Product Information:
Oolong tea unfolds its floral honey and light caramel essence, resting on a blanket under the midday sun and sprinkling sweet sugar cane on a pillow of daydreams.
Learn more about this product here.
Taster’s Review:
My oldest daughter brought me a bottle of this tea recently, so I figured I’d give it a try. I can’t recall ever having tried a RTD Oolong tea, so this may very well be a first for me!
The first thing that I notice is that there is no sediment at the bottom of the bottle. This appeals to me immediately, because that sediment … just isn’t attractive. Yeah, I know, just give it a shake and then it dispenses the sediment throughout the tea. But, I’m drinking that! I strain the tea that I brew myself before I drink it because I don’t like floaties in my tea. The fact that the sediment is there means floaties if I shake it into the tea, or if I don’t, I may be sacrificing flavor. I don’t like either option.
So, when I find a RTD tea without the sediment, I’m a happy tea drinker. I’m also happy about the ingredient list here:
Water, Organic Oolong Tea, Organic Cane Sugar, Citric Acid.
Woot! I’ve been kind of hard on Tazo products in the past, and for good reason, but, this one … this one may just be worthy of some praise.
My first impression: Not too sweet! I’m liking that immediately. It has a light sweetness to it, it doesn’t taste syrupy or like it’s more sugar than tea. That’s my biggest problem with the RTD teas. They’re way too sweet. I am liking that while there is a pleasing honey-caramel sweetness to this, it isn’t an overpowering element, and I think that some of these sweet notes are coming from the Oolong tea and not the sugar.
My biggest complaint about this is probably that it’s chilled. Sure, I like iced tea. It’s a great refresher. But, I think Oolong needs to be served hot to get the most flavor out of it. I have on occasion made iced Oolong tea, but I usually use a Formosa Oolong for this because the deeper flavor of the Oolong isn’t too transformed by the chill. Something happens to the flavor of tea when it goes from hot to cold. Sometimes … it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. With Oolongs, I find that the flavors begin to mute and there is such a lovely complexity to an Oolong that you don’t want to obscure it by chilling it.
But, I am still getting a nice Oolong flavor here. I’m picking up on some floral notes and hints of fruit notes (peach). It’s sweet and it has that thick texture that I’ve come to expect from an Oolong.
I’d give this tea extra points for the fact that it’s a RTD that’s not too sweet. Bonus points for that! I’d subtract a few points, though, because I’m missing the complexity that I seek when I sit down to enjoy an Oolong. That said, it’s a refreshing beverage that if I were to see this in the refrigerated section of a convenience store and I’m thirsty, I just might grab it based solely on the fact that I’m pleased that it’s not overly sweet, it’s made from organic ingredients and there’s not a heavy sediment collection at the bottom of the bottle.
PRODUCT REVIEW: Grapefruit Flavor Infused Green Tea from Dutch Bros. Coffee
Product Information:
Tea Type: Green Iced Tea (Ready to Drink/Prepared Drink)
Where To Find: Dutch Bros. Coffee
Taster’s Review:
OK, so my youngest daughter’s latest “thing” is the Italian sodas from Dutch Bros. You know what I’m talking about right? Basically, it’s like club soda that’s been infused with Torani Syrup and then generously topped with whipped cream and/or infused with a dollop of cream (both of those are optional). As we were sitting in the drive through, waiting to place an order for her after ballet class treat, I noticed “Torani Infused Teas” on the menu and my curiosity was piqued.
So, I asked the clerk what it was and was told that they add the Torani syrup to either green or black tea. Then he listed off the flavors of Torani syrup that they have and when he said Grapefruit, I decided I’d try a Grapefruit Flavor Infused Green Tea from Dutch Bros. Coffee. I mean … I figured the worst that could happen is that it tastes like an overly sweet tea much like the ready to drink teas that you get at the corner convenience store.
My first sip of the beverage – yep, that’s what it is. It’s a very sweet tea with more grapefruit flavor than tea flavor and an abundance of sugary sweetness that overpowers the tea notes to oblivion. This drink … well, it was … alright. Drinkable. Something that I’d be able to finish but not something for which I’d want to return to Dutch Bros.
But then something impressive happened. My husband told the clerk that I’m a tea snob and very picky about my tea. When the clerk asked me how I liked the tea, I said, “It’s drinkable.” My husband translated this to the clerk to say, “That’s a compliment from her.”
Ha! My husband fancies himself a comedian. I’ve tried to explain to him that just because our pre-teen daughter and her friends find him entertaining does not mean that he could make a living as a stand-up comic.
When I say drinkable, basically, what I mean is that this tastes alright, but it’s too sweet and it’s not something I’d buy again. I can drink it but would I call it tea? No.
Upon hearing that the infused tea drink was merely “drinkable,” the clerk takes back the drink and explains that their drinks are 100% satisfaction guaranteed. Then he made me a new Grapefruit Flavor Infused Tea, this time, using half the syrup that was used the first time around.
This time, it’s actually quite enjoyable. Not just drinkable, but something that put a smile on my face. I have a mildly sweet drink where I’m able to taste both the grapefruit and the green tea. The grapefruit reminds me of the flavor of a Texas pink grapefruit (my favorite). It doesn’t taste like a candified (yes it’s a word, I just made it up) version of grapefruit. It tastes like the Texas pink grapefruit that I cut in half and lightly sprinkled with a little sugar to contrast with the tart bitterness of the fruit. It tastes … yummy!
And I can taste the green tea this time around (the first cup that was made for me, I could not taste green tea). It tastes light and crisp, with a refreshing hint of vegetative flavor. Slightly grassy. It marries nicely with the notes of grapefruit, and there is a pleasing balance between the components of this beverage.
