Notes on Beyond Blueberry/Akova -skysamurai-

I’m taking a leap out of my purist comfort zone to taste some cuppas by a new tea company.

The smell immediately pulsates up your nose when you open the bag. The blueberry aroma is like a club playing EDM.

Makes me wonder if we’ll ever see clubbing again…

This wonderful smell prepares you for something amazing in the flavor. Which unfortunately isn’t there.

It is tepid blueberry in flavor. To be honest, the flavor is very bland. Even the black leaf uninspiring.

My suggestion would be to add real blueberries to the blend (freeze dried if possible). Out of curiosity I’ve also steeped it cold to see if that would reveal better flavors. At five minutes it is still bland but something seems to be trying to peek out.

After 10 minutes there is a bit of cream and a bit more fruity. Which makes me wonder if this would be a good overnight iced tea. .


Want to Know More About This Tea?

Leaf Type: Black

Where to Buy: Akova Teas

Description

Intoxicating black tea with the aroma of wild blueberries.

Ingredients: Black tea*, Elderberry* + Currant pieces*, Hibiscus petals*, Natural flavors (organic compliant)

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Blueberry Black Tea from LeCharm. . . .

Some of you might know that my full time line of work is the wonderful world of RADIO. YEARS and YEARS ago when I was part of a trio that did a Saturday Night Request Show we used to refer to locating rare songs on record as ‘dumpster diving’. That might sound like a bad thing but it was never intended that way.

Recently when I was digging deep into my tea stash bins I came across this Blueberry Black Tea from LeCharm that is in a small pouch of sorts and that kind of made me think of locating those old gems during the request shows.

I guess I thought I had already reviewed this product long ago but I cannot locate it here at SororiTea Sisters so I figured now was as good time as any to feature this one here on the site!

Blueberry Black Tea from LeCharm. A VERY unique product. LeCharm’s product description of this tea is this…when someone wants to have something that tastes great and is convenient to drink at work, they may consider choosing a tea sachet. These only require hot or cold water. The preparation is very easy and only takes about three seconds. This is something that other healthy drinks or bagged teas do not offer. After preparing a tea that requires a tea bag, there will be a wet and messy tea bag to throw out. The tea sachet is simply opened up and dumped into the water where the ingredients will dissolve quickly and completely. These are easy to store and can fit into a purse or a drawer.

I totally agree with this. It’s great for work, for travel, for tiny house living, for camp, you name it!

Flavor-wise here were my findings…this powdery tea product provides a hint of the blueberry’s sourness while dancing within this robust black tea. It oddly tasted like blueberry flavored black tea…iced! I’m not sure HOW they did it but they DID! And I’m glad they did…and did it RIGHT! End result…delightful and convenient!

 


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black
Where to Buy:  LeCharm
Description

A tint of the blueberry’s sourness flows within this robust black tea. The antioxidants and nutrients of the blueberry can improve one’s memory, and that serves to enhance the memory of the experience even further. Drink Blueberry Black Tea before a meal, and you’ll find that the food goes down easy and hits the tongue with delectable contrast. Black tea will be there to help stabilize the circulatory system’s blood sugar.

 

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Wildberry Black Tea from Simpson and Vail . . . .

BERRIES BERRIES BERRIES. Berries near! Berries far! Berries drank from a jar!

Berries sipped in a car!

Berries berries on your tongue; berries are for everyone!

This berry blend is so berry-licious that I had to slip into a rhyme trance. I’m back now, though, to let you know that wow, this is a lot of berries.

It’s a blend of wildberries, blackberries, and raspberries. They ooze into one thick (slightly NyQuil-like) mix.

Iced, the berries are more sweet and less medicinal, but they’re still pretty strong.

I definitely prefer this iced. It’s got a lot of a perky kick that works better cold than hot. If you’re a berry fanatic, you’ll love this BERRY MUCH. But if you’re on the fence, this might be a little much.

You need to reach in your heart. To thine own self be true. Berries here, berries there, berries are everywhere! Berries are pals I love the most! Berries have taken over this post!

 


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy:  Simpson and Vail
Description

This outstanding berry blend is a combination of strawberry, blueberry and blackberry flavors. It brews to a deep amber cup with a fresh picked berry aroma and a taste that explodes on your taste buds. Delicious hot or iced, it’s the perfect cup for a relaxing summer day!

Ingredients: black teas, wildberry flavor, blackberry leaves, raspberry pieces, and malva (mallow) blossoms.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

The Blues from 52Teas. . .

