Fruit Flavored Tea

If you find yourself drinking the same cup of green, oolong or black tea simply because you can never decide which new flavor to try, a really easy way to get out of your rut is to simply brew it with a little fruit. You can begin with any flavor of tea and add fruit peels or dried fruit pieces for an extra fruity infusion. You can enjoy your flavored tea either hot or cold.

A great iced tea flavor combination is white grape and lemon. You can make a pitcher of this tea as quickly as you can simmer water. Heat a gallon of water and brew six bags of black tea. After you're done steeping, add one cup of sugar and three quarters of a cup of white grape juice. Stir in one envelope of unsweetened lemon KoolAid. Pour the mixture into a pitcher and chill, and you have a delicious and refreshing flavored tea.

While iced tea is refreshing for those of us in the warm, southern states, our northern tea drinkers are already settling in for the winter. For them a nice hot spiced orange brew would be a perfect way to usher in the cold weather. Start by heating two quarts of water and brew eight teabags, black, oolong or green for five minutes. Boil two cups each of water and sugar to make simple syrup and add it to the brewed tea. Then add one and a half cups of lemon juice and three cups of orange juice. Stir it together and add a cinnamon stick and a teaspoon of whole cloves tied in a cheesecloth. Bring everything to a simmer and let it cook for about twenty minutes. Remove the cinnamon and cloves, and you are ready for a delicious, fruit infused cup of tea.

So when you are standing in the store, and you cannot decide if you should get lemon, mango, cinnamon, holiday spice or vanilla tea, take comfort in knowing that you can simply buy your favorite black, oolong, or green tea. Then add whatever flavor you fancy when you are ready to brew.

Airstream Teapot!!

Check out this AWESOME Airstream Trailer Teapot! This thing rocks! It was designed by the Tea Pottery of North Yorkshire, England, and is hand painted with a mirror-like finish that's meant to replicate a shiny aluminum Airstream trailer. Oh, man! I've got to get myself one of these!

I stumbled upon what looks like a great recipe for sesame cookies with matcha icing. In case you don’t know what Matcha is, it’s a powered green tea used in the Japanese tea ceremony.

Apparently, these cookies are great with either black or green tea. You can also make the cookies into any shape you like, including that of tea leaves. According to author, you should use the best quality matcha that you can find. Just keep in mind that matcha is by no means cheap.

Lapsang Souchong

Last night I sat down with a nice hot cup of Lapsang Souchong from the English Tea Store. I’ve been drinking Lapsang Souchong for years, and I’ve come to love its smoky flavor and aroma. However, I had never tried the English Tea Store brand, so I thought I’d give it a taste.

When I opened the bag, I noticed that the tea’s aroma was not overwhelmingly strong, as is often the case with Lapsang Souchong. In fact, it smelled wonderful, like a warm campfire I once built beneath the stars along the California coast at Big Sur.

I got out some spring water and put it on the stove to warm. When the water was warm enough, I poured it into my teapot where the Lapsang Souchong was waiting. I used a bit more than the recommended one teaspoon of tea per cup, hoping to fully experience the taste.

After steeping for about five minutes, I poured the tea through a strainer into my favorite tea cup. I held the cup and let the steam rolling off it touch my face. A few seconds later, I tasted the tea. Its flavor was strong enough for any lover of Lapsang Souchong, yet light enough to be enjoyed by all, and perfect for a rainy night at the end of October.

After the initial infusion, I re-steeped the tea and found that my second pot-full was just as delicious as the first. I would certainly recommend this tea to any tea drinker, especially those that enjoy Lapsang Souchong. The English Tea Store also sells an organic Lapsang Souchong that I’ve yet to try.

Darjeeling Tea

Unlike the majority of teas from India, Darjeeling tea is made using the small-leaved Chinese variety of the Camellia sinensis plant. In the past, it was always made as a black tea. More recently, however, Darjeeling green and white teas have been gaining in popularity.

As its name suggests, Darjeeling tea hails from the Darjeeling region of West Bengal, India. The region’s tea plantations date back to the middle of the 19th century, when the British were moving into the area. Over the years, Darjeeling’s tea growers developed unique black tea hybrids as well as their own techniques for fermentation. Today, many Darjeeling tea blends are recognized worldwide for the extraordinary level of quality they offer.

