more spring-like teas. However, as the cold brewed milk has been sitting, I figured best to drink it before it goes bad. For comparison sake, I also brewed a hot tea with the remainder of the sample I had left.
This tea sets itself apart from the others, ingredients-wise at least, as it adds sunflower petals to the more typical ingredients of black tea, peppermint, white chocolate pieces, and natural flavors. However, flavor-wise as I sip on the hot tea, it tastes similar to the many other chocolate peppermint teas I have had before. In fact, it may even be a bit blander than most. There is a lot of peppermint flavor but not much else. The sample is a bit old so perhaps there is some flavor deterioration. Alternatively, there didn’t appear to be any white chocolate pieces in my filter while there was a ton of peppermint leaf so that could be causing the lack of flavor as well. Whatever the reason, the hot tea fell short of my expectations.
The cold brew, on the other hand, had a lot going on. The silky chocolate milk was made richer by the flavor of the black tea base. There is hints of white chocolate as well, though they are easy to miss under the strong chocolate milk flavor. The peppermint, on the other hand, comes through loud and clear leaving the aftertaste all minty. It is certainly more interesting than the hot tea was but even still I think this might become another in a long blurred line of chocolate mint teas.
Enjoyable but not really noteworthy.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Sunshine Cottage
Description
Creamy white chocolate and crisp mint make this holiday tea a real treat. Perfect for a toe thawing, pick me up after an afternoon on the slopes, or for sipping by the fire after a wonderful meal!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
HoneyBee Tea from Sunshine Cottage
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Sunshine Cottage
Tea Description:
Lightly floral with a lingering honey taste, a sip of this tea conjures up images of honey bees in the warm summer sun visiting flower after flower – This is definitely a happy tea!!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I adore Sunshine Cottage teas. I have reviewed several of their teas and have found very few that I don’t just fall in love with instantly!
As the description indicates, this tea is a happy tea. The warm honey notes and the irresistible black tea base mix well together giving you a smooth and sweet cuppa that makes you smile. I haven’t tried this iced but I will. As good as this is as a hot cuppa, iced I can only imagine how incredible this tea would be. I am planning on ordering more soon to try this as a cold brew or even try mixing this up in a cake mix to liven up a treat.
My only issue with this tea is how bitter it gets quick if you oversteep which I did on my second infusion. But my first infusion was pure honey heaven! The honey was sweet and natural tasting without any strong astringency notes. I can see this being a great tea to be served at tea time with some little biscuits or treats. Matter of fact, I think I might just plan my own tea party and serve this.
If you haven’t tried Sunshine Cottage teas, you are missing out. These are some of the best flavored black teas I’ve had in a while! The are fresh and so much fun!
