Hello, tea-ple! I type this today during a Waxing Gibbous moon while drinking Luna Blend by Moongleam Tea Shoppe, an up-and-coming new company.
(Original Artwork by Super Starling!)
I’ve never seen tea profiles collide exactly like this. I had everything in discrete boxes. I had tea carefully assigned to the clock.
I could easily see this being a morning pick for this in-between time. This tea has sweet and summery notes with just enough caffeine to brace oneself against the impending winter.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea Blend
Where to Buy: Moongleam Tea Shoppe
Description
This classically crafted tea is one of the first blends I ever created.
Smooth bergamot, coupled with chamomile, black tea, lavender, and basil, gives this tea a punctuating freshness.
I have always loved Earl Grey because of the Bergamot in it, so I tweaked it to make it even better!
An ounce makes about 11-17 cups of tea, depending on how strong you like it and the weight and volume of the tea itself.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Turmeric Chai from Pumeli
I was (and still am) a fan of the TV Show Will & Grace. It used to crack me up when “Karen” used to walk into a room and say things like “You guys know how I’m into Gangster Rap, right?” Well I have been having those kind of moments when it comes to Turmeric the last couple of months. You guys know how I’m into to Turmeric, right? Well, if not…now you know! I just can’t get enough of it. That’s why I was super excited to try Turmeric Chai from Pumeli. I doubt I would have been as excited to try this rooibos had it NOT had Turmeric in it.
Having said that…Turmeric Chai from Pumeli was pretty darn impressive. Pumeli’s website states it’s a ‘warming, caffeine free herbal tea blend of organic & fair trade turmeric, red rooibos, and cinnamon. I will certainly agree with that statement. The aroma is primarily that of red rooibos and cinnamon. The flavor – once infused – is also intensely red rooibos flavor followed by a fair amount of cinnamon. The turmeric was a nice addition. Turmeric is more of a visual ingredient for me rather than a flavor ingredient. Sure it can turn just about anything yellow/orange. But it’s hard to pick out the flavor of it in some cases because it’s more mild. Some people think that Turmeric is a bit bitter and others think it’s more of a ginger flavor which makes sense because it is related to Ginger. But I think it has a flavor all of its own that is hard to describe unless there are large amounts of it in something.
Eventho I don’t think this has an in-your-face Turmeric flavor I would still say that Turmeric Chai from Pumeli makes my taste buds and body happy! It offered more than just your stereotypical red rooibos flavor and that is what I was hoping for! I’m VERY happy with this offering! And if you are looking for a way to increase your turmeric intake this is a great way to do it!
Taking a little side-trip or side-panel from the Turmeric Chai specifically and talking a bit more about Pumeli as a whole…I think this company is really great when it comes to gifts! I can’t say as tho I have seen anything like some of their gift sets before! And here at Sororitea Sisters we LOVE to highlight the UNIQUE. If you take a look at the PURE HARMONY Ayurveda Gift Box from Pumeli you will see that Turmeric Chai is the featured tea/tisane in the box. The box also includes Mullein & Sparrow Cleansing Powder, Soy Blend Candle, Hand Carved Elephant Wood Block, and Recycled Cotton Journal which is tree-free. So if you are looking for GREEN gifts for the environmentally conscience people on your list you are going to want to check out Pumeli!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: Pumeli
Description
- Turmeric Chai :: A warming, caffeine free herbal tea blend of organic & fair trade turmeric, red rooibos and cinnamon
Learn even more about this tea company and what they offer here!
Bubblegum from The NecessiTeas
Bubblegum Tea from The NecessiTeas was something I just HAD to look into when I saw it! Here at Sororitea Sisters we review A LOT of teas! To date nearly 5,000 teas, actually! And with all of those teas we review we have reviewed our fair share of Earl Grey’s and English Breakfasts but how many people can say they have a library full of Bubblegum Teas they have reviewed?
After looking into our past reviews – to make sure I ‘speak the truth’ I was able to find ONE other Bubblegum Tea that we have reviewed and that was a Bubblegum FLAVORED Tea from when Southernboy Teas’ FRANK who used to also own 52 Teas before Anne bought it from him. The review dated back to 2012. So it just goes to show you that Bubblegum Teas aren’t very common and here at Sororitea Sisters we are always trying to find new, different, unique, and rare teas! Bubblegum Tea from The NecessiTeas is one of those teas.
Bubblegum Tea from The NecessiTeas is a flavored green tea. It actually HAS gum balls IN the loose leaf mixture along with green tea, red and blue cornflower petals, marigold petals, and natural flavors!
The flat green tea leaves are a vibrant color as are the rest of the ingredients in the mix. Once infused everything comes alive! The post-infusion color is a slightly murky grey-brown that is light to medium in color.
As a child I remember the bubblegum in baseball card packets that was coated in powder. That’s the bubblegum type of aroma I am getting here with this tea. Pair that with sweet, fruity, and a nice even-steven green tea flavor and BAM that sums up this tea! And it’s pretty tasty to boot!
