Tea Reviews | It's All About The Leaf

Posts Tagged ‘Cardamom Tea’

Bamboo Shoots from TeaFrog…one thing that NO ONE can take away from this blend is that it is unique.  The first thing I could smell with the dry leaves was a sugary type smell. Once infusing began I could smell the Genmaicha and after the infusion was complete there was a funky smell – almost sour…on the verge of sour milk.  This scent somewhat threw me off – I’m not going to lie. Taste-wise I could taste the Genmaicha first then the peppercorns, then the fruit and then the peppercorns again.  I give TeaFrog an “E” for Effort on this one. It’s not my fave but it’s not bad either. The sour-type smell is freaks out… thank the tea gods it doesn’t taste that way!  I guess moral of the story is… don’t judge a tea by it’s smell.  I found that I didn’t like this one cold but this tea hot isn’t bad.  The spices – Ginger and Cardamom – aren’t really in the forefront but the pepper is noticeable but tends to jump on and off my taste buds so it’s not overly distracting.  I think the Pineapple and Papaya SAVE this tea for me.  As for the Coconut – I couldn’t even really tell it was there, taste-wise.  Like I said… this is a VERY unique blend!

You can purchase the Bamboo Shoots directly from the TeaFrog website.

Recently we received a shipment of teas from Distinctly Tea, a company in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. I exchanged several emails with Distinctly Tea, the net effect being a very interesting assortment of samples being sent for review. Among these, one caught my eye personally – the Lapacho Vanilla Chai.

We are always asking the tea companies to send something different – there are only so many “Silver Needle” teas that you can review, and Distinctly Tea has definitely come through on that front. The Lapacho tea was something that I have never before seen, and I have seen a LOT of teas! So I decided to give this one a try.

The primary ingredient (base) is Lapacho Bark – something I have not encountered before. Usually that leads me to do a quick bit of research – but I was looking for something to go with my morning eggs so I grabbed this to try. The scent was distinctly cinnamon and vanilla – two things I enjoy. The sweet vanilla scent was so subtle as to almost not being detectable, but that made it more intriguing, so I brewed up a quick cup using boiling water, and steeped it for 6 minutes.

The liquor was a clear golden flavour, and the scent of the brewed cup was subtly spicy, with no hint of the vanilla after brewing. It smelled vaguely like a spiced indian chai, and indeed, most of the ingredients reflected this, but it was not an overly strong smell, which I believe is a reflection of using the Lapacho Bark as a base.

The taste was very pleasant. Not a hint of bitterness anywhere, and a sweetness from the spicing. Anise stood out to me, with a sweet black licorice undertone, but not so present to turn off anyone that does not like black licorice. All in all, the cup was very enjoyable, and I found myself relaxing into it, and enjoying every drop. I could not identify anything that I could particularly attribute to being the taste of Lapacho Bark, so I got curious and decided to check out exactly what it is.

It turns out it is the inner bark of a tree used by Incas for many different types of ailments. It is used as an antibacterial, antiviral, anti-fungal and anti-many other things. It seems that in great quantities it may have some undesirable side effects, however, in small tea quantities, no problem.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable tea, and I would recommend it to someone that is looking for a alternative to a black tea chai – it is subtle and relaxing with no bitterness or drying in the mouth – I would imagine it would be a great finisher to a Yoga session or Meditation!

You can purchase the Lapacho Vanilla Chai directly from the Distinctly Tea website.

Product Description: Real chocolate draws your eye. The scent of exotic spices pulls you closer. By the time you taste this rich and complex black tea, you’ve already fallen in love.

The first time I tried a tea from Talbott Teas was last year and it was their Chocolate Almond Allure and I instantly fell in LOVE.  Not too long ago I was corresponding with Dr. Steven Nakisher from Talbott Teas on Facebook and he ended up sending me a few samples to try and possibly review.  I was so excited!  This was the customer service all other companies should take notes on!  They are so nice to customers and potential customers!  AND they have some really awesome ways to promote their products!  Their website is wonderful and their labels and tins are clean, crisp, and tastefully done!  Overall, Talbott Teas, is probably one of my favorite tea companies!  They seem to have the complete package!

