Let’s Go Bananas Again! Recent Tastings of Banana Teas

Check out my first Let’s Go Bananas tea posting.

It’s no secret I love the flavor of bananas. I like the taste in pastries, candy, breakfast, the fruit itself, and of course, the taste of bananas in tea! Here is another round of tasty banana inspired teas I’ve tried lately

Banana Split from The Necessiteas

Leaf type: red rooibos

This red rooibos blend has all three essential components of a banana split, with pieces of strawberries, bananas, and carob bean (“chocolate”).  The strong red rooibos compliments the sweet and tart fruit pieces in the blend. The chocolate is an undertone, taking a backseat to the driving banana and strawberry flavor combination. The blend benefits from sweetener and milk to make it feel more like a dessert and bring out more of the bananas.

 

Perles de Antilles Rooibos Blend from Camellia Sinensis distributed by Amoda Tea

Leaf type: green rooibos

This tropical green rooibos blend has pieces of dried banana, pineapple, and coconut. All three fruits are prominent, and no one ingredient takes the lead. Banana and coconut are the sweet components, bringing creaminess and body to the blend. The pineapple adds a much-needed pop of tartness to balance the blend. This tea is the most refreshing as an iced tea, and drinking it iced helps support its summertime tropical vibe.

 

Banana Marshmallow Treat Genmaicha from 52Teas

Leaf type: green

52Teas has a whole host of delicious flavored genmaicha teas. Being the sucker for banana that I am, this was one of my favorites. The sweet cream of the marshmallow pairs well with the banana, almost like a banana cream pie. The toasty flavors of the puffed rice help this blend from being too sweet, and if keeping with the pie analogy, the rice makes up the crust-like component of the blend. All the warm, roasted flavors of puffed rice and gentle green taste of genmaicha with creamy marshmallow fluff and banana.

 

I know there are still banana teas out there that I haven’t tried, so I’ll need to fill up my mug and go bananas for banana tea all over again!

Let’s Go Bananas! Banana-Themed Teas

Tea with bananas?  That’s crazy, right?  Or maybe it’s just crazy delicious.  Let’s take a look at five banana teas I’ve tasted lately.

Grilled Spiced Banana from A Quarter to Tea – Let’s get started with the weirdest banana tea I’ve come across.  Not only does this blend feature bananas, but it also uses smokey flavors to convey the “grilled” part of Grilled Banana.  Brewed, this tea is shockingly creamy, much more like banana creme brule than any overpowering smoky lapsang souchong.  The hint of smoky adds a nice savory note to the sweet banana, like the tasting the sweet-salty shell of fried ice cream.  This is a total underdog combination of flavors, and they really come together.

Banana Peach Green from 52Teas – This green tea is smooth and sweet, with some very forward peach flavors on the smell and taste. The creamy, tropical banana comes through on the aftertaste, rich with real-fruit flavors.  No banana-candy flavors here.  The nuttiness of the tea makes the aftertaste of this blend feel smooth and comforting, like banana bread.

Bananas and Custard from Bluebird Tea – This tea can seem mild at first, with little fragrance in the dry leaf, but when this green tea is brewed at the right temperature, something magical happens.  When brewed this tea truly smells and tastes like banana cream pie.  It nails the fruity, starchy banana flavor, and the creamy-yet-tart vanilla custard.  The gentle nuttiness from the green tea helps keep this centered, but there are plenty of banana-crazy dessert flavors to go around.

Banana Split from A Quarter to Tea – There’s a lot going on in a banana split, there’s vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream, and sauces like marshmallow or pineapple, and the bananas and whipped cream of course.  This white tea is sweet with strawberries but creamy with bananas and has a touch of the starchy, real-fruit banana flavor.  This blend is sweeter than the others thanks to all the strawberry, but who wouldn’t want to taste an ice-cream-themed tea?

Monkey Chops from Bluebird Tea – Wow, what a name!  Monkey Chops has a tart ceylon black tea base with added vanilla flavoring and banana pieces.  Even without milk this brew has plenty of creamy notes and smooth banana flavor, strong enough to compete with the bold black tea base.  This would be amazing with a splash of milk or a dash of cinnamon sugar.

Love them or hate them, banana teas don’t come along every day so it’s worth getting a little crazy and giving them a try!


 

Banana Split from The NecessiTeas

I despise bananas! I mean…I REALLY hate them! I HATE Bananas! Can’t you tell I’m passionate about my dislike for bananas? Having said that – Banana Split from The NecessiTeas is pretty darn tasty!

I’m not sure if it’s just everything ELSE that went into Banana Split from The NecessiTeas but I’m totally digging it! The Rooibos base ‘almost’ tasted like honeybush and I have to be honest I did a double take of the dry ingredients just to be sure! Once Banana Split from The NecessiTeas cooled at room temperature I noticed the traditional red rooibos flavor more but at the beginning of the piping hot cuppa it tasted a bit different.

As for the other ingredients in Banana Split from The NecessiTeas there are freeze dried banana, carob, and strawberries. I will say that I tasted the strawberry more than the other two ingredients and I’m completely fine with that. I think it kicked the banana back a notch and for that I’m grateful. Then I could taste the carob and that was rather nice. Lastly, the banana came into play. This was a satisfying cup. Banana Split from The NecessiTeas was a sweet, fruity, chocolaty, and near creamy cup, too! For someone who REALLY can’t stand bananas this was darn tasty! The banana ratio was one I could certainly tolerate and darn I say ‘enjoy’.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Herbal/Rooibos
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas

necessiteas-logoDescription:

Three scoops of chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla in a cup come to mind when you taste this blend of dried strawberries, banana chips, and chocolate morsels submerged in organic rooibos tea. The strawberries release their sweet flavor as they rehydrate, the sweet chocolate melts into this dessert, and the banana chips make it authentic. Just add a little rock sugar and a splash of milk for that creamy, dreamy dessert without the calories. Characteristics Super Antioxidant, Dessert Flavor Profile Fruity, Sweet Ingredients Organic rooibos, freeze dried banana, carob bean, strawberries, natural and organic flavors

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!