Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Fruit & Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Tiesta Tea
Tisane Description:
Take a break from the day and let yourself relax in the golden world of this delicious fruit blend. Smooth ginger and spicy peppercorns unite with soft peaches and mouth-watering honeydew to form a sweet and spicy flavor that just don’t stop.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
As I poured this Ginger Sweet Peach Herbal Tisane from Tiesta Tea into my teacup, I couldn’t help but be captivated by the aroma – it smells like fresh, juicy peaches! It reminds me of summer at my gramma’s house when I was young and the peach tree would yield its delicious fruit … the kitchen would smell so delicious as my gramma would slice up the peaches for peach pie (and of course, my favorite, warm peach sauce for Sunday morning waffles!)
I didn’t smell much of the ginger or the pepper as I poured the tisane … just peaches. But now that I sip it, I do taste the ginger and pepper … although the flavor is not an overwhelming presence in the cup. The ginger is gentle and relaxing, as the label on the pouch from Tiesta Tea promises. Tiesta Tea offers five different “types” of teas and tisanes: Energizer, Relaxer, Eternity, Immunity, and Slenderizer. This tisane is part of the Relaxer category … and it is gentle in flavor, and it is very relaxing to sip. It is also rather soothing, making it a nice choice for after meals.
I steeped this tisane for 7 minutes in almost boiling water (195°F), and this yielded a cup that started off rather muted, but, after sip number two, I began to pick up on the flavors. The peach is very nicely defined at this point, and I taste subtle hints of the melon.
I taste floral tones as well. I am surprised – but happily so – that I taste very little hibiscus here. Maybe a hint of tartness comes through here and there. And the hibiscus is noted in the texture of the tisane … it has a nice, smooth character. I think that if I had steeped this tisane longer, the texture might have gone from smooth to syrupy. By mid-cup, I start to notice the pleasant warming sensation from the ginger and the pepper. It is a mild warmth.
This tastes a lot like a thin warmed, peach nectar that has been infused with ginger and pepper, with just a splash of honeydew melon juice. It’s quite yummy! A really nice tisane from Tiesta Tea!
Love Affair Rooibos Blend from Defthlesen & Balk
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Amoda Teas
Tisane Description:
Maybe it’s the unusual addition of rhubarb, maybe it’s the cute little candy hearts… but there is something making this a chocolate and strawberries blend like no other. It’s creamy, chocolate-y, fruity and honeyed without being overly sweet. You could sip this with your V-day dessert and not go into a sugar coma.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Learn how to subscribe to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the second of the three teas/tisanes that I received in this month’s Tea Tasting Box from Amoda Teas. (Have you subscribed yet? You can do so with the link above, and you really should! It’s really fun to receive a package form Amoda Teas!)
I admit to finding myself a wee bit disappointed by this Love Affair Rooibos Blend from Defthlesen & Balk. Oh, it tastes alright, but, it’s not quite as good as I hoped for. When I see “Chocolate and Strawberries” in the description, I’m hoping for some seriously yummy tea. You know what I mean?
And I must confess that I am a little spoiled, because for Valentine’s Day this year, my hubby bought me a dozen chocolate covered strawberries. So, my tasting of this tisane comes off of indulging in juicy, ripe strawberries that had been generously coated in various types of chocolate (some were dark chocolate, others were milk chocolate and some had white chocolate drizzle) … and they were just sinfully decadent.
And … unfortunately, this tisane just isn’t nearly as decadent. The rooibos blend tastes mostly of strawberries and rooibos, and the result is a nutty, sweet, fruity, tisane with hints of chocolate. The strawberry tastes sweet with a tartness that reveals itself in the aftertaste … the tart notes are further accentuated with the rhubarb … even so, this is definitely more sweet than tart. (That is a good thing in my opinion!)
The chocolate is rather subtle, and a bit too subtle in the opinion of this chocoholic. If someone says chocolate … I want CHOCOLATE. I don’t want hints of chocolate. I don’t want a subdued undertone of chocolate. I want CHOCOLATE. And I’m not getting that here. As the tisane continues to cool, I notice the chocolate a little more, but it never becomes a strong enough flavor to please my chocoholic palate.
The rose presents a very gentle floral note, and I do like that … it’s a nice contrast to the sweet and fruity notes. Overall, a pleasant enough cup, it just doesn’t live up to my expectations.
