The Killer’s Vanilla from Butiki Teas

by liberteas

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Guayusa

Where to Buy:  Butiki Teas

Tisane Description:

Don’t let the name fool you, this guayusa is subtle and calming but it is deceptive in its high caffeine content which creates a relaxed yet alert feeling. Lavender, mint, and vanilla are well balanced and come together for a light and earthy treat. Add a little sugar and the flavors come to life. The creamy vanilla, gentle mint, and relaxing lavender mingle and fight for attention but ultimately the vanilla is the strongest. This guayusa was inspired by a song that we adore, The Killer’s Vanilla by Amon Tobin, one of our favorite artists to listen to while blending tea. For more information on the naming of this guayusa check out our blog .

Learn more about this tisane here.

Taster’s Review:

To the eye, this doesn’t really look all that special.  It looks like most other Guayusa tisanes that I’ve seen.

To the nose, it smells like creamy vanilla with a earthy overtone and a distant note of mint … and an even more subtle hint of flower.  So subtle, in fact, that it is difficult to discern that what I’m smelling is lavender (one of my favorite florals, especially when it comes to tea!)  This tisane actually smells a little weird … but in a very intriguing kind of way.

To the tongue, this tastes really good!  It is interesting and different with every sip.  In one sip, I’ll notice a strong vanilla note, and in the next, I’ll notice the rich earthiness of the guayusa and notes of mint.  Then in the next sip, I’ll notice the lavender as the prominent taste.  I love that it seems to change with every sip … offering me different flavors to explore.

The guayusa has less of a vegetative taste than the aroma would lead me to believe, it tastes more earthy … imagine pouring half a cup of coffee and topping off the cup with yerba mate, and then you added the essences of vanilla, mint and lavender … this sort of tastes the way I’d imagine that cup would taste.  There’s lots of flavor to enjoy here!

I love this tisane … and while this cup has been a complete surprise from start to finish, one thing that doesn’t surprise me is that I do love this.  Butiki Teas never fails to impress me, and it seems like I fall in love all over again with each new cup I try from this company.

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Guayusa

Guayusa Tea with Lemon from Stash Tea

by liberteas

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Guayusa

Where to Buy:  Stash Tea

Tisane Description:

GUAYUSA (gwhy-you-sa) is a rare herbal tea produced from the leaves of a holly tree (ilex guayusa) native to the Amazon Rainforest of Ecuador. Guayusa is naturally caffeinated and has an awakening effect similar to coffee and yerba mate. For this signature blend, we’ve combined Guayusa with lemony herbs and pure lemon oil for a slightly tart, refreshing taste.

Learn more about this tisane here.

Taster’s Review:

Having trouble staying awake when you need to?  Need some caffeine, but you don’t want the ordinary cup of coffee, you want something bright and flavorful … something that will put a spring in your step?

This is the beverage for you!

Guayusa is very caffeinated – I find it to be on the same level caffeine wise as coffee but, while coffee tends to upset my stomach a few hours after I’ve consumed it, I don’t have those same ill aftereffects with Guayusa.

What I’m enjoying about this particular blend is that the vibrant, coffee-esque taste – rich and flavorful – of the Guayusa marries so well with the sunny notes of the lemon.  It is sweet yet tart, but not so tart that I feel myself wanting to pucker after a sip.  The tartness sparkles lightly on the tongue in the aftertaste.

I’ve tried a few Guayusa blends by now, and I really like what I’ve tasted.  I can’t say that the lemon blends are my favorite (I think that I prefer chocolate!  I know, duh!  right?) but I do enjoy the lemon-y Guayusa blends quite a bit.   Very nice, and I could see how this would be a perfect choice for those mornings when you just can’t seem to shake that groggy, sleepy feeling.  This has a refreshing, energizing taste to go with the natural invigorating qualities of the Guayusa.

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Guayusa

Guayusa with Lemon from Stash Tea Company

by teaequalsbliss

Tea Type:
Guayusa

Where To Buy:
Stash Tea Company

Product Description:

GUAYUSA (gwhy-you-sa) is a rare herbal tea produced from the leaves of a holly tree (ilex guayusa) native to the Amazon Rainforest of Ecuador. Guayusa is naturally caffeinated and has an awakening effect similar to coffee and yerba mate. For this signature blend, we’ve combined Guayusa with lemony herbs and pure lemon oil for a slightly tart, refreshing taste.

Tasters Review:

This is really good!  Surprisingly GOOD!!  The Lemon is PERFECT in this!  At least for my palate, it is!  This is a highly flavored Guayusa and I like it!  If you like Lemon this is darn tasty!  I have found that Lemon Flavored and Mint Flavored Guayusa’s seem to really fit my fancy!  This one was no exception!  It’s certainly one of the better flavored bagged Guayusa’s I have tried.  YUM!

