Carrot Cupcake from David’s Tea. . .

I am trying this tea in front of an audience. I’m currently in the middle of a cabin with 15+ friends/kids, and everyone got excited when they sniffed this. I made several cups for everyone; I kept the last for myself.

Before I had a chance to even sip my cup, one of my friends slid up to me. “The tea you gave me is delicious,” he whispered.

“What did your kids think?” I asked. His three-year-old had sniffed the tea and kept following me around whispering “tea.”

“I haven’t given them any,” he said. “I’m keeping it all for myself.”

“That’s COLD,” I replied.

When I finally had a cup, I saw what he meant. This is a carrot/apple/spice mix with a bit of a cream/marzipan sweetness (as opposed to a powdery, shrill, hyper-sweet flavor). As I sipped, the spiciness increased. (Possibly the spices are heavier and sit further down in the mug?) I liked the flavor better back when it was sweeter at the beginning of the cup. I think that this would be sweeter and more consistent iced, and I think that’s what I’m going to try next.

Unlike my friend, I’d let my kids try this. I’d spread the joy.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy:  David’s Tea
Description

This decadently creamy rooibos blend tastes just like your favourite carrot dessert. You’ll love its natural carrot sweetness and the extra zing of warmth from cinnamon and ginger. Plus it’s caffeine and calorie-free, so you can sip it all day every day. Still not convinced? The rich cocoa shells and whipped cream will change your mind. Yeah, we knew you couldn’t resist…

 

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Carve off a Slice of Frosted Carrot Cake from A Quarter to Tea. . . . . .

In my experience I’ve found that people either love or hate carrot cake.  As for me, with my enormous sweet tooth, I’ll enjoy a slice of carrot cake any day, but that’s not always the case for others. What? Carrots? Cake?  Who’s sneaking vegetables into my dessert? I can understand the dichotomy.

Whether you love carrot cake or not, it’s hard to resist trying a tea flavor as bold and unusual as Frosted Carrot Cake from A Quarter to Tea.  From the beginning, these tea leaves have a lot going on.  This is a genmai cha-based blend, so sencha green tea and gold puffs of toasted rice are available in abundance.  Beside the rice there are actual carrot pieces in the blend, as well as raisins, and dried pineapple.  Ginger and cinnamon balance out this ingredients list and bring their usual baked-good-charms to the flavor palette.

The most impressive part of this blend is the vanilla frosting element, which actually tastes a bit tart and tangy like real cream cheese.  This isn’t just plain-old vanilla flavoring, the specific carrot-cake cream cheese frosting is alive and well in this cup of tea.

This is a green tea, so mind your temperatures and steeps times, no matter how delicious the cake aspects smell, take out the teabag after a few minutes to avoid any bitter undertones.  The frosting notes get more prominent as the tea cools.

Believe it or not, this tea does taste like carrot cake, even without sugar or milk, the fruits and veggies in the tea leaves bring enough natural starchiness and sweetness to make this blend feel full and decadent.

If you love carrot cake, you’ll love this tea.  If carrot cake isn’t your style, give this brew a chance in the name of good fun, you might be surprised by how tasty carrot cake and tea can be.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: A Quarter to Tea
Description:

A cup of well-spiced carrot cake accented with raisins and pineapple for sweetness and a sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Carrot Cake from Tea Taxi. . . .

I am a carrot cake fiend. Like I have an insane amount of love for carrot cake. All things carrot cake. In fact, when I go to the Cheesecake Factory, I almost always leave with a piece of carrot cake and a piece of carrot cake cheesecake. Once I got home from the Cheesecake Factory and noticed the carrot cake slice was smaller than normal and we complained and took the slice back. We got yet another piece of carrot cake and another piece of carrot cake cheesecake as an apology for making us drive back there and I practically cried over leaving the “small” (if you ever got a slice of carrot cake at the cheesecake factory, you know that even half a slice is huge) slice there. I was 22. Oh and did I mention I was on a diet at the time? One that focused on portion control, so yeah, I am a little carrot cake obsessed. That means I had high expectations going into this as I do all teas named for this beloved dessert.

Though the scent here is creamy and cinnamon, this misses the mark just a bit. It nods at carrot cake without actually capturing the flavor. It is creamy but bland. There is a thickness that lends itself to the cream cheese icing but lacks the tang. Carrot sweetness is present but just doesn’t blend with all the other components in this blend. And the nuttiness, though having potential, is layering on the rooibos base gesturing toward the idea of baked goods but ones that have maybe soured just a bit.

