It's All About The Leaf

Posts Tagged ‘drink tea’

Starting my day with a taste of India, closing my eyes, allowing myself to be taken away to northern India with this charming, malty, CTC Assam from 52teas.

It’s called RadioactiviTEA and rightly so because it provides just enough of a jolt to get me going without the crash that I get from coffee. Steeped for five minutes with a fresh pot of boiling water (from cold) , and a couple of Stevia leaves to sweeten it. It’s a smooth and comforting tea with that zing that makes it just right for breakfast or to pick you up from a late afternoon lull.

The aroma is strong and inviting, the aftertaste is mellow and satisfying. This blend has never gone bitter (even when I’ve forgotten it was brewing, yes, my mind wanders some mornings), and it’s always had my coffee loving friends asking for more. You can add a touch of cream to it if you prefer but, to get the most health benefits from it, just a bit of Stevia will do. This isn’t a tea that I would suggest putting honey in, it’s malty enough on it’s own.

Sit back, clear the sleep from your eyes, and savour this amber brew.

You can purchase 52teas RadioactiviTEA directly from their website.

Let me start by saying, I am not a coffee drinker. For me, the tea I choose to drink throughout the day will be dependent on my mood. This tea would be one that I would use to start my day, as I think it has the ability to give you that initial morning burst that many people claim to get from that first pot of java.

My first impression of any teas is usually in the form of smell. I was a little surprised to find the aroma of the Yunnan Noir to be earthy in nature, as I was expecting a soft and supple aroma. I do like teas that are full bodied and stronger in taste!

The tea leaves were noticeably large in size, and looked like they had been tightly rolled up, possibly to keep in their flavor. This tea has a woodsy smoked flavor bordering on bitter, but not quite. It has an almost rustic taste. As with many of the other teas that I consume on a daily basis, I added milk and 2 sugars. I don’t think I would drink this after a fine meal or sitting down at the end of the day.

I think, for anyone trying to transition from coffee to tea, this will hit the spot, unlike many of the store bought nationally branded products I used to buy!

I would definitely drink it again, without hesitation. If you are looking for something to give you a little pick me up, it will fit the bill.

You can purchase Adagio Yunnan Noir directly from their website.

African Summer is a very pleasant herbal tisane from Red Leaf Tea it is a blend of Honeybush, Lemongrass, Lemon Myrtle, Rose Hips, Eucalyptus, Hibiscus, Safflower, and Marigolds. I was intrigued by the description on Red Leaf’s website: “The beguilingly hot climate of the African Serengeti serves as the inspiration for African Summer tea, with its unique combination of herbs that are known for their healing and nourishing properties. Its main ingredient is honey bush-which is related to rooibos-and additional vitamins and minerals are provided by eucalyptus, hibiscus, safflower, and marigolds. African Summer also contains citrus and rosehips that help boost your immune system.”

The loose leaf is a pleasing earthy mix of color – fresh greens of lemongrass, myrtle and eucalyptus, mellow brown and yellow honeybush leaf, safflower and marigold and bright splashes of hibiscus and rose hip. The lemongrass seems to be predominant in the blend and the citrus scent comes through before and after brewing.

I was surprised at how dark the brewed tea was with nice red tones – certainly a family resemblance with rooibos. The flavor, not surprisingly, was mild and mostly lemony with the honeybush hinting sweetness and the floral notes contributing a bit of tang. Happily I didn’t notice a strong enough eucalyptus flavor to remind me of a cough drop. Overall African Summer is a pleasing cup of tea; very refreshing, and according to the Red Leaf people – good for you too!

Red Leaf is currently shipping orders of more than $40 for free and also have a promotion running – “Buy 4 Teas get 1 FREE / Buy 7 Teas get 2 FREE”.

You can purchase Red Leaf Tea Rooibos Africana directly from their website.

I had a number of teas that I was going to review but these were pre-empted in order to cover the JOEmo XL Tea Travel Mug. I have been on the lookout for a good travel mug for loose leaf tea for a long time now, and when I found this one I was so pleased I just couldn’t wait to get the word out.

There are a number of tea travel mugs out there, from the Teas Etc. mug, to the Mighty Leaf Travel Mug, but nothing has seemed just right. Most travel mugs just have a filter to keep the leaves from getting into your mouth. That is fine, as long as you are going to leave them in there to steep the whole time. Personally, I like to steep my leaves for a certain amount of time, and then remove them, especially when it comes to greens and blacks. Inside the JOEmo, the key to the whole thing is a removable stainless steel mesh basket. It locks in place to either:

A) Keep the tea in the water and out of your mouth – if you are leaving the leaves in.
B) Keep the leaves out of the water, once you remove the basket.

The mesh filter is super fine, and even with Rooibos teas, which are notoriously slippery when it comes to getting through mesh filters, it kept all the leaf right out of the water once the basket came out!

The JOEmo body is double walled stainless steel and very rugged (perfect for banging around during those canoe trips). Being double walled, no matter how hot or cold the liquid is inside, you do not feel it on the outside. No condensation from very cold, and no heat from very hot tea. This makes it pretty comfortable to hold!

The vacuume sealed lid keeps your liquid hot or cold, whatever it went in as. This leads me to one warning – it works almost too well! After steeping a black tea with boiling water, and removing the basket, I sealed it up, and promptly forgot about it as I went about my day. 3 hours later it occured to me that I had some tea to drink, and without thinking, sipped away and came close to scalding my mouth! 3 hours later, and the water was almost as hot as it went in as! So be careful….

The mug is very easy to drink from; you simply push a button on the lid and it opens for drinking, another push of the button closes the lid when you are done. You can sip from anywhere around the rim – no single spout to find while driving in the car! Even with the lid “popped” the heat does not escape the mug.

Hands down, I recommend this to every single loose leaf tea drinker out there. The ONLY downfall that this has is that removing the basket can be messy if you are on the go and have nowhere to put it. However, the length of time that the water keeps warm, and the ease of drinking out of the mug more than makes up for this minor inconvienience. I have already placed my order for 4 more for my family members, and as a bonus, they are on sale at TeaFrog right now!

In conclusion, I love it, I use it, and in my opinion, to date, this is the best travel mug for loose leaf tea that is out there today!

You can purchase the JOEmo XL Tea Travel Mug directly from the TeaFrog website.

After all the tea balls that I have broken and battled with over the years it is a relief to find something as perfectly functional and simple as the Finum Basket. Who hasn’t had the unpleasant experience of a tea ball opening up while you’re brewing tea? What a mess!!

The Finum Brewing Basket is a re-usable filter perfect for tea (or coffee) and constructed of a stainless steel mesh in a plastic frame. You simply place the basket in your mug or tea pot, add the loose leaf tea, and pour the water over the tea. When the tea is steeped to your liking just lift the basket out and place it on the lid which doubles as a drip tray. How easy is that? Another improvement over a tea ball is the volume that the tea leaves have to expand in – the tea is able to steep evenly and the flavor to fully develop. The mesh is fine enough that even Rooibos doesn’t escape through the filter. Over time and with regular use the stainless steel mesh does become a bit stained but it is dishwasher safe and I have found that vinegar cleans it up nicely.

This is a Must-Have accessory for anyone who drinks tea and I would recommend buying more than one – it’s perfect to use at the office or when you are traveling.

You can purchase TeaFrog Finum Tea Brewing Basket directly from their website.