Super Berry Infusion Tea from We Are Tea. . . .

Still on a roll today, the next tea I want to take a moment to chat about is Super Berry Infusion Tea from We Are Tea. We Are Tea is a tea company with the idea of making tea simple, so everybody can enjoy.  I couldn’t agree more.  Sometimes the simplest teas are the ones you find yourself reaching for the most.

Super Berry is a fruit tisane made up of red berries, hibiscus, apples, oranges, and rosehips.  A pretty typical line up for a fruit tisane but this tea tastes anything like your traditionally fruit tisane.

Brewed up with freshly boiled water and allowed to steep for 6 minutes- this tea yields a beautifully tart citrus flavor that has almost a tropical feel towards the end of each sip.  You can’t really pick out any one flavor but the flavors mingle so well -they are basically singing the same song.

What I love the most is the citrus hibiscus combo with more of an emphasis of citrus.  The apple really helps tame down the hibiscus so that you don’t feel like you need to pucker up after each sip.

A wonderfully delicious refreshing tea that would be just as amazing as a cold brew.  Really digging this one.  This is an example of a tea where you really can’t judge a tea by the ingredients.  This is a tea blend not to be missed!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Tisane
Where to Buy:  We Are Tea
Description

Our pet peeve with fruit teas are that they smell delicious but taste like water! No longer need we be disappointed, our fruity little minx “Super Berry” is bursting with flavour and antioxidants. Packed with red berries, hibiscus, apple, orange & rose-hip, trust us this caffeine free, fruit tea tastes as good as it smells.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Cinderella from Kipers Lil Tea Shop. . .

I love the wonderful world of Etsy. You just never know what you will find wandering through the shops.  I always like to see what possible gem of a tea shop I might stumble upon.  You really just never know what you might find and I think I have found quite a gem the other day.

Kipers Lil Tea Shop offers quite a variety of hand blended teas, anything from herbal teas to flavored puerh blends.  When I saw the picture of Cinderlla, I knew I had to try it.

Cinderella is a blend of puerh, calendula, hibiscus, red clover, jasmine, and a few other inclusions.  The combination of puerh and jasmine instantly grabbed a hold of me and screamed-“You MUST try me NOW”.  So I threw a few other teas into my cart and anxiously awaited by the mailbox for my beauties to arrive.

Finally the day came when this adorably packaged treat arrived.  Inside were my tea samples telling me to prep my tea pot asap.  Since this is a puerh, I prepped my water to 212F and allowed this tea to steep for 4 minutes, then cooled for an additional 3 minutes.

With being a blend of puerh and jasmine, I wasn’t sure what to think.  Floral and dark teas don’t exactly sound like they belong, but I have to say, they really do.  This tea blend is absolutely gorgeous! The dark tea tones provide such a dark and alluring flavor that is earthy, robust, and rich.  Hibiscus tart notes yield a wonderful contrast to the puerh while the jasmine provides this slight floral hint.  The rest of the inclusions give off this lovely herbal feel to finish the sip off.  Such a unique pairing of flavors.

I couldn’t get enough of this cuppa and quickly prepped for a second infusion.  I have to say, this tea didn’t steep up for a second cuppa like I thought the blend would.  The flavors definitely did not come across as strong but I was still happy to get another cuppa of this wonderful tea.

I’m insanely gaga over this tea and over Kipers Lil Tea Shop.  Currently there are around 60ish teas available to check out from this lovely gem of a tea shop and quite a few of them are now calling to me. . . .


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Black
Where to Buy:  Kipers Lil Tea Shop
Description

Cinderella – A delightfully original blend of black tea, herbs and flowers create this one-of-a-kind herbal tea that will have you wanting more. Starting on a bed of Pu’erh black tea, I add in some Red Clover Herb & Blossoms, Catauba Bark (a known aphrodisiac), Calendula petals, Jasmine buds, and Hibiscus, and then for added “oomph” I sprinkled in some Vitex Chaste Berry (the “female-friendly” fruit).
The result is a taste unlike anything you have ever had, and you definitely won’t find this pre-bagged on a store shelf.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Elderberry Blend from Storehouse Tea. . . .

Lately I’ve had a few medical issues pop up where I’ve been a bit more careful about the tea I drink.  I’ve found myself more and more drawn to herbals.  Herbals and I have always had this weird love hate relationship.  I’m not a fan of extremely “herbally”flavored teas that are just too spiced ie have lots of ginger. So when I was going through my tea stash and came across Elderberry Blend from our friends at Storehouse Tea I was delighted.

Elderberry Blend is a fun mix of hibiscus, elderberries, dried currants, raisins, rosehips and other natural flavors.  As you can imagine this tea is tart but tart in a good way.

Brewed hot, this tea gives so much tart loving that just hits the spot.   Tart fans rejoice! This tea delivers a wonderfully tart berry flavor that doesn’t get to the point where you are puckering your lips, even after the tea started to cool.  I destroyed my first cuppa and went greedily for a second.