If anything this is carrot muffin. Carrot cakes younger, more annoying brother who pretends to be as awesome as carrot cake but just isn’t. This one was disappointing though in fairness it was up against some pretty high standards.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Rooibos
Where to Buy:  Tea Taxi
Description

Ahh, carrot cake… A classic that makes you melt inside everytime! The good news is, you can now enjoy it on the go thanks to our delicious flavorsed rooibos!

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Frosted Carrot Cake Genmaicha from A Quarter To Tea. . . .

I really like carrot cake and I really like carrots in tea. I think they lend a natural sweetness and a bit of a vegetal flair that compliments a lot of blends very nicely. I have had a lot of luck with A Quarter to Tea’s blends lately. I am really in love with this company. They ship fast and they just do a fantastic job with the teas. You can tell a lot of care has been given to the blends and it really shows in the bright and rich flavors.

I only recently found out about genmaicha green tea. It is (usually) sencha green tea along with rice/popped rice. It gives the green tea a starchy and toasted taste. On its own its plain, in my opinion. However, flavored genmaicha is where it’s at. The toasted flavor of the popped rice accents a lot of different flavor combinations really, really well.

I was excited for the frosted carrot cake genmaicha. A little hesitant, though. Some companies tend to over-spice carrot cake blends. Sometimes its just too spicy for me. If you’ve read my other reviews you will know that I really don’t like stuff that’s spicy. Anyways, back to frosted carrot cake. Um, YUM! Yes, yes, I am in love with yet another tea from A Quarter to Tea. I swear I am drinking liquid carrot cake with a vanilla buttercream. The spices are not too strong and do not overpower that sweet and vegetal taste of the carrots, but they actually accent it well along with a subtle cake flavor. Then the flavor of a yummy vanilla frosting comes in at the end. Another win, people.

A Quarter to Tea is rocking this whole “tea blending” thing.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Green Tea
Where to Buy:  A Quarter To Tea
Description

A cup of well-spiced carrot cake accented with raisins and pineapple for sweetness and a sweet and tangy cream cheese frosting.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Coconut Carrot Cashew from A Quarter To Tea

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy: A Quarter to Tea

Tea Description:

Coconut Carrot Cashew:  Three of the best C’s in existence that are only better when paired together. Sweet carrot, creamy coconut, and rich and nutty cashews come together on an Assam base for a medium bodied, and incredibly satisfying cup.

All orders come in resealable packaging and include a reusable muslin cotton tea bag.  Ingredients:   Assam black tea, raw cashews, shredded coconut, dried carrot, natural flavors.  Brew and Size Instructions:  Use 1-2 teaspoons for a 6 oz cup.  Steep for 3-5 minutes at 200F water.  

Remember, there’s no wrong way to take your tea, as long as it makes you happy!

Learn more about this tea here. 

Taster’s Review:

If you haven’t checked out A Quarter To Tea, I implore you to do so. A Quarter to Tea offers fresh gorgeous unique blends that make you crave more. And Coconut Carrot Cashew is no exception.

Coconut Carrot Cashew is an very unique and odd blend. Who would have thought that these three flavors would work together. But I have to say, they do brilliantly!

Let’s start with the ingredients in this blend. First whiff of this package and you get the sugar coconut noes right off the bat.  There is that good ol fashioned black tea fragrance that just makes ones heart happy.

Per the brewing suggestions, I steeped this blend for 4 minutes with water prepped at 200F.  Once the timer went off letting me know the tea was ready, I did allow the tea to cool for a moment or two. I was eager to try this delight!

First sip in and I am in LOVE. I have to say this tea has it all.

Gorgeous sweet almost sugary notes of coconut envelope the entire sip. The perfect amount of sweet to contrast with the subtle yet vibrant malty and astringent black tea base.  The carrot and cashew tones finish up perfectly with a carrot cake like finish. During each sip, you could almost imagine a lush decadent carrot cake with icing piled high.

I have tried several different dessert teas and several blends boasting that they taste like carrot cake. I have never tasted a tea that tasted more like a carrot cake than this one. Initially I was worried that the coconut in the blend would take over since the flakes are quite large, but that wasn’t the case. The coconut brought this tea to a whole new level completing that baked good note that A Quarter To Tea has captured.

So what I’m trying to say is yeah. . .this tea is good. . . . very good. . . Brilliant actually!