There are five major varieties of Darjeeling tea. The first variety, known as "1st flush," is harvested in mid-March immediately following the spring rains. 1st flush Darjeeling tea has a very light colour and aroma, while the "2nd flush" variety, which is harvested in June, produces an amber, full-bodied, muscatel flavored cup. "In between" Darjeeling tea is, as you may have already guessed, harvested “in between” the two “flush” periods.

The last two Darjeeling tea varieties are known as “Monsoon / Rain” and “Autumnal flush.” Tea belonging to the Monsoon / Rain variety is harvested during the monsoon season. It is more oxidized than other Darjeeling teas and for this reason much cheaper and rarely exported. Autumnal flush is harvested in the fall, after the monsoon season. It offers drinkers a cup of not-so-delicate, full-bodied tea with a darker colour.

Throughout the Darjeeling region there are countless tea estates producing a wide variety of teas. However, some of the most popular estates include Arya, Chamong, Glenburn, Lingia, Castleton, Jungpana, Makaibari, Margaret's Hope and Risheehat.

Tea-Stain.com

Greeting readers,

Today, I want to tell you about a website where you can build a custom tea mat for your tea club or reading group. The mat features 8 "places" to put a tea cup, as well as names of the members of your tea group.

The site for this product is basically a site where you can personalise a mat to sit on your tea tray for all the people in your tea round, say at work or in a book club etc.

The mats are neat, and of excellent quality. They are intended to be placed upon your tea tray, and to act as a serving tool for your tea.

Check it out at tea-stain.com. I recommend this product, and hope you will consider giving it a try!

Again, that website is http://www.tea-stain.com/

Over and out,
Relz

Love Your Mug!

Hey all,

I just received an email about a neat promotional program that I thought you would all like to know about.

The promotion is called Love Your Mug. The idea is that you get to create your own personal tea mug, with your tea and sugar preferences printed right on it to use at the office, or whatever. Or, purchase a set for your tea club, so that you know what to make for everyone when it's your turn to make the tea!

Love Your Mug has been invented by Cravendale for thse people who love to sip the perfect cup of coffee or tea in the office and at home. Everyone can now personalize their very own mug with their own name, which drink they want, the strength of the drink and if they want sugar or not. Every mug is decorated with a lovely and happy cow grazing under the blue skies.

These mugs look great. I'd encourage you all to visit the website and check it out.

The website is found at: http://www.makethetea.com/loveyourmug

Over and out,
Relz

Tempted by Tulsi (TeaTulia Style)

Hey Readers,

I apologize for taking so long between posts, but the semester is winding down, and school is busier than ever. However, I do have a review for you today, and it's one which I think you'll find rather interesting - it is new to me, and thus presented itself as an ideal candidate for review on the blog.

Recently, I was contacted by Teatulia Teas (formerly known as Tetulia), who informed me that they had not yet shared with me one of their favorite blends - Teatulia Tulsi Infusion. They asked if I would like some samples, and I said yes, eager to try something new.

Now - Tulsi is not just a name for an infusion. It is called the Tulsi Infusion because it contains an herb called Tulsi, otherwise known as Holy Basil. I had not heard of Tulsi before being invited to sample this infusion, so I was most eager to give it a try. Tulsi fanatics boast a plethora of health benefits from this herb. I'm not sure how many of these benefits truly pan out, but I'm sure it's a very healthy thing to take into your body. You can read more about the health benefits and properties of Tusli at the following website:

http://www.teatuliablog.com/?p=58

Now, to review the Infusion. The tulsi addeed some very interesting characteristics to this tea, which was excellent. It incorporated a certain earthiness, as well as a very subtle spiciness to the brew, and I almost detected some minor notes of nuttiness as well. The tea portion of the blend was also excellent - whole leaves, mostly unbroken - exactly as it should be.

This brew is excellent for this of you that yould like to try something new and different, and it a welcome addition to any tea lover's stash. I thoroughly enjoyed this blend, and hope you will consider trying it as well - I'm sure you would love it.

As for the packaging, it was excellent. Colorful and informative, with brewing instructions, and a pyramidal teabag - the highest form of tea bag (however when I brewed it, I opened up the teabags and poured them into my Timolino mug.)

Overall, an excellent tea, from an excellent tea company.