Cold brewed overnight, this brilliant pinkish hue tea gives that same tart feel but in a more refreshing way. You again have that same familiar tart flavor but the tartness just has this crisper feel that I felt was way more satisfying than when this tea was brewed hot.    I also found that the berry flavors had a larger role and weren’t hidden behind the hibiscus as much.   I added a touch of spearmint into the cold brew mix and I couldn’t have been happier with the results.

Storehouse Tea is another one of those hidden gems on the internet when it comes to tea shops.  I’ve been impressed with the majority of the teas I’ve tried from them and after trying this one, I’m waiting to try more of their offerings.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Herbal
Where to Buy:  Storehouse Tea
Description

This succulent blend of Caffeine Free herbs and fruits imparts a refreshing deep berry flavor, tart with a subtle sweetness creating a satisfying deep dark red infusion. Contains powerful anti-oxidants which may help expel toxins, relieve sore throat, and shorten the flu cycle. Excellent iced.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Black Cherry Berry from Celestial Seasonings. . . . .

I’ll admit it, tea-ple– I can be a bit of a tea snob. I’ll pretty much try anything once, but give me a weak English Breakfast or a watery-looking bagged tea, and I’m probably going to politely chuck it in the nearest flower-pot while no one’s looking, all the while dreaming of my cabinet of tea delights at home.

It’s gone so far that when my lovely fiancé offers to take me out for a cup of tea at our local chain coffee joint, I am purely going because he is sweet and wonderful, and usually wondering if there’s a way I could just bring *my* tea and have them hand me a cuppa hot water to brew for myself rather than choose from some ‘meh’ bagged options. I AM HORRIBLE, I KNOW.

But let’s get to the point: when I saw this sample bag of Celestial Seasoning’s black cherry herbal, I was… skeptical. Bagged tea? And not even bagged loose-leaf, bagged… tea shavings? But every-committed to my reviewing duties, I thought, hey! This sounds like it’d make a tasty iced tea, and into my big ol’ cold brew pitcher they went.

They almost immediately turned the water a lovely, saturated pink (hello, hibiscus!), and after a chill 12 hours in the fridge, it was ready to sip! While I’m impressed with the ingredients in this blend (rosehips, roasted chicory, blackberry leaves, and of course: hibiscus, first and foremost), there’s that “natural cherry flavor” that I wish would’ve come from cherries itself. And while it’s a tasty, fruity, obviously-berry brew, I can’t say that I’d have immediately recognized the flavor as “cherry” so much as “general berry-ish” without the cue from the name. Does it make a delicious iced tea? Yup. Is it even yummier with a splash of lemonade or plain seltzer? Heck yes. Am I going to become a bagged tea convert and spurn my beloved loose leaf anytime soon? Probably not. But let me be the first to admit my snobbish ways would’ve made me miss out on a yummy summer treat if I hadn’t given this one a try– I’m glad I did!


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type: Herbal
Where to Buy:  Celestial Seasonings

Description

Reminiscent of nostalgic fruit punch, this tea combines a burst of cherry and berry flavors with tart, ruby-red hibiscus and other herbs. Delicious hot or iced.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!

Cinnamon Plum Berry Organic Botanical Blend from Storehouse Tea. . . .

Storehouse Tea is a company completely new to me. I had never even heard of this company until a box of Sororitea Sisters samples arrived at my door including this tea, Cinnamon Plum Berry.

Full disclosure: Even though I am excited to try a new tea company, I am a little apprehensive about this tea. Between the deep reddish-pink it brewed up that screams hibiscus and the licorice root, I was worried this would definitely not be to my tastes.

Using the sample I was given, I decided to make it both iced and hot to compare the two.

I started with the hot cup because this is how Storehouse Tea recommends brewing this up. Unfortunately, this tea hot is sort of what I expected. The main flavor is the hibiscus, tart and one-note. The cinnamon is floating around too combining with the licorice root to contribute a outputting sweet note. The licorice root also lingers on the tongue in the aftertaste, cloying.

Iced this is a little bit different than the hot cup, though neither better nor worse. Just different. Less tart and the hibiscus could hint a little more towards berry than it does in the hot cup, though I would say that is still a stretch. The cinnamon is missing all together in the iced tea, except in smell. On the plus side, there is not as much licorice root either.

If I had to decide, I would say that I found this easier to drink when iced. Neither really delivery the plum or berry as promised by the name so that is disappointing. Ultimately, I went into this tea with some expectations based on the ingredients and perhaps I was biased but having tried it, I would say this tea is certainly not for me.


Here’s the scoop!

Leaf Type:  Herbal
Where to Buy:  Storehouse Teas
Description

Currants, succulent hibiscus, hints of plum, cinnamon and naturally sweet licorice root create a warm, full bodied and soothing Organic, caffeine free tea. Perfect served hot or brewed as mulled tea.

Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!