Bubblegum Tea from The NecessiTeas is a FUN and flavorful tea and I’m glad it’s out on the market! The search continues for other NovelTEAs. Until next time!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: The NecessiTeas
Description
We all remember that sweet pink bubblegum flavor as a kid. Contests with your best friend to see who could blow the biggest bubble and then having it pop and stick to your entire face. Chewing it for hours until our jaws ached or falling asleep with it in our mouth which meant waking up with a big sticky mess in our hair! This blend takes me back to all those childhood memories and will be loved by adults and children of all ages. Feel free to steep the actual gumballs or pop one in your mouth and work on your bubble blowing skills while your tea is steeping!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Pineapple Bacon Rooibos from 52Teas
My husband (type B, carnivore) and my brother (type A, vegetarian) are friends, but they don’t agree on many things. One of the few they agree on: me. I’m great and they know it.
The other thing they both like: facon. (Fake bacon.) They adore this strange compromise between bacon and fantasyland.
I’m not much of a facon person, but I think this tea is fascinating. This facon/rooibos/pineapple tea is totally unlike anything I’ve ever had. It’s juicy, salty, and throaty. It’s lush.
It’s also a little bit peculiar.
I decided to take it and shove it in people’s faces. My roommate says it smells like “green olives.” My husband says it smells like “throat soothing medicine.”
I don’t know if it’s something I’d purchase, but I am so glad I got a chance to try it. This tea is so original. I’ll enjoy the rest of my sample.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description
This tea was reblended by request from one of our start-up Kickstarter contributors. I started with organic red rooibos and added bacon and pineapple flavors. I also added freeze-dried pineapple bits and vegan bacon bits – this blend is 100% vegan but I can’t be 100% certain that it’s 100% gluten-free. I’m not sure if the vegan bacon bits are gluten-free and the packaging didn’t assist me in finding out. The company that I ordered them from wasn’t any more helpful. (Sorry!) So if you’re one who needs to avoid gluten, I wouldn’t recommend this tea. I do take very special care to avoid cross-contamination – so the other teas are fine – but this tea, I’m not 100% sure of it’s gluten-free-ness.
The original description of this tea goes like this:
Did you think we were done playing with bacon teas?
So did I. But check this out: I was thinking about how much I enjoy a Hawaiian pizza or just a nice ham with a pineapple glaze and nice juicy pineapple rings baked on it… My wife is of the opinion that meat and fruit should not be mixed, but… well, nobody’s perfect, right? Anyway, I was thinking that if ham and pineapple is good, pineapple and BACON would be even better. And when I was thinking about what base tea to use, it occured to me that the woodiness that I personally somewhat dislike about rooibos might go well with pineapple and bacon, and oh boy does it! Juicy pineapple, salty bacon and refreshing rooibos are an amazing combination. Not to mention that it’s a guilt-free indulgence.
I stuck pretty close to the recipe for this blend. After reading my review of the original blend – read it here – I seem to recall the original blend tasting a bit too sweet, kinda like pineapple bubblegum with bacon flavoring which is just a little bit weird. Fortunately, I’m not really tasting that now which I’m grateful for. I taste pineapple – it’s the strongest flavor component and I taste bacon. The bacon flavoring does lend a certain ‘salty’ factor to this blend but you might want to add just a teeny pinch of salt to the cup to enhance that salty bacon flavor. But I don’t taste “bubblegum” or that sweet, sugary note that a ‘bubblegum’ description would seem to imply.
I am enjoying the balance of flavors better here than I think I did with the original blend – so overall, it’s a win for me. And hopefully our contributor enjoys it too and it’s a win for her!
Taster size is approximately 15g.
organic ingredients: rooibos, freeze-dried pineapple, vegan bacon bits and natural flavors.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Honey Mead from A Quarter to Tea
I love my genmaicha tea and if I can find a flavored one, its an automatic impulse buy. I can’t stop myself. Which is what happened when I laid eyes on this blend, Honey Mead from A Quarter to Tea. I knew I didn’t need any more tea, but I HAD to have this one. I mean just listen to the description:
Sencha and toasted rice make a toasty and sweet base for apple, buttered rum and honey flavors (which are accented further with honeysuckle).
This tea had me at toasty sweet base.
Brewed up by the recommended parameters, I set about trying my first sip of this tea. After allowing the tea to settle and cool for a moment, I came away with this gorgeous silky honey flavor that reminded me of a sweet wheat beer. There definitely is a note of “mead” and I can see why this blend is called Honey Mead.
In each sip you are greeted with this amazingly balance honey toasted flavor that mingles very well with the apple buttered rum flavors. All in all, an amazing blend that I had every intention of sharing with some of my sisters but found myself devouring teapot after teapot of this blend until it was gone.
Every time I have A Quarter To Tea I am blown away by how amazing their blends are. This is one of those companies that you know you will not be disappointed by the teas you pick up. I adore the unique flavors they offer that you can’t get anywhere else. One of my favorite companies for sure!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: A Quarter To Tea
Description:
Sencha and toasted rice make a toasty and sweet base for apple, buttered rum and honey flavors (which are accented further with honeysuckle). Comforting and revitalizing.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