Additionally, readers of this blog can get a 10% discount for the next 30 days on all TeaTulia products. Just enter code "INSANITEA" (without the quotation marks) at checkout to receive an instant discount! I hope you'll try this out!

Thanks for reading this week's review! Let me know what you thought of it!

Over and out,
Relz

Plucker's Pick Tea Critics Club

I just received an email from Pluckers Pick that I thought my readers might like to know about. Here's what the email said:

Hello!

Have you seen my Plucker's Pick Tea Critics Club? Check it out here.

It allows people to order Plucker's Pick and a sample of four other tea brands to compare and rate against various characteristics... and I'm only charging for the shipping!

I'm posting the results in real-time because I want people to know truthfully how my product compares to other more established tea brands. If you would like to participate, simply click on the link above. I would really value your feedback!

Thanks!

I thought this was a great idea, so I figured it'd be worth it to let you all know! If you decide to accept the offer, let me know how it goes!

Also, stay tuned over the next couple of days, as I have a review in the works that I think you will enjoy!

Over and out,
Relz

The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea

Hi,

Recently, I discovered the Harney & Sons Guide to Tea while browsing at the Barnes & Noble. I emailed the publisher to see if they would be willing to send me a review copy, and luckily for me, they said yes! This truly is a delightful book, and it really covers it's bases well. I will be using and recommending this book for years to come.

The book is written by Michael Harney, a master tea blender working at Harney & Sons. He is a very credible source on the subject of tea, because of the large amount of experience he has had at Harney & Sons.

The book contains a section on tasting teas, which I found very interesting. It includes a lot of tips, such as examining the leaves, brewing for the proper time and temperature, using the proper sort of water (filtered water), etc. The tasting guide is second-to-none, and I highly recomment you all give it a look.

The book also contains a brief history of tea, a "Tree to Tea" appendix, a lot of tea sources, and so forth.

But the bulk of the book is spend describing in detail over 50 of the most common types of tea, the temperature at which they are to be brewed, how to distinguish a good tea of a certain type from a bad tea of a certain type, etc. He also includes details about what the dry leaves should look like, what the liquor should look like, the types of aromas the tea should posess, the body that the tea should have, and the flavor notes you should be able to detect from the tea.

All in all, this book is an exhaustive resource on the various types of teas that are available, and the author has done an excellent job providing all the details you would want to know when brewing a cup of tea.

I highly recommend that you all pick up a copy of this book. I think you will find that it is an invaluable resource for any tea drinker to own.

Thanks for reading,
Relz

Video on Tea Steeping

Hey all,

I just got emailed this video about steeping tea that I think you might enjoy. Here is an excerpt from the email that I received:

"Think you've got steeping down? CHOW.com has a fun new video that may change your tea brewing ways. David Wong, director of tea culture and education at Tillerman Tea, is on CHOW with the three "hows" of steeping. Check it out: http://www.chow.com/stories/11367"

So, if you feel like it, I recommend checking out this video! it is very interesting.

Again, it can be found at: http://www.chow.com/stories/11367

Thanks for reading!

Relz

Tea Cozies by El Donna

Greetings readers!

Today's posting won't be an actual tea review. Instead, I'll be reviewing a tea-related product.

Recently, I was contacted by Amber Malley of a company called "By El Donna." She asked to if I would be interested in helping her raise awareness about their new line of tea cozies. Naturally, I said yes, since I am always interested in raising awareness about quality products in the world of tea.

So, she sent me a sample cozy to check out, and today's post will consist of me commenting on the cozy.

I've used a lot of tea cozies over the years, and throughout my experiences with tea cozies, I think I can safely assert that all tea cozies are NOT created equal. I have used many quality tea cozies, but I have also used tea cozies that are definately NOT up to par.

Once, I ordered a cozy from a popular tea company on the internet (which company shall remain nameless), and the item I received from them looked great, however, upon using it, I discovered that they did a poor job on the stitching, and the product literally came apart at the seams when I tried to use it.

Another time, I purchased a cozy from my local Target store, and while the tea cozy looked great, and managed not to fall apart, it wasn't made of a thick enough material, and when I used it to handle a particularly hot teapot, I burned myself, because the material did not do a good job of insulating against the hot teapot inside.