I received this blend complimentary from 52 Teas with my last order. It’s funny because I have had my eye on it for some time. The description of blueberry and vanilla made me think of blueberry crisp or blueberry pie, and as soon as I took a sip I knew that my intuition was correct. If you’ve ever seen the movie Willy Wonka, do you remember when Violet turns violet from the blueberry pie gum? That flavor is in my cup right now. That scene is exactly what came to mind when I tasted this blend!

The flavor of blueberry is so fresh and realistic. The vanilla adds a creamy twist. Both of them together along with the black tea create a cup that truly is reminding me of blueberry pie a la mode. It is perfect for the summer months because I have a feeling it would be ahhh-mazing iced with sugar!

This is the perfect tea to make the night before and cool in the fridge so that it is ready to pour over ice before your morning commute this summer. On your way to work you’ll be transported to the County Fair, eating a heaping slice of blueberry pie with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream!

A must try from 52 Teas…hurry before it’s gone!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black
Where to Buy:   52Teas
Description

The inspiration behind this flavor combination harkens back to the days when I would blog about food on occasion on my Hungry in Portland blog – back to Knoshy box days! What’s Knoshy, you ask? Well, Knoshy was a food subscription service – every month a box would arrive – kinda like the tea subscription boxes from me! – but instead of amazing teas, the Knoshy box was filled with specialty foods and in the case of Knoshy, those foods were from small American businesses like The Jam Stand. (You’ll see why I use this company as an example in a moment.)

Knoshy would curate a box of four or more food items – and the box would be curated to a particular theme. One month, the theme was Tea Time! (One of my very favorite month’s indeed if for no other reason than TEA! I mean, seriously – is there a better reason?) During the month of Tea Time, there was a jar of Blueberry Bourbon jam from The Jam Stand! The jam was delicious – brimming with blueberries, kissed with a wonderful vanilla note and hints of bourbon – and while I didn’t write an individual review about this jam, the flavor of the jam was delightful enough to leave an impression on me so when it came time to start coming up with different tea flavor ideas – this idea came to mind!

For the base, I decided to go with a rich, flavorful combination of Golden Yunnan & an Assamica tea grown in the Jingmai mountains. I figured this base would provide a nice backdrop for the bourbon notes but as I sip on this, I find that it also melds beautifully with the blueberry! I added a hint of vanilla since the aforementioned jam had vanilla in it and hey, do we ever really need a reason for vanilla?

A bit unusual, this flavor combination – but quite lovely too!

As for the name, I decided to call this blueberry, vanilla and bourbon flavored black tea “The Blues” because I wanted a catchier name for the tea than “Blueberry Vanilla Bourbon” so I went with The Blues. But don’t let the name fool you – this tea is not at all gloomy or depressing! It’s delightfully tasty and a wonderful way to kick off the new year!

Taster size is approximately 15g

ingredients: black teas, organic blueberries, organic calendula petals, organic vanilla beans and organic natural flavors

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Red White and Blue Black Tea from 52Teas. . . .

My desire for berry flavored teas is relatively new. I don’t usually gravitate towards fruit. I don’t know why but lately ive had a craving for berry teas! Ive actually had this sample for a while that I received with one of my orders from 52 Teas and I figured that my being in the mood for berry was a good opportunity to try it.

Something I have noticed about 52 Teas is that their black tea is very bold. If you dont generally care for bold black tea, then you may feel like it tends to overpower the cup. Try steeping it for less time. I steeped this for the recommended 2 1/2 minutes, but next time I may try 1 1/2 or 2 instead. I did find that the most dominant flavor here was black tea, shortly followed by blueberry and raspberry. Coconut was lost on me, unfortunately. I love coconut and it is one of my favorite flavors, so I was a little disappointed that it was undetectable to me. I think that the black tea was so bold, as was the raspberry and blueberry, that the coconut was just overpowered.

One thing I do appreciate was that this blend was made as a patriotic/Fourth of July celebration tea, and I love how different it is compared to going with something typical like “apple pie”. I think that it would be delicious iced and sweetened in the summertime. In fact, I think I would have enjoyed this 100% more if I had iced it. If you like bold black tea flavor and if you like berry, you will definitely love this blend. As for me, I am definitely going to finish off the rest of my sample, but this time im going to ice it! Yum!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black Tea
Where to Buy:  52Teas
Description

This tea is no longer available but click below for teas that are.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!