A while back I won an Instagram giveaway which made me the proud new owner of a Sacred Lotus Love tea tumbler and the recipient of three NecessiTeas blends: Orange Fluff, Pineapple Mimosa, and this tea, Strawberry Rose Champagne. However, the giveaway was for people living in the U.S. and since I live in Canada, I provided my father’s address, which is in California. I have used my Dad as a tea mule many times before so I knew this would be fine with him.
Normally, my dad mails me anything I send to him but this time around he personally delivered the goods since he came to Toronto for my brother’s college graduation. This personal delivery was of course accompanied by my Dad’s typical comments like “tea is for sick people” and “tea has no flavor” and “why do you keep buying tea?” In fact, this time around he told me he had no interest in tea and even if I offered him tea, he would not try it. This was particularly entertaining because later that same night, I brewed this tea as a teapop and he all of a sudden was intrigued. After confirming that the tea was cold, he even asked to try it!
He sniffed it first and said it smelled interesting and then at first sip looked at me and our conversation went as follows:
Him: “I thought this was tea?!” Me: “it is” Him: “no, it’s soda” Me: “no, it’s a teapop”
He then told me that this was “ingenius” and then proceeded to drink two glasses of this tea. He was amazed that it was actually flavorful and carbonated and delicious, all without added sugar (which is especially important to him as he is diabetic).
When I finally got to try it, I enjoyed it quite a bit too. It was a touch too floral at times but it had a nice berry flavor. I hope that was because of the tea and not the strawberry perrier I used to make this a teapop. It also had an effervescence that was very reminiscent of champagne and a touch of that familiar alcohol dryness.
It’s a nice tea and definitely does well as a teapop. I like that it is different than so many other fruit blends that rely heavily on hibiscus/rose hips to create a flavor. I wish there was less rose, but that is more my personal preference than a criticism of the tea. With that said, given it converted my ever-critical father into a believer, I am definitely delighted I got a chance to give it a try and I am pleased I have a whole lot more leave left to experiment with.
Want to Know More About This Tea?
Leaf Type: Fruit Tisane
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas
Description
Inspired by the delicate floral and fruity notes in a glass of sweet champagne, this tea blends the voluptuous scent of blooming roses with the sweet flavor of fresh-picked strawberries. Steep up this bubbly concoction with friends before your next GNO or for your better half after a romantic dinner for two. Cheers!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Farmer’s Market Strawberry from Farmhouse Teas. . . .
Farmhouse Teas aka St Fiacre’s Farm Teas are among some of my favorites. These teas are hand crafted and created with such love that you can literally taste the care in each sip. I have been a fan of their teas for some time and belong to their monthly tea club.
Last month I received a sample of Farmer’s Market Strawberry along with my other goodies. So far I have devoured the majority of the teas I’ve received from the Farmhouse Teas lineup and I couldn’t wait to try this one.
Brewed up my water at 180 and allowed the tea to steep for about three minutes. The moment this tea started brewing you can smell the strawberries and a few of the other inclusions. This tea blend consists of sencha green tea, strawberry leaf, rosehips, hibiscus, licorice root, lemon peel, rose petals and strawberries. The look of this tea is just stunning and I was hoping the tea would taste as amazing as it looks.
Unfortunately for me, I think this tea has a bit more licorice root than I care for. The rest of the tea is simply divine- green tea, strawberry, hibiscus, rose petals, etc but there is this bite that I keep getting and I have a feeling it is coming from the licorice root. Normally licorice root doesn’t bother me too much but I think in this instant since the other flavors are delicate and tart, the licorice root is just shining.
If the licorice root wasn’t so dominant, this tea would be out of this world amazing. The sweet and tart flavors play very well and provide this happy brew that just leaves you smiling. I’m wondering if the licorice root was replaced with marshmallow root if I would like the blend more.
Regardless, I’m super happy I was able to try this blend and hope to try more Farmhouse Teas soon. I’m eagerly awaiting my March package of tea goodies!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Farmhouse Teas
Description
Welcome to our FarmHouse Teas line! Earthy Sencha Green Tea paired with Oregon Strawberries straight from the local farmer’s market! This is the tastiest way to enjoy Oregon strawberries year around. This tea offers light strawberry notes followed by a hint of citrus. Great brewed hot but perfect for summer time iced tea brewing as well.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Strawberry Lavender Fields from Socra Tea Detroit. . . .
I was very interested to try Strawberry Lavender Fields tea. Not only does this tea fuse three very distinct flavors, (strawberry, peppermint and lavender), but it starts with a black tea and honeybush base, two of my favorite types of tea! The dry leaves had a light strawberry and mint aroma and were actually very pretty with the purple lavender pieces peeking through the black tea leaves. I steeped the tea with boiling water for 2 minutes per the package directions.
The blend of China, India and Ceylon black tea was the first thing that really came through in my initial sip. There was a bit of astringency with the black tea and I can understand why they suggested just a 2 minute steep time to keep the tea from becoming too astringent. A blast of peppermint follows the initial black tea taste, nothing too intense but a nice, fresh mint flavor. Unfortunately the strawberry gets a bit lost between the black tea and mint. The fruit is there however it is extremely light. I didn’t pick up on any honeybush at all. A very subtle floral note from the lavender dominates the aftertaste.
I suspect that this tea would do well cold brewed as that may help to enhance the berry flavor. Overall I did enjoy this blend and am anxious to try it iced, however, I do wish that the strawberry was a bit more prevalent.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Socra Tea Detroit
Description
By popular demand! This is a complementary blend of sweet, musky & floral for hot or iced beverages.
Ingredients: Black tea from China, India, and Ceylon, strawberry pieces, peppermint leaves, MICHIGAN GROWN English Lavender & honeybush.
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!
Strawberry from Zen Tea Life. . . .
I am always fascinated by how something so simple can impact a cup of tea. For instance, I have had this Strawberry Black Tea by Zen Tea Life before and when I initially had it, it was in a small 6 oz mug. In that mug, the flavor was like a very pleasant shot of strawberry.
Today I brewed it up in a 16 oz mug and the black tea base is far more prominent. It is smooth and almost chocolatey so the presence of the base in and of itself is not offensive. However, with the prevalence of the black tea, the strawberry flavor I enjoyed in my first cup is lacking.
The strawberry flavor has devolved into a generic fruity note. It is no longer discernible as strawberry or even berry. Instead, it now comes off like the red fruit flavor found in a lot of French teas. It is not bad but there is nothing all that interesting about it either.
With all of this said, it seems as though it is a moot point as Zen Tea Life has transitioned to a company that sells just teaware. As such, this tea is no longer available. On the off chance it becomes available again, the key is to brew it in a smaller mug it seems.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zen Tea Life
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!