Thankfully, neither of these scenarios are the case with the product I received from By El Donna. The very day I received the cozy, I put it to immediate use. I used the cozy to insulate my favorite glass teapot while I handled it, and moved it from place to place. Not only did this cozy hold up under the pressure, it also did an excellent job of insulating my teapot! The cozy barely felt warm to my hands while it insulated my teapot - a sign of utmost quality.

Additionally, these cozies look GREAT! I love all of the cozy designs on her website, especially the one she ended up sending me, which is called "Quite Reflections." They have colors and designs available to suit a teapot of any color that you might imagine.

Another point I would bring up is that each of these cozies is hand-stitched, which is an excellent sign that this company is one that is committed to a very high quality standard.

I would refer you to the image I have posted if you would like to get a closer look at the cozy.

So, the tea cozy held up to my highest expectations! I would highly recommend these cozies to anybody shopping for one!

I would encourage you to drop by their website, and have a look at their offerings! Their website is also very well-designed, by the way. You can find the site at the following location: http://byeldonna.com/store/

I'd highly encourage you to take a look and see what you can see!

Well, as always, thanks for reading! Stay tuned in the coming weeks for several reviews that I am currently working on. I have several different reviews in the works, so I will try my best to have a new review up every 1-2 weeks. Since I am a student, that is the best I can do. I'd love to be able to post more frequently, but my studies always come first!

Thanks again for reading, and I hope you all have an excellent fall, and an even more excellent winter! Winter, my favorite season, is almost upon us! And with the rapidly cooling weather, we are on the verge of the ultimate season for hot tea!

Over and out,
Relz

Revolution 3D

Hey all,

Today I am reviewing a new beverage from Revolution Teas called
Revolution 3D. It is a canned tea beverage, with an interesting idea
behind it.

The beverage combines the benefits of a vitamin drink, and the
antioxidant power of fruit juice with the natural refreshment of tea.
It's a lovely idea.

The beverage is sweetened only with pure cane sugar and agave syrup,
which I think is admirable. However, I still have not addressed the
most important question: How does Revolution 3D Taste? The answer -
It's actually pretty good. I think that Revolution did an excellent
job with their combination of high-quality tea and fruit juice.
Neither flavor ever overpowers the other, which can be a real
challenges with beverages of this variety.

The beverage comes in 4 flavors - Blueberry, Green Apple, Pomegranate,
and Mango, all of which are excellent. My favorite, however, was the
Mango, as I thought that Revolution did an especially good job with
the blending of this flavor. Mango is a flavor that easily overpowers
other flavors, especially the delicate flavors often found white tea,
which is the base that the beverages use. Not so in this case,
however. It ended up being a very light, mellow beverage with a good
contrast between flavors.

So, if any of you are looking for a new beverage to try, I'd encourage
you to get ahold of a can of Revolution 3D. It really is pretty good,
and I highly recommend it.

You can check it out at revolutiontea.com.

Thanks for reading, and watch out in another couple of weeks for my next review.

Over and Out,
Relz

Whole Leaf Organics - A Choice Product

Hey readers,

Well, the semester has officially started, so my posts here are going
to become somewhat less frequent, as I am taking alot of classes this
semester, and am also heavily involved in some extra-curricular
activities. So, the once-weekly posts you have been getting used to
are, for now, a thing of the past. Once the semester ends, I'll start
posting more often again.

Today, I'll be reviewing another offering by Choice Organic Teas.
This time, however, instead of a loose-leaf tea, I'll be reviewing
some of their organic premium tea bags in Pyramid infusers. I have
always liked the looks of the pyramid infusers, and find them to be a
superior form of the tea bag, allowing more water movement, and far
more room for the product to expand in.

Although they sent me several samples, I'll only be reviewing two or
three of the samples today. Maybe in some future posting, I'll review
some more of these teabags.

First, I will address the packaging for these, which is excellent.
The pyramids are packaged in individual biodegradable paper envelopes.
The design of the packets is fairly attractive, with lots of color
and a very simple, pure design. The front of the package displays the
name of the tea, and a short description, as well as the "Whole Leaves
Organic" designation, and the Choice Organic Teas logo. It also
contains that all-important USDA organic stamp, and a stamp indicating
that the tea is fair trade certified.