Overall, this was a really tasty tea. Bravo to the clerk at Dutch Bros. for taking a little extra time to make my drink just right for me. I appreciate this kind of customer service, and this tea exceeds what I’d find at the “average” coffee stop.
PRODUCT REVIEW: White Tea Acai Squeeze from Argo Tea
Product Description:
Ready to Drink Tisane from Argo Tea.
Argo Tea’s White Tea Açai Squeeze® is youthful white tea from the Fujian province of China, vitamin-rich açai from Amazon rainforests of Brazil and fresh-squeezed lemonade.
Learn more about this product here.
Taster’s Review:
This White Tea Acai Squeeze from Argo Tea is actually pretty tasty. As some of you might be aware, I’m not always crazy about ready-to-drink teas because they usually taste more like sugar/sweetener than they do tea. But, I can taste tea here.
Yeah, it’s still sweet, but this is actually more tart than it is sweet! The lemonade notes are especially profound in this tea. The white tea adds a crisp, airy sort of background note with a hint of vegetative flavor. The acai berry is also a strong flavor, but it unites with the lemon-y notes quite nicely.
I guess if I were to offer any complaint about this, it would be that I wished there was a little less lemonade and acai berry and a little more tea, but I still found this beverage refreshing and not too sweet and it didn’t leave behind that syrupy feel on my tongue after I finished drinking it – you know, that sort of cloying, sickeningly sweet sensation that seems to coat the palate when one drinks those overly sweetened RTD beverages that they call tea? I didn’t get that with this, and I’m glad. This is not too sweet and I can taste the tea – these get big PLUS points from me when it comes to RTD teas.
Argo is currently promoting their Scratch and Win promotion on Facebook – you can win a free bottle of their tea from their website! Good luck!
PRODUCT REVIEW: Ready-to-Drink Original Iced Bhakti Chai
Product Information:
Antioxidant rich black tea, fresh ginger, spices and a touch of soy milk.
Learn more about this product here.
Taster’s Review:
While out shopping at Whole Foods, I found Bhakti Chai! Having previously tried their Chai concentrates, I knew I would enjoy this Ready-to-Drink Original Iced Bhakti Chai, so I grabbed a bottle of it. (In case you’re wondering, my favorite of the concentrates is the Unsweetened Chai.)
I really enjoyed this RTD Chai … although, I must say that I really prefer the concentrate because I can control the type (and amount) of milk product that is added. This ready-to-drink iced chai is made with soy milk, and I found the texture of this to be somewhat lacking.
Yeah, I know it’s the hip thing to like soy milk, but, I prefer good old cow’s milk. Or, if I need to go dairy-free, I’ll go with an almond milk. Soy just doesn’t do it for me. One thing I will say about the soy … it was less creamy and heavy tasting, which was nice for this very warm, end of the summer day.
But I was happy that this tasted as spicy as I remember Bhakti Chai tasting. Lots of fiery ginger and warm spice. This is sweetened, so it is a little sweeter than I usually go for when it comes to chai but, it is still a really tasty RTD, and better than a lot of the RTDs that are out there.
Overall, I really enjoyed this Chai, and I was happy to find it at my local Whole Foods. I tried to find the concentrate at Whole Foods too, but, I didn’t find it anywhere. I would love for them to start carrying the concentrate because this is a yummy, delicious, ginger-y chai!
PRODUCT REVIEW: Tiger Spice Chai Mix from David Rio
Product Information:
Where to Buy: David Rio
Product Description:
David Rio’s signature and award winning chai is a rich and creamy mixture of black tea and premium spices including cinnamon, cardamom and clove. A percentage of profits from the sale of ALL David Rio Tiger Spice Chai® will be donated to the International Fund for Animal Welfare (www.ifaw.org). For more info, visit ourAnimal Welfare page.
Learn more about this instant chai mix here.
I received a packet of this instant chai mix in my January Love with Food box.
Taster’s Review:
In addition to my tea addiction … I also consider myself a bit of a foodie, and I enjoy receiving a couple of “food tasting boxes” every month. I subscribe to a couple of them, including Love with Food. Love with Food is a great company that every month, sends out boxes that are filled with little samples of food items. And for every box sent, Love with Food donates a meal to a hungry child. I like that.
In January, I received a package of this Tiger Spice Chai Mix from David Rio. Now, this isn’t the first time I’ve tried the Tiger Spice Chai Mix from David Rio … I had the opportunity to try their products years ago, after being introduced to them through a hot beverage convention that I attended back when I was still self-employed as a tea vendor. I enjoyed it back then, and I’m enjoying it now.
It has a creamy, sweet-spiced taste. It is … in my opinion, too sweet. I’d rather be able to sweeten it myself than to have all that sugar added to my chai, but, as a once in a while treat for myself, I think I can handle the occasional sweet drink. And since this is the first time I’ve had this chai in … probably six or seven years, I’d say that’s once in quite a while!
And since that last time that I tried this chai … I can say that my taste buds have really come a long way. I used to really LOVE this stuff. It’s still … OK … but, it’s not all that I thought it once was. The black tea is quite obscured by the sugar and the creamer used in the mix. The spices are not very spicy … they’re pretty mellow in comparison to other chai blends I’ve had recently, and a bit more mellow than I would like it to be.
It’s drinkable, certainly, but not something that I would want to drink on a regular basis, and as it is pumped up with a lot of sugar and corn syrup solids, it’s probably better that way. I enjoyed it, but, certainly not as much as I would have enjoyed a chai that I had more control over – that I could decide how much sweetener (if any) I would add, and how much milk/cream/creamer I would add, if any.
That said, I think it’s commendable that David Rio is committed to Animal Welfare. You can read more about that here.