Tropical Eyebrows Green Tea from 52Teas

Tropical-Eyebrows-52teas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  52Teas

Tea Description:

As for this blend, well, despite the silly name, it’s a refreshing blast of tropical fruits and sweet green tea. Chun Mee reportedly means “Precious Eyebrows” and is so named because of the shape of the leaves, hence our “Tropical Eyebrows” name.

I’m not sure if persimmon qualifies as a tropical fruit, but I felt the need to include it here, so I did along with mango, banana, kiwi, pineapple and coconut. I hope you enjoy this one as much as I do.

Learn more about this blend here.

Taster’s Review:

Oh yum!  I find that I am usually “hesitant” to try new tropical fruit flavored teas – so I wasn’t really ~overjoyed~ when it was time for me to try this Tropical Eyebrows Green Tea from 52Teas.  And it isn’t even that I dislike tropical fruit flavored teas … I actually quite enjoy them.  I think it’s just that it seems like all the tea companies out there have some “tropical oasis” type of tea, and it just seems a little overdone.

Then again, that may sound a bit contradictory coming from me because I’ll try any Earl Grey you put in front of me and really, when it comes to flavored tea, there is no flavor that is more overdone than the tried and true, traditional bergamot, is there?

But, this tropical flavored green tea is different from the rest.  Perhaps it’s the addition of the persimmon … or perhaps it’s that its made with Chun Mee green tea.  There is something about this that is very unique – while at the same time familiar – and whatever it is, I’m liking it!

The Chun Mee has a lovely earthy quality to it that I think contrasts with the sweet, tangy tropical flavors quite nicely.  The result is a nicely round, flavorful, fruity treat for the palate.

The tropical flavors present a seamless taste that is a little bit pineapple-y, with hints of kiwi and mango and persimmon.  There is a creamy undertone from the coconut and banana.  No fruit note is really standing out from the rest, except for perhaps the pineapple, which is the first flavor I really noticed when I took a sip.  They all meld very nicely to create a tasty fruit-y flavor.

This one tastes good hot … but its a real winner when it’s iced!

Watermelon Kiwi Flavored Green Tea from Culinary Teas

LogoSpring

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Culinary Teas

Tea Description:

Our Watermelon Kiwi Green tea has a Sencha tea base, which adds sweetness to wonderful flavor of watermelon and kiwi.

Made with all natural flavorings.

Taster’s Review:

Well, the name of this tea captured my attention immediately:  Watermelon Kiwi Flavored Green Tea from Culinary Teas … um … yeah that sounds yummy!

And it tastes yummy too.  The watermelon flavor is sweet … almost candy-like. On Steepster, this tea is compared to watermelon Jolly Ranchers which is one of my favorite candies from my childhood.  Admittedly, one of the main reasons why I loved it is that my step-mother disliked the smell of it, but, my desire to irritate that woman aside, I also quite enjoyed the flavor of Watermelon Sticks from Jolly Rancher (do they even sell the sticks anymore?  I  only find them in the small “tootsie roll” size now.)

And this tea brings back those tasty memories for me.  I also taste the notes of kiwi and I like the way the two flavors meld together.  This is a sweet, juicy, fruity tasting tea … but I like that the flavor of the green tea is also present.  It keeps it from tasting too much like a fruit juice drink.  The green tea has a lightly vegetal taste with just a hint of earthiness, and this is a nice contrast to the sweeter fruit notes.

I couldn’t find this tea on the Culinary Teas website … I hope that means that the tea is temporarily sold out and not that it’s been discontinued, because this tea would make a delightful summertime tea – it is fabulous iced!  In fact, after taking my first few sips of the hot cup of tea, I decided to allow the rest to cool.  It was alright hot, but iced, it is a stunner!

Kiwi Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea

Kiwi-Matcha

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green (Matcha)

Where to Buy:  Red Leaf Tea

Tea Description:

Kiwi Matcha’s rich acidic undertones make it a delectable delight when added to many foods and drinks around the home. Its sweet and tart taste make it a great food or drink enhancer because it enlivens the taste buds and makes partaking of the food much more enjoyable. It is an excellent flavor when making culinary delights exciting and more delectable. Its lingering flavor makes many foods and drinks very delicious and appealing.

Learn more about this Matcha here.

Taster’s Review:

This is pretty tasty, although, I must admit that I’m just a tad underwhelmed by it.  I was hoping for more of a true to the fruit flavor with this Kiwi Flavored Matcha from Red Leaf Tea, but, it tastes a bit more like candy.  It still tastes kiwi-like but it’s more like an artificial kiwi flavor than a authentic fruit-like taste.

That’s not to say it tastes bad … it’s certainly enjoyable.  But, it tastes more like it was flavored with kiwi flavored candy … rather than kiwi fruit, if that makes sense.

The fresh, “green” taste of the Matcha lends some balance to this bowl of traditionally prepared Matcha, though.  It has a bittersweet, slightly vegetative, slightly buttery taste.  The texture is smooth and creamy and I’m glad to report that it is not gritty.  (Yay!) It even stayed mixed all the way to the bottom of the bowl.

The kiwi has a sweet, fruity taste, but as I mentioned before, it is not a true fruit kind of taste … more like a fruity candy taste.  It definitely does taste of kiwi, though.  And there is a trace of “chemical-y” taste to this as well, but, I didn’t find it to be a powerful or overwhelming flavor, and after the first couple of sips, the artificial-y/chemical-y taste began to subside.

I prepared this traditionally, as I said, but I used slightly cooler water than I normally would, because it’s warmer out these days, and I wanted a cooler drink.  While it terribly hot, it was warm and I enjoyed it that way.  It’s also quite good when added to smoothies!