Being fair trade certified is also very important for a tea. I'll
post a more thorough article on what Fair Trade means for a tea, and
why it is so important that fair trade guidelines should be followed.
This is an important ethical issue in today's world of tea, and one
which I want to dedicate an entire posting to at some point in the
future.

On the back of the packet, it lists the ingredients, brewing
directions, and so forth, as well as the tidbit that these teabags
also happen to be fully biodegradable, which is nice.

Choice Organic Teas has always been a company that takes their
environmental obligations seriously. This is part of the reason that
they have chosen to deal only in Organic teas. Additionally, they
recognize the value of using only fully biodegradable packaging and
materials, so that the end result of your cup of tea does not spend an
eternity in a landfill.

Now, I will review a few of the teas themselves.

The first tea I will review is the Jade Green blend. Jade green is a
blend of various green teas, with no additions. As far as greens go,
this is a pretty decent blend. It has a nice vegetal flavor. It's
dry scent tells of floral notes, which is interesting. For the
negative, however, I would point out that this blend has somewhat more
astringent than I like to find in a well-blended green tea.
Additionally, the term "Whole Leaf Organics" seems kind of misleading,
as I found quite a large number of broken bits of tea leaf contained
within the pyramid, and very few whole, unbroken leaves. It isn't
quite as bad as the tea dust Lipton likes to serve you, however I was
somewhat disappointed with this. This area could use a bit of
improvement.

The end result, that it to say, the brewed cup, did not suffer
tremendously from this, as it still does seem to be a very
well-blended tea, with a good profile of flavors.

The second tea I will review is the Sweet Liquorice Mint blend. This
blend, I have found to be a true delight. It pleased me in many ways,
and the combination of liquorice and mint always entrances me. I
particularly enjoyed the spearmint flavor in this blend. It has a
excellent cup clarity, with very little cloudiness, and has an
excellent cup colour against my white teacup. However, with all of
these positive traits noted, I must mention a few things that need
improvement with this blend as well. As with the Jade Green, this tea
also suffers from alot of broken bits of leaf. I would have preferred
to see much larger pieces of herb, rather than the crushed remains.
Once again, the end result did not suffer much from this, but
remember, one of the signs of a truly excellent tea is the inclusion
of whole, unbroken leaves and herbs, or at the very least, large
peices (in some cases, the herbs and their various parts are too large
to include without some breakage or separation.)

Overall, this is a pretty good blend, however. And I would recommend
it to those who enjoy liquorice blends, or mind blends, as it
satisfies both characteristics without overpowering either of them.

And the third blend that I would make mention of is the Chamomile Citrus.

In quality, this is the best of the tree blends. It does much better
with the breakage problem I found in the other two blends, using large
bits of herb to acheive it's goals. This tea contains both hibiscus
and chamomile. As you all know, I am fairly particular when it comes
to chamomile teas. As most of you probably also know, both hibiscus
and chamomile are very delicate, and are easily overpowered. In this
blend, however, Choice Organic Teas has done an excellent job
preserving both herbs, and the citrus notes, both lemon and orange,
are very notable, without being brutish and overpowering to the rest
of the blend. I would say that this is the most well-blended of the
three teas I have reviewed today.

The hibiscus and the chamomile complement each other perfectly, and
they have included just the right amount of citrus to get the job
done. I would highly recommend this brew to lovers of chamomile
blends.

Well, thanks for reading, and I hope you'll stay tuned for further
reviews and developments on the blog.

Over and out,
Relz

33 Health Benefits of Drinking Tea

Hey all. I recently encountered an excellent article that sums up
many of the health benefits of drinking tea, and I thought some of you
might enjoy this.

You can find the article at:
http://www.nursingdegree.net/blog/18/33-health-benefits-of-drinking-tea/

Over and out,
Relz

In Search of the Golden Ibis

Greetings readers,

It's been only a week since my last posting, and I am already feeling
ambitious once more. Today, I have another review for you, from a
company I'm fairly sure you haven't heard of until today.

Recently, a representative of Golden Ibis Tea contacted me, asking if
I would be willing to review some samples for him. I did, of course,
gladly accept. But before I proceed to make specific mention of a few
of the teas that were sent, i want to take a moment to say a few
things about this new tea company. Since they are new to the tea
world, very little information is available about them, so I decided I
would try to help them ot by spreading some info about their company
first.

