I was lucky to discover Roasted Almond Chai from Fava Tea Company thanks to a tea trade with fellow Sororitea Sisters, and now this is one if my favorite chai teas.
This is a decaf blend, so I find it most satisfying as a sweet treat to ease me through a rough afternoon or evening. This tea is perfectly both sweet and spicy. The dry leaf in the bag smells exceptionally creamy and a touch fruity, like marzipan candies. In the loose leaf, there are cloves, cinnamon, and huge cardamom pods, promising more spice in the brew.
Brewed, this blend is surprisingly pink, and I had a moment of worry: pink?! Is there hibiscus in here? I read the label again and saw beetroot as an ingredient but no hibiscus. Taking a sip, I was relieved. The pink color was clearly from the beetroot which added a wonderful natural sweetness that did not get in the way of the other flavors.
The one change I would make is to rename this blend Marzipan Chai, instead of Roasted Almond Chai. There is not much in the way of tasted flavors or pure nut-like flavors. The beetroot and almond make for a blend that is sweet like a cake with creamy frosting. This tea is driven by its candied almond taste, coupled with the warming spices of cinnamon and cardamom. Even without milk, this tea is so smooth and creamy, a perfect dessert. I will be stocking up on this chai the next chance I get!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Fava Tea
Description:
This is the sweet taste of almond magically blended with rooibos and chai spices. Smooth, delightful and a perfect compliment with dessert. Or in place of dessert! Either way, enjoy!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Beauty & The Beet White Tea from Lemon Lily
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Lemon Lily
Tea Description:
Organic, delicate, earthy but not grassy. This blend of organic white tea is gently paired with organic beetroot Powder, organic lavender, organic passionflower, organic rosehip, organic rose buds Dry, it’s beautiful to look at. Steeped and allowed to rest for about ten minutes and you really start to taste the floral notes. But the touch of earthy sweetness from the beetroot balances out the floral, keeping it from tasting soapy.
Learn more about this month’s Postal Teas shipment here.
Learn more about subscribing to Postal Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
The photo above doesn’t really show the beetroot powder. When I received my pouch of this tea in my Postal Teas box this month, I was kind of surprised by the hot pink dust that had settled to the back of of the pouch. It kind of looked like freeze dried lipstick that had been pulverized into a powder.
I guess I could have said it looks like powder blush in the pouch, but, I couldn’t see anyone wanting to wear this particular shade of pink on their cheeks, but I could see it on someone’s lips or possibly their fingernails. Then again: freeze dried nail polish that had been pulverized into a powder – that seems like it would be a lot more effort to pulverize nail polish into a powder than it does lipstick.
Anyway … this blend has been dusted with powdered beetroot and it’s a vibrant shade of pink. And when you steep the tea, the tea becomes a ruby red color. It almost looks like it has hibiscus in it. Almost. Fortunately, beetroot doesn’t taste like hibiscus. I prefer beetroot.
This is one of the more interesting teas I’ve reviewed lately. First of all, love the name. Love it. And I can’t recall having a tea blended with beetroot powder. I may have. It’s just nothing comes to mind immediately. And you would think that something as unique as beetroot powder would stick in the memory, you know?
Similar to the Maple Leaf tea that I tried a few days ago from the same company, this tea is very floral. I am tasting notes of lavender and rose distinctly. The passionflower is a bit more demure in this blend, which is not surprising as it tends to be rather mild tasting. I like how the beetroot softens the flavors of the flowers a little and brings it’s own unique flavor to the cup. It’s sweet and I can taste a hint of the vegetable flavor of the beet.
The white tea is a little less discernible in this blend, but I do taste it. The light, airy, hay-like note of the white tea seems to complement the floral notes. This tea is earthy (which also complements the floral notes), floral, very slightly vegetal, and very enjoyable – albeit different! – to drink.
I steeped this in my Kati Tumbler and I chose to steep it in this cup for one reason: the beetroot powder. I didn’t want to have to scrub the jug of my Breville One-Touch after beetroot powder had steeped in it! It’s a lot easier to scrub my Kati Tumbler!
