Apple Sencha from Den’s Tea

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green

Where to Buy:  Den’s Tea

Tea Description:

The combination of dried apple bits and apple flavor make Apple Sencha is a great option to apple cider on a cold evening. It offers the pleasure of sweet-sour apple with Sencha flavor. Also great for iced tea.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I was really excited to try this flavored Sencha.  Back when I was still flavoring and blending teas, I had a green apple flavored green tea, and I’ve been hoping to find one that I like as well as I did that one.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed here!

Mmm!  This is good!  It is different than my blend, but then, I kind of expected it to be, because this is a Japanese Sencha and my blend was made using a blend of Chinese green teas.  But the apple flavoring is very good – almost cider like, but without the spices.  I like that the apple flavor is very true to the fruit – it is a little bit sweet, and a little bit sour, and there is such a crispness to the cup as well … just like biting into a fresh, crunchy apple!

This tea has a very autumnal feel to it – then again, apples always make me think of “back to school” and the month of September… fall.  But, at the same time, it tastes light and crisp – almost spring-like too!  A lovely tea that can be enjoyed any time of year!

This is one that deserves a place in my cupboard.  I like it a lot!

Acai Berry Blend Oolong from Fusion Teas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Oolong

Where to Buy:  Fusion Teas

Tea Description:

A rich floral Chinese Oolong combined with the amazing fruity flavor of the acai berry.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

When I took my first sniff of the dry leaf of this tea, I did not expect to be blown away – but I was!  This smells phenomenal!  Very berry-fruity, with hints of floral notes that compliment the berry tones.  Once brewed, the tea maintains much of the fragrance that I experienced with the dry leaf, but I notice a bit more of the floral tones from the Oolong along with the aroma of the acai berry.

But what really took me by surprise is how good it tasted.  I wouldn’t normally be so excited about an acai berry flavored tea – as I’ve mentioned before, it’s one of those ingredients that often earns a cringe reaction from me because of its tendency to be a bit more tart than it is sweet.  But with this tea, there is the perfect balance between tart and sweet, with less tartness really revealing itself during the sip.  It is in the aftertaste where I experience most of the tartness with that tingly sensation that tickles the tip of the tongue.  That might almost be a tongue twister!

Anyway, I don’t know if it’s because the Oolong is so naturally sweet and smooth that the flavor of the acai berry seems softer and sweeter during the sip, but, whatever is the reason – I like it like this!  The sip starts with a very pleasing sweetness as well as a creamy buttery kind of taste and feel.  The sweet fruit and creamy butter taste and texture continue throughout the sip, with mere hints of tartness peeking throughout the sip.  The finish is barely astringent, it is as though the creaminess of the tea has washed over some of the astringency to make for a smoother finish.  Then, in the aftertaste, the tartness emerges … but only just slightly stronger than it was throughout the sip.  This never becomes overtly tart.

This is a very enjoyable tea.  I think that if this tea was my first experience with the acai berry, I wouldn’t cringe at all!  This is absolutely wonderful!