Golden Ibis puts great attention into where they purchase their teas
from, and they buy teas made in a time-honored tea producing
tradition. This, to me, seems admirable. They also have an
interesting philosophy on tea, where they believe that tea should be
made in the most authentic way possible, but also believe that tea
should be attainable (although not too attainable.) This can provide
an interesting balance between the most expensive of teas, made
authentically, in a time honored tradition from a single estate, and a
more attainable tea that is still made with authentic, high quality
standards, but also is cheap enough to be affordable.

We will see if the samples they sent hold up to the high standards of
excellence that they seem to be proposing.

Also, since Golden Ibis is so new to the world of tea, they haven't
had enough time to figure out packaging, so I will not be discussing
that aspect. For this review, I will stray outside of my norm, and
eveluate them based only upon the tea samples themselves.

The first sample I will be reviewing is a Phoenix Oolong tea. I am
very particular about oolongs, but this one seems to be up to the
task. When I opened up the foil packet, the smell is the first thing
that hit me with this blend - it has that characteristic nutty sort of
scent that all good oolongs tend to have. The dry appearnace of this
tea was also perfect - mostly whole, complete leaves, with only a few
broken up parts.

This tea was also a pleasure brewed. It imparted a decent cup
clarity, and had that nice light amber color that a good oolong should
have. As far as flavor goes, I can tell that great effort was put
into all aspects of this tea's processing, as it retained the
characteristic nutty flavor of an oolong, while having very little of
the astringent properties common to improperly produced oolongs. This
was a very clean, smooth tasting brew that imparted the best
characteristics of an oolong.

While it is not the best oolong I have ever tasted, it was pretty
good, and maintains that delicate balance between availability and
quality which is so important to this particular tea company.

The second of the samples that they sent was a Long Jing green tea.
As far as straight green teas go, this is actually one of the better
ones I have been given the opportunity to sample. It was particularly
good at maintaining that mild vegetal flavor that quality greens
always hold on to. However, this blend did posess a bit more
astringent than I like, which leads me to believe that it might have
been rushed a bit in it's processing, or may have been harvested a bit
too late. Other than the slight bitterness problem, this is an
excellent brew, having a brilliant cup clarity, a perfect cup
coloration, and an excellent assortment of flavor notes, from that
stereotypical vegetal flavor to a very slight nuttiness, to a very
slight fruity flavor.

I would highly recommend this brew as one of the better straight
greens I have tried.

And the third sample I was sent by this company is an apricot white
tea, which I won's spend much time discussing, other than to say that
it is an exceptional white, and to say that the amount of apricot was
expert - just enough to add some character, while not distracting from
the delicate flavor of the white tea it is based on.

Overall, I would say that these samples are above average for such a
new tea company, but could still use a little bit of improvement. I
suspect that many of the improvements in suppliers, etc, are alredy
being made. Since this is such a new company, these slight
shortcomings are very forgivable.

I would recommend these teas to most people, although I would caution
the more developed drinkers out there that these blends won;t really
compare to their more expensive counterparts available from other tea
companies. These teas do represent an excellent compromise between
expense and quality, however, which seems to have been the goal.

Thanks for reading. I hope you will all give this new tea company a
try - they really deserve to be getting some attention, as they are
doing quite well for being so new to the world of retail tea.

Over and out,
Relz

Clever tea videos

Hey readers,

I ran into a couple of clever videos about tea, and thought to share
them with you. Hope you enjoy these!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mkXwd-Jq1U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K2IAUF6Y7A

Over and out,
Relz

Tavalon, Part II

Greetings, Readers!

I have just returned from my 9-day vacation near Yellowstone, and as
promised, I now have my reviews for the final two blends that Tavalon
sent me for review. Having already discussed packaging, shipping, and
so forth, this review will focus only on the two remaining teas, and
my reactions to each.

The first blend I want to make note of is Kama Chai Sutra - Tavalon's
take on a modern Chai. One thing I found to be especially delightful
about this chai blend is the addition of vanilla bean - a flavor I
could detect with relative ease in the blend. The vanilla is expertly
blended with the traditional chai ingredients, adding it's
characteristic smoothness and imparting it's mellow flavor
characteristics to the cup.

