TasTEA Time! Prestogeorge Organic Japanese Tea Garden

From the website:  "Organic Japanese Sencha green tea, chamomile, cinnamon sticks, hibiscus and calendria flowers. Healthy, beautiful full-flavored green tea with a spicy berry flavor."

So, I had browsed the Prestogeorge website before going to the store and decided that this tea was something I'd get on my second visit.  Well, two things happened.  One was that I found out that I could get a minimum of two ounces instead of four and the other was that I got to smell this tea.  I know I was raving about some of the other teas, but this smells AMAZING!   I had work that day and would periodically pull out the little bag and smell it in all of its glory.  

Outsides:  Even with my crappy camera, you can see the rainbow of colors from the dark green tea, brown cinnamon, red hibiscus and yellow flowers.  It smells so warm and cinnamony and delicious, with hints of sweetness from both the cinnamon and the flowers.  There's a bit of a pinkish-tinge in this tea, making it a light orange color.  It smells spicy and sweet.

Insides:  This is definitely one of the more unique teas I have ever had.  Much like the tropical green tea, this is insanely smooth but the flowers and cinnamon add this lovely warmth to it.  This actually seems like a springtime tea with the added warmth.  It's actually quite naturally sweet between the chamomile and the cinnamon so you don't need to worry about it needing sugar.  

Overall:  Definitely one of my favorites.  Unique and a pure encapsulation of spring.  

My Rating:  Buy it!  Prestogeorge Organic Japanese Tea Garden.

TasTEA Time! Prestogeorge Tropical Green Tea

This is the most expensive tea I got on my trip to Prestogeorge at $3 for 2 oz.  (which is still cheaper than a lot of bagged tea and a lot of upper-scale tea).  From the website "Pan fired green tea, safflowers, marigolds, blue mallow flowers, and corn flowers with mango and passion fruit flavor. This makes the perfect iced tea. One of our most popular flavored green teas!".  Yum!

Outsides:  If you go to the store and have to walk anywhere, you'll have a hard time not keeping this tea at your nose the entire time.  This smells like tropical gum except more natural.  You can't really see them in my crappy picture but there are all kinds of colorful flowers in the green tea mix.  When brewed, the tea is a light yellow with a green tinge to it.  It still has a light tropical fruit scent.

Insides:  I love this tea.  The tropical flavor isn't in your face, but it's very refreshing and the smooth green tea base make this a fantastic drink.  It's also practically free from bitterness and has a very "fresh" scent to it.  This would make a FANTASTIC iced tea and honestly, it doesn't even need sugar.  The fruit and flowers give this a natural sweetness and the delicateness of the green tea make it so there's no harshness that requires masking.

Overall:  A very nice tea and something that I wouldn't mind spending a little more on.  Basically, an island escape in a cup!

My Rating:  Buy it!  Here's Prestogeorge's Tea Page:  Tropical Green Tea.

TasTEA Time! Prestogeorge Peach Oolong

I...I don't know why I started re-blogging today.  I really need to study for my Brain Function and Neuroanatomy test tomorrow, but alas, here I am again.  I guess this is serving as a warm-up before I crunch those diagrams again.  Anyway, this is another cheap Prestogeorge blend (all the ones I got this trip were relatively inexpensive, but this one is on the $3 for 4 oz range as opposed to the $5 for 4 oz).  I honestly have not had as much experience with oolong as with other teas, probably because a lot of bagged companies don't sell as many varieties of it.  But I like peach tea.

Outsides:  Prestogeorge uses plastic-lined paper bags with these neat little twisty-ties on them, so it's nice that they use better bags but you should still buy a canister or store in a dark, dry place.  The tea is golden hued and smells like peaches mostly, with a slight tea scent.

Insides:  I find that I drink this tea a lot, moreso than the other teas I bought from PG.  It's not because this tea is amazing, although it's very good and very balanced.  The oolong used is a much better quality than I've had, having a less-bitter, but warm and robust tea taste that is more mild than black tea, but still having a bit of a kick.  The peach flavor is a bit light, but balances well with the tea and still holds its own.  Why do I drink it more than the other teas I bought at PG?  I guess because it's just so smooth and balanced, plus it's cheap.

Overall:  I can't run in the streets screaming about how delicious this is, but it is well worth the money.  Get it if you want a lightly flavored oolong.

My Rating:  Buy it!  Here's PG's website again:  Prestogeroge's Oolong Tea page

TasTEA Time! Prestogeorge chocolate chip black tea.

Yay!  I found my cup!

So, Prestogeorge is one of our local tea stores here in Pittsburgh (which you can order online from) and yes, those are real chocolate chips in that black tea.  I saw this tea on /r/tea and that's how I got introduced to Prestogeorge, which I will eventually write about my experience but let's just say that I'm a dedicated customer.  I have to say, I've seen chocolate chai but I've never seen black tea with chocolate chips in it so props to PG for being unique.  Oh, and this was $1.70 for 2 oz so it was dirt cheap.

Outsides:  You can get your tea packaged in either a cheap, paper bag (that actually seals pretty nicely and if you don't have canisters, seems to keep well in a dark, dry place) or plastic bags.  The tea itself is dark brown.  It smells a little bitter with that warm hint of chocolate.

Insides:  Ok first off, I don't know what kind of chocolate chips they use, but they're good chocolate (yes, I totally tasted one).  They're dark chocolate and I'm pretty sure they're not Tollhouse, but I'll have to ask them the next time I go there so I can make chocolate chip cookies.  As for the tea, it's a bit bitter.  Not undrinkably bitter but something that needs a bit of added something even after rinsing.  The chocolate flavor is good, adding a hint of sweetness and a nice cocoa undertone.  This is really good with sugar and/or milk and apparently, makes a good iced tea.  

Overall:  If you want a nice desert tea, something that'll satiate your chocolate cravings without the calories or something that's just unique, give this a try.  If you don't live in the Pittsburgh area and want to try something similar to this, just add some quality dark chocolate chips to your black tea mix (Try adding a bit of cocoa powder too, possibly with an oolong base).  Unless you hate chocolate, there's not much you can lose by trying this plus it's ridiculously cheap.  

My Rating:  Try it!  Here's Prestogeorge's site.  Note that you can only buy 4 or more oz of tea, but I'll review more teas that I think everyone can enjoy!  Prestogeorge