I have a soft spot for a nice cup of peppermint tea so I was more than happy to try Please Not Tonight from Oh You Tease. Mint tea is said to provide all kinds of health benefits like help with digestion and mental focus. I reach for a cup of mint tea when I want something crisp and refreshing and decaf.
Please Not Tonight is a perfectly named minty brew. Anytime you’re not up to whatever the night throws at you, brew a cup of this tea to soothe what ails you. Feel a migraine coming on? Let the creamy peppermint cool your head. Have an unsettled stomach? Drink a mug of crisp freshness. And this blend has chamomile to boot, to help encourage relaxation and sleep.
The real treat is the Oh You Tease shop itself. Their teas come in cheery, patterned envelopes with sweet or cheeky names. You also get the satisfaction of supporting a small business, a small business that brings more tea into the world. If that doesn’t make you feel better, maybe you need to brew another cup!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Oh You Tease
Description:
Naturally caffeine-free tea blend of peppermint leaves and chamomile flowers – natural stomach soothers
A fascinating and refreshing herbal infusion with an amazing minty peppermint and uplifting aroma of chamomile extracts. The whole aromatherapy in a teapot. Naturally caffeine free
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Memory from Virginia Tea Company
Ginkgo biloba touts an amazing comeback story. Had it not been for one monastery keeping it as a sacred plant, it would have disappeared from our planet entirely! A group of these trees in Hiroshima even survived an atomic bomb (soooooo yeah, bulletproof coffee needs to step it up a bit, eh?)
And had you all not heard that amazing story from a biology class, you’d still be in luck, because fortunately the Virginia Tea co has done all the herbal medicine research and responsible sourcing for you, Thank you Kickstarter supporters! This tea is entirely to credit (blame??) for any extra wild anecdotes I happen to remember from Fall Quarter
This offering has beautiful, large leafy components and all sorts of flavor packed little herbal goodies just perfectly balanced. There is a distinctly sweet, innocent floral scent going on here that is super relaxing, a good “stop and smell the roses” kinda moment. Very youthful and uplifting.
I love drinking these “mind-boosting” teas on exam days. As usual I personally prefer a bit of sweetener in these teas. Whether they truly help me remember how to do a crazy math skill or not, I’m at peace even with just the placebo effect.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Virginia Tea Company
Your brain is a very powerful organ and needs to be nourished. This blend of gingko, gotu kola, spearmint, and sage are exactly what your mind needs to increase awareness and retain memory.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Thoughts on Soothing with Chamomile / Balcony Tea. . . .
It is often said that you can steep anything that isn’t a true tea for much longer then regular.
For the most part it is true. I would suggest, however, to still taste every few minutes while you are steeping. I steeped this tea for the majority of the morning and now it is basically a chamomile punch in the mouth.
When steeped for 5 – 7 minutes it is a perfect harmony of herbal notes with the chamomile and rose nicely balanced. Like most tisane with rose petals this one also smells like a garden when you open the bag.
Truly a pleasant aroma.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Balcony Teas
Description:
Feel transported to a beautiful evening in the Mediterranean. All is calm and you can smell wild flowers. Perfect for a moment to yourself or to wind down after a busy day.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Organic Greek Mountain Tea by Klio
Steeping time 4 minutes, 1/2 cup boiling water, 2 g of tea leaves and stems.
I have always been an avid herb gardener (although not, alas, always a successful one) and today I noticed what exactly it is about this type of tea that I found familiar. The leaves are similar in appearance (silvery and fuzzy) and even similar in shape to Lamb’s Ear, and I think the fragrance may be similar as well, although Lamb’s Ear is not actually well-known for its smell. (Plus, I can never manage to keep it alive so I don’t actually have a Lamb’s Ear plant to compare right now). When I looked it up, I discovered that the two plants are in the same family, i.e. the Mint family . . . but then so are hundreds and thousands of other plants, so that doesn’t mean they’re actually closely related. I guess it’s just the type of family resemblance that sometimes shows up unexpectedly between distant cousins.
The other thing that the leaves remind me of is licorice, or at least those licorice-flavored herbal teas that you drink when you’re sick with a cold. (Actually I may be thinking of the combination of licorice and slippery elm flavors? But I’m not positive.) It’s not an unpleasant fragrance, and I can imagine this tea being pleasant to drink.
As I steep the tea, the fragrance emerges more, but not at overpowering levels. The tea liquid itself does not appear to change color greatly, and after steeping appears slightly yellowish but not extremely so. The fragrance hasn’t gotten much stronger in the last couple of minutes.
The first sip is not quite as flavorful as the fragrance, but it does support my impression of this tea as being similar to an herbal tea used to treat colds. It tastes slightly sweet in the back of the mouth. It doesn’t seem all that viscous, but it’s probably giving my throat a nice protective coating as I drink it. It doesn’t need sugar, which is a good thing because if you’re going to drink it every day for your health then you wouldn’t want to add sugar or you’d counteract the health benefits, right? It definitely tastes healthy, but in a good, gentle way, not in a bitter-green-smoothie type of way.
I’m not going to say that I want to replace my regularly scheduled tea breaks with this herbal tea, but since it’s caffeine free I bet it would be a great nightcap. Plus, it does have quite a soothing and calming effect, so add that to its other benefits (such as its health benefits) and it turns out to be quite a valuable beverage!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Klio Greek Tea
Description
This variety, Sideritis Scardica, comes from the legendary Mount Olympus, in the Balkans, situated between Thessaly and Macedonia.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Elderberry Blend from Storehouse Tea. . . .
Lately I’ve had a few medical issues pop up where I’ve been a bit more careful about the tea I drink. I’ve found myself more and more drawn to herbals. Herbals and I have always had this weird love hate relationship. I’m not a fan of extremely “herbally”flavored teas that are just too spiced ie have lots of ginger. So when I was going through my tea stash and came across Elderberry Blend from our friends at Storehouse Tea I was delighted.
Elderberry Blend is a fun mix of hibiscus, elderberries, dried currants, raisins, rosehips and other natural flavors. As you can imagine this tea is tart but tart in a good way.
Brewed hot, this tea gives so much tart loving that just hits the spot. Tart fans rejoice! This tea delivers a wonderfully tart berry flavor that doesn’t get to the point where you are puckering your lips, even after the tea started to cool. I destroyed my first cuppa and went greedily for a second.
Cold brewed overnight, this brilliant pinkish hue tea gives that same tart feel but in a more refreshing way. You again have that same familiar tart flavor but the tartness just has this crisper feel that I felt was way more satisfying than when this tea was brewed hot. I also found that the berry flavors had a larger role and weren’t hidden behind the hibiscus as much. I added a touch of spearmint into the cold brew mix and I couldn’t have been happier with the results.
Storehouse Tea is another one of those hidden gems on the internet when it comes to tea shops. I’ve been impressed with the majority of the teas I’ve tried from them and after trying this one, I’m waiting to try more of their offerings.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy: Storehouse Tea
Description
This succulent blend of Caffeine Free herbs and fruits imparts a refreshing deep berry flavor, tart with a subtle sweetness creating a satisfying deep dark red infusion. Contains powerful anti-oxidants which may help expel toxins, relieve sore throat, and shorten the flu cycle. Excellent iced.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