Orange Blossom Chamomile from Petali Teas
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Amoda Tea
Tisane Description:
Ingredients: German chamomile, mint, orange peels and blossoms, malva and lemongrass.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the third tea that I received in my December Amoda Box (Yeah, I am behind, I
know) The other two teas that came in December’s Amoda Box were Black Tea Merlot from Vintage TeaWorks, which I did not review after receiving this box because I had reviewed it previously, and Minty Winter Wonderland from Tiesta Tea.
This Orange Blossom Chamomile from Petali Teas is a surprising blend. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not a big fan of herbal blends, preferring teas with the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant, but, I must admit that I do find herbal tisanes to be a nice, caffeine free alternative for evenings. And this herbal from Petali Teas is really tasty.
When I opened the pouch, I was astonished at how good the dry leaf smelled. It smelled sweet and orange-y … reminding me a bit of orange slices (you know those jelly candies that are an orange gel that is covered in sugar? Yeah, those … that’s what this tisane smells like to me) and since I love orange slices, my mouth started watering when I first smelled this … and I started craving orange slices. Since I didn’t happen to have any in the house, I decided to brew a cup of this to see if it would help curb my craving.
Sadly, it did not curb the desire for candy, but, I will say that it is a tasty cuppa. Citrus notes are strong, and it’s not just orange that I taste. I taste hints of lemon and even a touch of lime. The orange is the strongest note, but, I like how this is almost like a citrus punch kind of flavor, rather than focusing just on the orange. I also taste a very light floral note to this.
The ingredients list peppermint, and while I don’t taste a distinct minty note that screams PEPPERMINT to me, there is a certain zesty … crisp, cool note to this that I attribute to the peppermint. That is to say … this doesn’t taste overwhelmingly minty … but there are qualities to this that are minty. Perhaps the strength of the citrus is such that it overpowers the peppermint … and for this particular tisane, that works for me, because it is … after all, called Orange Blossom Chamomile and not Peppermint Chamomile. It should be about the citrus. But I do like the minty characteristics in this blend.
Overall, I found this to be enjoyable … one I’d be happy to enjoy again.
Japanese Cherry from Joy’s Teaspoon
Tea Type: Green Tea
Where To Buy: Joy’s Teaspoon
Product Description:
Cherries play an important role in Japanese culture. The cherry blossom festival which takes place every year is beautiful to look at. The exquisite Sencha base was refined with high-quality sour cherries and a tempting cherry flavor. This blend is doubtless a real classic among the flavored green teas and belongs in every assortment.
Tasters Review:
Japanese Cherry from Joy’s Teaspoon is really great tasting Sencha and the Cherry is delightful! I have had Cherry flavored Greens before and many other companies over do it on their flavoring! Either they overdue it or it’s very artificial tasting or in some cases it tastes like medicine…you know…like Pepto or Cough Syrup or something! This is JUST RIGHT! I may just say this is my FAVORITE Japanese Cherry to date! Nicely flavored green!
A little more about Japanese Cherry and Cherry Blossoms:
A cherry blossom is the flower of the cherry trees known as Sakura (桜 or 櫻; さくら?). In English, “sakura” refers to the Japanese flowering cherry, Prunus serrulata.[1][2] Cherry fruit (桜んぼ, sakuranbo?) comes from another species of tree.
Read more HERE.
Pearl of Fruits Tea from ESP Emporium
Tea Type: Black/Green Tea Blend
Where to Buy: ESP Emporium
Product Description:
This fruity creation will impress you with its unusual spicy influences. Notes of exotic fruits, berries and creamy soft almond endow this black and green tea blend from China and Ceylon with an exotic, oriental taste experience, and orange peels and various blossoms reflect this in its appearance.
Ingredients: black tea (55 %), green tea (30 %), orange peels, flavoring, rose petals, safflowers, marigold petals. Serving Size: 1 level tsp./6oz serving, Brew Temp: 203 to 212 degree F, Brew Time: 4 to 5 Minutes
Tasters Review:
Pearl of Fruits Tea from ESP Emporium is highly scented and very nice – to the eye, nose, and mouth!
Post infusion…everything seems to come together to create it’s-own aroma which is much different from before infusing but still VERY nice! I can smell the orange and floral tones a bit more than the others but not by much and I can smell a little something that reminds me of candy, too!
It has a very pleasant yet slightly juicy and floral taste to it but it’s certainly GOOD. I am very happy with this tea and so VERY glad I got to try it!