One of the teas that I have tried from them recently is their Cocoa Cardamom Seduction.  I must say I was ‘taken’ by the name… does that mean “Mission Accomplished?” Perhaps.

The first cup I had of this I could clearly see ALL described ingredients! I couldn’t stop sniffing it!!! It was an AWESOME Chocolate Peanut Butter type smell.

The first sip I really did notice the cardamom but I think that was the idea of the whole thing, right!?  I continued to sip and certainly picked up on both the Almond and the Cocoa.  The cinnamon and cardamom pair together as they should and the pairing jumps up in front of the line but the Chocolate/Almond taste isn’t fair behind. The color of the tea liquid is a light-medium brown.

Now… the 2nd time I tried this tea… I purposely chose the loose leaf with less cardamom in it to see if there was a difference and there absolutely was! LOVELY! I enjoy it both ways, but now I LOVE the fact I can taste the difference with ease based on how much cardamom I choose to add or not add for my liking or tastes based on my mood!

So far… my favorite Talbott Tea is the Chocolate Almond Allure but this Cocoa Cardamom Seduction is a near second.

You can purchase the Cocoa Cardamom Seduction directly from the Talbott Teas website.

From Adagio Teas Bengal Green Chai is an eastern fusion blend of green tea from China and a traditional mix of chai spices from India. It is described by Adagio as ” Our smooth China green tea with a chakra warming spice combination. Its natural sweetness and fiery kick will bring you back to center, no matter how polarized you’ve become. OOMMMMM OOMMMMM”

The loose tea presents very well, long leaves of green pekoe tea, lots of cloves, big chunks of cardamom pods, cinnamon bark, ginger root and orange peel; once brewed it makes a cup of tea that is a nice amber color. The aroma of the tea is rich and spicy and stays with the tea even after it is brewed.

I found the flavor of the cloves to be the most pronounced, almost a little too strong, but the ginger, cinnamon and cardamom worked nicely together as an underlying flavor. Overall, I liked the tea but I think that the mildness of the green pekoe was overpowered by the spices. I often add milk and sugar to a traditional black chai blend but I found that this tea isn’t robust enough to hold up to the addition of milk and sugar without losing too much of it’s color and taste.

I followed Adagio’s suggested brewing instructions of two heaping teaspoons per 6 oz cup – 3 min at about 180 degrees. This actually seemed like a lot of tea required to make a cup but I guess it has to do with the loose mix of big leaves and spice pieces – the more tea you use the more likely it is to get a consistent proportion of cloves, ginger, cinnamon and cardamom.

You can purchase Adagio Bengal Green Chai directly from their website.

This is a herbal blend from Tea forte who describe it as “a rich, chocolate reward, nearly as gratifying as a velvety truffle”. Well, I don’t know if it’s all that but it is very good.

Being a chocoholic I prefer the real thing – dark and melting on your fingers. I’ve been disappointed many times by teas that promise a real chocolate taste and deliver only a hint. I was pleasantly surprised by Coco Truffle; not only by the sweet aroma which with eyes shut could make me believe that it was a mug of hot cocoa rather than tea, but the rich almost milky taste had tons of real chocolate flavor.

The ingredients are listed as cacao, cinnamon, fennel, licorice root, cardamom, ginger, cloves, black pepper. The flavor from the cacao beans was the most pronounced. I suspect that the cardamom gave the tea it’s creamy characteristic but the other spices, fennel and licorice root only came through as an aftertaste. I think that either fennel or licorice root and not both would have been sufficient but overall the combination was a success.

I followed Tea forte’s guidelines and brewed it for 5 minutes in water that was just short of boiling. A second cup made with the same tea bag had very little of the coco flavor left but the other ingredients came through and it was almost like a weak chai. Tea forte’s signature pyramidal tea bags are very elegant looking and the design seems to give the tea plenty of room to steep but they are very expensive at $1 per bag so it’s unlikely I would be buying these regularly but perhaps as a special treat or as a gift.

You can purchase Tea Forte Coco Truffle Tea directly from their website, and in various high-end establishments around the world.