After shaking the pouch thoroughly (to redistribute the powder that had settled), I measured out 2 bamboo scoops of tea into my Kati and heat the water to 170°F and steeped the tea for 3 1/2 minutes.
Postal Teas recommends letting these teas cool a bit to let the flavors develop and I agree with that. As this particular tea cools, the flavors not only develop but the texture develops too. The beetroot seems to thicken somewhat to create a pleasant, brothy type texture to the cup (without it feeling syrupy the way a hibiscus blend would).
I’m really happy that I had this opportunity to try this tea! Thank you, Postal Teas!
Sweet Lily from Praise Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Praise Tea
Product Description:
Our Organic and Fair Trade Sweet Lily white tea is wonderful treat.
Cultivate your love for tea with this wonderful blend of Pai Mu Dan and dried apples. Deliciously fruity and very healthy it may be one of the smoothest blends you’ve tasted, providing a gentle lift any time of day. Delightful hot or on ice. Try some with white crystal sugar.
Origin: South Indian
Estate: Oothu EstateIngredients: Apple, White Tea – Pai Mu Dan
Taster’s Review:
I love the name of this tea. Perhaps it is because my daughter’s name is Lilith, and we often call her Lili – Sweet Lili! (Yes, I know the name of the tea is Sweet Lily, but they are pronounced the same.) I really like the aroma of the dry leaf – it has a light flowery scent that reminds me of the air on a bright spring morning. It smells fresh and clean and beautiful.
The tea brews to a lovely plum-red color – which leads me to realize that in addition to the apple and white tea, this tea also contains either hibiscus or beetroot. The dry leaf looks like hibiscus (only because I have less experience with dry beetroot than I do dry hibiscus); but the brewed tea doesn’t taste hibiscus-y. So perhaps it is beetroot. Or maybe it’s hibiscus. Really, since I can’t taste that tart-y hibiscus taste, it doesn’t matter to me whether it is hibiscus or beetroot. So long as it tastes good! And this tastes good.
The white tea is not overwhelmed by the crisp apple taste. The white tea has a light, fresh taste that is only barely vegetative – and only when I really concentrate on the taste can I actually taste that barely vegetative taste. It tastes much the way I described the smell: fresh, clean and beautiful.
While apples evoke thoughts of autumn for me, this tea is very spring-like, in my opinion. Perhaps it is because the apple flavor is a gentle taste that I would describe as sweet with a hint of apple-y tartness. The flavor gradually becomes stronger as I reach mid-cup, but this never really becomes a strong apple flavor. It is soft and soothing, like a precious spring morning … the calm after a spring rain.
I really enjoyed this cup of tea. I found it to be delicious hot, but just a little too mild in flavor for iced tea. The flavors can be perked up with a little sweetener though. A very nice tea, I like it.
Roasted Almond from Caraway Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Fruit/Herbal (and Nut!) Tisane
Where to Buy: Caraway Tea
Product Description:
This festive fruit tisane is great all year round. It smells like christmas, but tastes like summer. Sweet roasted, caramelized almonds, apples, and beetroot sprinkled with cinnamon make this a favorite.
Taster’s Review:
This is so yummy! No wonder it’s Caraway Tea’s #1 seller!
The aroma is warm with sweet cinnamon and toasted nuts. I can also smell hints of apple in the background … you know, I have to disagree a little bit with the above description, because this smells more autumnal to me. I can certainly understand where the “Christmas” comparison comes from, but for me, this is autumn. If I close my eyes and take a big whiff, I can even “see” the beautiful fall leaves on the trees.
This is a light-to-medium bodied tisane that is beautifully sweet. It tastes like a cross between lightly spiced apple cider and freshly roasted almonds that have been sprinkled lightly with cinnamon and sugar. And… no, I didn’t add any sweetener to this, that sugar sweetness comes naturally from the beetroot (which also provides a pretty, pinkish color to the cup).
While I am sure that this makes a very tasty iced tea, the autumnal feel of it demands that it be served hot. It is so cozy and delightfully comforting. A delightful dessert substitution that is naturally caffeine-free so it can be enjoyed any time of day. Kids will love this one too!