TasTEA Time! Adagio's Valentine tea (chocolate and strawberry)

 

I used to hate desert teas because they were never properly flavored, and although this is a mix of fruit and chocolate, a lot of the sweet spices tend to overwhelm the tea.  However, I've been turned and realize that there are a lot of great sweetly flavored teas that aren't flavored with fruit.  Prestogeorge has a bunch and I've even wrote about Adagio's Pumpkin Spice.  But I love chocolate-covered strawberries.  They're like caramel apples in that you can pretend that they're healthy, but they're not and they're delicious.  A good thing about tea is that you should be able to get all of the flavor without as many calories.

Outsides:  I got this as a sample size from Adagio, which does make a decent amount of cups (I'd say about 8).  It was in a foil-lined bag which is resealable.  The tea was made using less than boiling water and steeped for about 3 minutes.  It's dark golden orange and smells very chocolatey with a hint of strawberry.  I then added cream, which I will explain in a bit.

Insides:  This tea needs to be rinsed or to be mixed with some milk/cream/soymilk because it is a bit too bitter and that bitterness masks the flavors.  However, milk really brings out the chocolate and strawberry so I'm willing to forgive.  The tea actually does a good job replicating the taste sensation of eating a chocolate-covered strawberry since the smell of chocolate is stronger but the two tastes balance out in the end.  Sadly, this is not the most versitile tea out there although it is fine without sugar.  It needs some sort of cream when cold though, but ultimately tastes better warm.

Overall:  I like it and would recommend people trying it.  Plus, it's nice having a tea that is flavored after a desert and actually tastes like it.

My Rating:  Try!

So, if you're in the US then you know that it's Black Friday.  This is good news since Adagio is having free shipping on any sized order (so you can get 5 samples for $10).  I think it's going on until Cyber monday but it might be only for today so get that tea!  And as always, first-time customers can get 5 dollars off their first purchase by getting the coupons I tweet at @teaandpolish.  

TasTEA Time! Loyd Raspberry and Strawberry herbal tea

Alright, so this is an interesting one.  This tea is artificially flavored.  Even brands like Biglow and Lipton all say that they're naturally flavored.  Even the no-name dollar tea brands say they're all natural.  Not Loyd.  Now I've red the ingredients and have to say, WTF is some of this stuff (Modified starch with waxy maize)?

Ok, ok.  I know I'm biased against the tea.  But yeah, most brands try to point out how natural they are, most even go organic or fair trade.  And I love Raspberry and Strawberry!  Alright Loyd Tea, let's see what you got.

Outside:  Oh polish tea with its cheap cardboard boxes with nothing between the box and tea.  The sachets are pyrimid-shaped for faster prep.  The tea smells nice, like berry candy as opposed to normal berry tea, but that's still kinda nice.  Lastly, the color reminds me more of a light raspberry juice than a tea.  It's a lovely pinkish red and a pity that I don't have my clear cup to show you.

Insides:  The tea is tangy and fruity, tasting less like a tea and more like a light fruit drink.  The raspberry flavoring gives off a more pungent smell but both berries seem equal on the flavor balance.  This may seem like a strange complaint, but the texture doesn't feel light like a lot of teas are.  It's heavy and not very smooth, partially because of the sourness (It's not really bitter).  But with added sugar, it's not bad and pretty tasty while cold.

Overall:  I think for the average human being who isn't too picky about what they consume and doesn't care about the subtleties of tea, this is good stuff.  I'll admit that this is my favorite flavor of the Loyd tea that I have tried since it's fruity and fun, plus doesn't taste as fake as some of the other ones.

My Rating:  Try it!  Here's the site:  Mokate's Loyd Tea

TasTEA Time! Lipton Green Tea with Mixed Berry Flavor

So, berry green tea.  It's one of my favorites for summer.  It's probably one of my favorites year-round.  The sweetness of the berries and the lightness of green tea make a fantastic and refreshing combination for 90 degree days like this.  Ok Lipton, let's see what you got.

Outsides:  Paper on the outer layer, saran wrap on the inner and all the sachets are individually wrapped.  The tea actually is a gold yellow color with no hint of berry color in it (the Touch one was like that and it actually turned out pretty delicious).  However, the smell that comes from this....smells fake.  My first thought was children's chewable vitamins but after re-examination, it smells like fake cherry.  This is fading a bit while it cools down but my hopes are a little slashed right now.

Insides:  Thankfully, you don't taste much of the fake cherry just some strawberry flavor.  It also tastes a lot more bitter than it should.  This just isn't very good.  I don't mind if Lipton is trying to do something different with their berry tea, but the only flavors you do taste are fake cherry and fake strawberry (it says natural flavors but they don't taste natural).  Those two flavors are the only ones that break though even if there are other berry flavors.  The green tea is the same as the original, not the best but you could do better.  Ultimately, I am just not a fan.

Overall:  Don't buy this.  You can get good berry tea at a reasonable price (Celestial Seasonings Green Tea with Blueberry is decent, not amazing but decent).

My Rating:  Pass.  Here's the site.

Review! Snapple Kiwi Strawberry

What:  Kiwi Strawberry drink

Where:  USA

Why Should I Care:  Strawberry Kiwi is one of the most typical, generic flavor combinations out there.  It's safe, you're probably going to get the same flavor profile as you expect to get and it's ubiquitous.  Again, this is something that has been sitting in my refrigerator for several weeks and I know that if I don't get rid of it somehow, it's going to stay there forever.  So yeah, here we are.

Packaging:  Pretty much just a generic glass bottle

Non-taste Senses:  It's pink and it smells like strawberry.

Taste:  It's pretty much what you expect from a strawberry kiwi drink.  For those of you who've never had a strawberry kiwi drink, it's about 40% strawberry, 20% kiwi and 40% sugar (these values are estimates and may change from product to product, although that's unlikely).  It's way too sweet and despite claims of juice, I've seen sodas that I consider healthier.  It does have a hint of juice though, which is more than I can say about brands like Minute Maid, and I don't hate the flavor combination.

Overall:  I understand why people like Strawberry Kiwi stuff.  It's relatively familiar, sweet and has a hint of the exotic.  Do I care for it (in drink form)?  No.  Do I recommend this to people who don't care for SK?  Not really.

My Rating:  Pass.  Here's the site.

TasTEA Time! Dilmah Strawberry Ceylon Tea

What:  Strawberry flavored tea

Where:  Sri Lanka

Why Should I Care:  I've seen a good number of teas with strawberry flavoring but for the most part, they don't have that much strawberry flavor. It's kinda sad because everything else that's strawberry is pretty delicious so tea should also be delicious.  Alas, I barely can taste the strawberry most of the time.

Packaging:  All the sachets are individually foil-wrapped.

Non-Taste Senses:  The tea is the typical Ceylon golder than normal tea color and the smell is PHENOMINAL!  If you have an area in your house that smells bad then brew a cup of tea there because this has a strong smell of strawberries.

Taste:  For one thing, I think rinsing has done the trick for Dilmah because I can barely taste any bitterness.  Also, this tea is fantastic.  The strawberry and tea flavors are both well balanced and yes, the strawberry flavor is strong and fragrant.  It takes sugar ok and if you're ok with the tea being a little strong, it makes a good iced tea.

Overall:  I haven't tasted a better Strawberry tea, least for the price I got it.  I highly recommend it for people who love strawberries and black tea.

My Rating:  Buy it!  The site only offers huge quantities for a not so great price, so shop around.  However, the site I used to tell you guys what rinsing is looks awesome!  They even have a free gift with any purchase and although the lychee tea is black tea, it's still lychee!  I'll probably buy some at the end of the month.