This is a relatively standard Chai blend, with little to distinguish
it from other Chai blends, besides the notable addition of vanilla.
However, that does not mean that it is a very good chai, because it
is. It is easy to tell that careful attention was placed in blending
the various herbs and teas together in just the right combination.
It's also easy to see that some serious effort was put in here to
ensure that only the highest quality whole herbs were included in the
blend.

The result is one of the finer Chai blends on the market - Not quite
as good as Yogic Chai, but far superior to your standard tea shoppe
blend. Although, in Tavalon's favor, Yogic does specialize
specifically in Chai where Tavalon does not make such a
specialization.

The final Tavalon blend that I will make note of is called Serenity,
and is one of Tavalon's very fine herbal blends. It is made from
Chamomile, Peppermint, Lemongrass, Rooibos and Vanilla. Any of you
who are frequenters of my blog will already know that I have alot of
concerns with Chamomile blends, due to the mild and subtle nature of
Chamomile, however, the other herbs are of little contest over the
flavor characteristics that might have been drowned out in the
Chamomile.

This may be one of the most interesting minted blends that I have
tried. Additionally, the amount of mind included was perfect - it was
neither weak nor overpowering, but added a refreshing and vibrant tone
to this otherwise quite mellow tea. The earthy profile of the Rooibos
did not come through as well as I would have hoped, but Rooibos is a
difficult herb to blend, so I am somewhat forgiving of this minor
shortcoming. The lemongrass was just right as well, adding just the
right amount of tartness, and it's delicate citrus-like notes came
through in this blend very well.

I was also quite impressed, once again, with the superior blending of
the vanilla in this particular mixture. The vanilla gets alot of
milage in this blend, smoothing out the edges of the lemongrass and
peppermint, and adding a brilliant mellow feel to complement the
mellowness of the chamomile. The sweetness of this blend was also
right on target, making this a blend that can be enjoyed fully without
the addition of any sweeters, re-emphasizing the role of this tea as a
late afternoon beverage (too many sugars in an evening tea can defeat
it's mellow nature.)

Overall, I'd consider this one of the nicer evening teas I have
sampled in a while, and give it my highest recommendation.

Well, readers, I hope you have enjoyed reading this week's tea review,
and I hope that you will stay tuned in the coming weeks for more
content to be added soon.

Over and out,
Relz

Tea Begins at Tavalon, and Tavalon Starts with T!

Hey readers! As promised, I have another tea review for you this week.

Recently, I was contacted by none other than Tavalon, who requested
that I review some samples for them. For those of you that don't
know, Tavalon is one of the largest, if not the very largest, tea
establishment in New York City. So when they asked me to review some
samples for them, you might say I leaped at the opportunity - I just
could not turn it down.

And, I am pleased to say, I was not at all disappointed.

Statisticaly, in New York, there are more tea drinkers per capita than
almost any other state in the US. Also in New York, Tavalon has come
to be a household name in Tea. I often worry about large tea
companies, as it seems that the larger a tea company gets, the more
mechanized they become, and the more shortcuts they begin to take.
The larger a tea company becomes, the worse their tea becomes overall,
with few notable exceptions. However, with Tavalon, their success has
spelled out their failure. Quite the opposite, in fact. It seems
that Tavalon is now more focused on quality overall than ever before!
From the packaging to the product, I have seen few greater displays of
pure tea-related ingenuity than those present in Tavalon's excellent
products.

The first thing I would like to discuss is the packaging. Tavalon has
some of the best packaging of any tea company I have worked with.
Each tea is shipped in a clear, reusable, sturdy plastic canister,
which comes very much in handy for storing teas later on. In fact, I
very much wish that I could order these containers in bulk to store my
loose teas in.

Printed on the bottom of each canister is the name of the blend
contained therein, as well as complete directions for brewing the tea,
including the amount to be used, the temperature, and how much time is
necessary for the brewing. Fortunately, it also tells you how many
servings it contains, so you know exactly when to send for more when
your container runs dry. On the top and side of each canister is a
second label, which also serves as a seal for the canister, which
displays the Tavalon name, as well as giving you the name of the
mixture.

The labels work well with the design and appearance of the canister as
well, making the packaging as aesthetically pleasing as it is useful.

I would also make note that the shipping and customer service
experience behind Tavalon is also excellent. They always respond to
emails quickly and professionally, and leave no question unanswered,
which is something that is rare and extremely appreciated for a tea
company of their prestige.