My specifications for this Matcha were my “usual” – the classic grade of green Matcha, flavored with a distinctive level of kiwi flavoring.  This time around, I think that the kiwi slightly overpowered the flavor of the green tea, so you might want to go with the delicate flavoring with this particular flavor.  Or … perhaps try a higher grade of Matcha (which is what I’d recommend!)

Good … but, not my favorite flavoring for the Matcha from Red Leaf Tea … but I’m still really glad I had the opportunity to try it, and don’t regret ordering it because I do love the flavor it adds to my smoothies, especially since I do enjoy kiwi fruit but it’s not a fruit I typically keep on hand.  A teaspoon and a half of this Kiwi Flavored Matcha gives my smoothies a nice hint of kiwi!

Kiwi Cherry Bonanza Fruit Tisane from Tiesta Tea

Kiwi_Cherry_Bonanza

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Fruit Tisane

Where to Buy:  Amoda Tea

Tisane Description:

Kiwi lovers rejoice, your tea is here. Non-kiwi lovers rejoice, you’ll love it too. This tea smells sweet and tastes sweet (not a huge surprise since it’s a blend of different fruits).
There’s a hint of spice courtesy of the ginger bits that gets ya mostly in the delightful cherry ginger finish.

Learn more about this tisane here.

Learn how to subscribe to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.

Taster’s Review: 

OK, I didn’t have my hopes too high for this Kiwi Cherry Bonanza from Tiesta Tea – the third of the three teas in this month’s Tea Tasting Box from Amoda Tea.  I enjoy fruit tisanes on occasion, but generally, I find them to be pretty weakly flavored infusions, and kind of boring, really.

Not so with this tisane!  This tisane has a lot of flavor to it!  It is definitely one of the better FRUIT tisanes I’ve had (that is, a tisane that is primarily fruit and not so much herbs, hibiscus and other stuff).  The only non-fruit ingredients this tisane has is carrot, which is my favorite vegetable so I’m all for the carrot being in there; and ginger, which adds a pleasant hint of spice to the cup … a really nice contrast to the sweet and tangy flavors of kiwi and cherry.

The apple plays a big role in this cup, which is often true of fruit tisanes like this … and that’s one of the reasons that I typically am not a big fan of fruit tisanes.  The apple is often all that I can taste in fruit tisanes, and it ends up tasting not like apple juice or apple cider, but a washed out, weak apple water.  But, again, this tisane is NOT like fruit tisanes I’ve tasted in the past.  The apple here is strong, but, it doesn’t leave the cup tasting like a weak apple water.  It enhances the overall cup, adding a little bit of body to the cup as well as sweetness to amplify the flavor of the cherry and especially the kiwi.

I love the cherry here.  It is a little bit tart and a little bit sweet, and it is the star  of this cup.  I like the role that it plays.  The cherry steals the show with it’s flavor, brightening the cup with tangy notes and a sweet, juicy cherry taste that is not at all medicinal the way many cherry flavors can taste in teas and tisanes.

The kiwi flavor is what I was most excited to experience though, because there really are very few kiwi teas and tisanes out there.  And I love the kiwi!  Here, the kiwi flavor is sweet and tastes a little subdued in the midst of the stronger cherry and apple notes, but I find that the kiwi comes through especially well toward mid-to-end of sip, I notice that sweet, distinct kiwi note.  YUM!

This is really much, much better than I anticipated it to be, and I’m really glad I got to try it.  Despite my woes with having too many tisanes in these tea tasting boxes from Amoda Tea that I mentioned in my Amoda Tea Box post, I really quite enjoyed both tisanes that were included in this month’s box.  Sure, I would like very much to have more teas than tisanes in these boxes, BUT if Amoda keeps picking winners like they did this month with tisanes, I would still say that I’m a very satisfied Amoda Tea subscriber.

Thé des Alizés from Le Palais des Thes

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Le Palais Des Thés

Tea Description:

 A green tea enlivened by flower petals and delicately scented with pieces of white peach, kiwi and watermelon. The green tea and the juicy freshness of the fruit are wonderfully balanced. Can be drunk hot or iced.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I am not usually one for watermelon flavored things outside of watermelon itself, but this delicate tea by Le Palais des Thes has me enjoying a watermelon blend. Granted it is not just a watermelon flavored tea, there are other wonderful fruit flavors in here accompanying the watermelon, peach is one of those flavors, and I am quite partial to peach teas! Kiwi is pretty good in teas although I have not seen it used often, so this is a really nice flavor blend.

Just as in the description offered by the company, it is in fact quite a “juicy” tea. As you sip your mouth almost waters with the burst of fruit flavors.

Also the green tea base holds its own against quite a few somewhat strong flavors. The base cold easily have been overcome, but it is not. In fact it not only holds its own, but the base is the main flavor I taste, which is good because when it comes to tea, sometimes I do enjoy a tea that is overwhelming with flavor, but for the most part I want to savor the tea over any flavorings within it.

I will say that it can be difficult to pick out any one flavor in the tea between the different fruits. One would not sip this and instantly say “Watermelon!” or “Kiwi!” for example. Rather it is more like a fruit punch flavor – a tropical punch, without the cloying sugar sweetness, yet it is nicely sweet, a natural sweet.

While this is not one of my favorite stash buster teas, it is always one that is lovely to return to. It is inviting enough that I am interested in trying more teas from Le Palais des Thes, which I intend to do in the future if this is any indication of their tea quality I should be quite pleased!