 

teaequalsbliss

Co-Founder/Co-Creator of Sororitea Sisters at Sororitea Sisters Jennifer (TeaEqualsBliss) is in her upper 30s and lives in the eastern snowbelt area of the US with her husband, 3 dogs, and cat (however the number of furkids can change at anytime as she LOVES providing a forever home for many shelter animals. Her several interests include music, movies, veganism, sports, traveling, collecting Baseball Cards and Unicorns, Radio, Computers, Crafting, and of course…TEA. She started drinking tea at the tender age of 3 thanks to her Grandmother and her love for tea has gotten stronger with each year! In addition to being a co-founder/co-creator of Sororitea Sisters - her main site is MyBlissfulJourney.com. Find out more about Jennifer on MyBlissfulJourney.com.

This post was posted in Guayusa

Good Morning Sunshine from Butiki Teas

by liberteas

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Guayusa

Where to Buy:  Butiki Teas

Tisane Description:

Feel like a zombie in the morning? Then we highly recommend our refreshing Good Morning Sunshine guayusa. The lemon aroma and high caffeine content awaken the spirit. This guayusa has a zesty lemon flavor that is sweet, tart, and creamy.

Learn more about this Guayusa blend here.

Taster’s Review:

OK, I am LOVING this!

I generally do feel a bit zombie-ish in the morning.  Morning is absolutely my least favorite part of the day.  I’ll never be accused of being a morning person.  In fact, I’ve pretty much structured my day so that I can sleep through morning!  I’m much more productive late at night, so I stay up late enough so that I can wake up around 11 or so (sometimes later), and not feel guilty about sleeping the morning away … and still be rid of that bothersome morning thing.  I still have to get up – briefly – in the morning, just to make sure that my soon-to-be-teen daughter gets up and gets on her way to school.  But as soon as she’s out the door, I’m headed back to bed!

But there are sometimes when I have to get up early and stay up.  Some things won’t wait until later, and on those days, if I don’t want to look like a dead girl walking, I need something energizing to wake me up.  I can’t drink coffee, and really, with as wonderful as tea is, I don’t want to drink coffee!  But sometimes, I need the caffeine of coffee.  Fortunately, I’ve discovered Guayusa!  It offers that same caffeine burst of energy that coffee does, but without the sick feeling I get after I drink coffee.  Guayusa even tastes a little bit like coffee – only its smoother and not bitter like coffee can be.  This really is the best of both worlds.

I love the combination of flavors that Butiki chose for this Good Morning Sunshine Guayusa blend.  It is pleasantly citrus-y, providing the sunny flavor of lemon without the acidic flavor of it.  It’s a little bit tart, but not overly so.  There is a creamy element to the blend too, which curbs much of the tartness, making for a sweet, brightly flavored cup of morning goodness, with just enough tartness to keep it lively.

On the days that I have to wake up early (or early for me, anyway), this is the kind of tisane I want waiting for me.  It energizes me and helps me to shake that sleepy feeling.  After a cup of this, I feel like I can face whatever the day brings!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Guayusa

Tangerine Creamsicle from Butiki Teas

by liberteas

Tisane Information:

Leaf Type:  Guayusa

Where to Buy:  Butiki Teas

Tisane Description:

Our Tangerine Creamsicle guayusa tastes just like it sounds. The juicy tangerine notes are first prominent then creaminess takes over followed by light notes of tangy citrus. We recommend adding a little brown crystal sugar for a sweet creamsicle flavor.

Learn more about this Guayusa here.

Taster’s Review:

A creamsicle for breakfast?  Sure, if it’s this Tangerine Creamsicle from Butiki Teas!  This creamy tangerine flavored guayusa is not only delicious, but invigorating too – just the ticket to get you up and on your way!

The bold, earthy flavor of guayusa seems a really good match for the sweetness of tangerine and cream.  The flavors seem to be very harmonious in this cup.  The guayusa is a little earthy and a little vegetative, but more than that, it just tastes smooth and rich, vaguely reminiscent of coffee, but a little lighter bodied.

The tangerine notes seem to brighten the whole cup, adding a lovely sweetness and distinct citrus tang to the overall flavor.  And the cream adds just the perfect finishing touch to it, sweet, creamy, and luxurious.  This is absolutely LOVELY!

This is truly an inspired blend – one that will not only INSPIRE you to wake up, but, also put a smile on your face, ready and happy to face the day!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Guayusa