Now, I'd like to review two of the four blends that Tavalon decided to
send my way. I will review the other two blends in some future post.

The first blend that I'd like to mention is the NYC Breakfast blend.
Tavalon's NYC breakfast blend is made from a variety of premium black
teas, rather than just one variety as most breakfast blends consist
of. This breakfast tea is actually one of the best breakfast teas I
have ever had the pleasure of sampling! The varieties that were
chosen complement each other very well - It's as if they are taking
the good qualities from the various black teas that were available,
and combined them into one. This blend is the perfect mixture of
fragrance, subtle nutty flavour, and natural sweetness. In addition,
it has the least astringent of any black tea that I have ever tasted.

The leaves are whole, unbroken leaves, as I expect from a premium
view, and there is no tea dust to settle to the bottom of the
container, which is delightful. The blend also has an excellent cup
colour, a pleasant light amber, with none of the cloudiness that is
often typical of "every day" teas such as breakfast blends. The tea
also exhibits the perfect blend between the strong flavor expected
from breakfast teas, and the subtle mixture of flavors and aromas that
accompany any premium blend.

Overall, I would rate this breakfast tea very highly, and not only do
I recommend this tea, but it is likely that I will begin using this
blend as my exclusive breakfast tea in my own home. Yes, it is that
good.

The second blend I would like to mention, is called After Dark. As
it's name implies it is an evening tea, composed of chamomile and
dried fruits.

The dominant fruit flavors in this blend are cherry and some sort of
citrus (Orange, I think), which both come through very strongly. Now,
as many of you will know, if you've been keeping up on my postings, I
am a big fan of Chamomile tea, and as such, I am very particular about
it. In chamomile blends, what usually occurs that the the subtle,
mellow flavour of the chamomile is drowned out by the strong fruity
tones. With this blend, however, it is not the case, for while there
are very strong fruit tones in this blend, the strongest of them being
the cherry (if I am not mistaken), they do not completely overpower
the chamomile. Instead, they complement it's subtle flavor. The
cherry, in particular, does very well in contrasting with the subtle
nuttiness of the chamomile.

This blend, also, is made of large chunks of material, rather than
small, broken pieces. This tea is a dark crimson color, presumable
from the cherry, but has excellent clarity and tint. This is one of
the most delightful chamomile blends I have tasted in a long time. It
was a pleasure for me to have the ability to sample it.

These two blends are some of the best blends I have ever tasted.
Tavalon definately puts the appropriate effort into both quality of
their ingredients, and expertness of their blends.

Well, that wraps it up for this review. I give Tavalon high marks,
and my highest reccomendation. Stay tuned for my review of the other
two blends that they sent, which also should prove to be delightful.

Over and out,
Relznuk

Twinings Weekly Blog Review

Hi Readers,

I just received a copy of this review from Twinings, and thought I would post it to see what you all think. Let me know what you think of it! Thanks.

By William I. Lengeman III



This is a selection of recent popular blog articles from the Twinings Tea Blog, where you will find the best tea blogs by tea lovers from around the world.



Rooibos: Some Health Information

Elliot, at the Miro Tea blog, continues his examination of rooibos, the increasingly popular herbal beverage from South Africa. Last time out, he took a look at how rooibos is processed. This time around, some thoughts on the potential health benefits of rooibos. For more on rooibos and health, look here.



Teaware: Chataku

What's a chataku? As Katrina pointed out, in a recent post at The Tea Pages, it's "a saucer (coaster) that sits under the small handleless Japanese teacups known as yunomi." Chataku are also known in China as chatuo.

"Stringing Tea": Intro & Part 1

If the phrase "stringing tea" doesn't ring any bells, it's because it was apparently coined in an interesting post by Mellow Monk. The introduction and part one of the multi-part post relate how a three-person film crew from Europe's Arte TV network followed him on a tea-buying expedition as part of their research for a documentary on Japanese green tea.



About Twinings

The Twinings Tea Blog discusses everything to do with Tea; from the fascinating history, the many different varieties, and special brewing techniques to the latest health news, unique teapots and famous tearooms. Nobody knows tea like Twinings. The finest ingredients coupled with 300 years of experience makes Twinings the tea experts. With nearly 200 Twinings blends to choose from, there is something special for everybody - every one has its own special aroma, flavour and character.