This herbal infusion or “tisane” comes in a tea bag, so I can’t really describe it’s leaf appearance. It would be nice if Zhena’s offered at least some of their more popular options in loose form.

Visually, this tea brews a pinkish-red liquor. The weak aroma combines sweet and tart to create an inviting feeling in the nose.

This flavorful tea has some pucker though. With both Acai, orange peel and Hibiscus you’ll get plenty of dryness on your palate. And that’s exactly what I got. But add in the rooibos and the lemongrass and you have a conflict of sweetness and tart that’s hard to grab the subtleties of.

This is not my cuppa tea. I like to be able to see the leaves, and to indulge in the nuanced flavors which come out when you brew a tea.

I can recommend this infusion for fans of acai, fruit teas, tart drinks and flavored teas. If you’re more of an orthodox purist, you won’d be drinking Zhena’s Gypsy Tea anyway, but I do encourage you to step out of your box of orthodoxy and try something new now and then which you wouldn’t normally partake of. Someetimes, you win. Sometimes you lose. This brew is lost on me.

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When it comes to the relaxing calming teas ni the world, there are a great many which make this claim. I find myself relaxed by quite a few teas. But Serenity from Tavalon Tea takes the cake.

Visually this tea appears to be made up of chamomile, rooibos and lemongrass. Though Tavalon claims vanilla beans and peppermint I don’t visually see these components present.

The aroma from the dried leaves is light. Here, you can tell the mint is present, and the chamomile is a strong part of this blent. Subtler notes from the lemongrass and a smoothness from the vanilla and rooibos is only hinted at.

Once brewed, the aroma changes to rely heavily on the chamomile and peppermint, but there’s a spiciness present I’m unsure of the source for. This tea creates a dark golden liquor equally pleasing to the eye as the tea is to the palate.

Something about the combination of peppermint with the lemongrass must be giving this tea some spice because it’s clearly present. The flavor is smooth, with some very light astringent bite in the finish. Instantly relaxing you can feel the chamomile and vanilla flavors coating your mouth while the peppermint tingles just the very tip of your tongue.

Not strikingly bolds, but certainly containing some bite, I can recommend this tea to fans of peppermint and/or chamomile tisane blends, anyone who enjoys lemongrass and those who enjoy a nice vanilla rooibos.

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This Rooibos blend is pretty sweet. No, really! It won in the 2008 World Tea Championship, so it’s prize winning! Don’t let the marketing fluff scare you though. This tea really is something you should try.

The leaves look like slender, short red pine needles mixed with yellow blossoms and lemongrass pieces. The smell is of sweet lemon cream.

The aroma once brewed is more complex. Reminding easily of lemon mirangue pie and other lemony desserts. There’s hint of marigold and of honey in the finish.

This tea is mooth to sip, but does dry the tongue. I don’t find this an every day tea, but something perfect to have in place of a dessert.

I recommend this tea for anyone who likes the sweeter side of life. Those who enjoy their teas with a little milk and sugar won’t need to add to this. I think you’ll like it as is.

Until next steep!
Enjoy!

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Friday is Black Tea, Floral Tea, Fruit Tea, Chai and Pu’erh Review Day!

Even though this tea is a Rooibos… I really consider it more of a fruit tea. Stash provided me bagged samples of their new Chanakara brand teas designed to target each of your seven primary chakras.

This tea was bagged, so it’s harder to jusge the colors, sizes of leaves and ingredients you can see, not to mention the vivaciousness of the aroma is more subdued before brewing. However, from what I could tell the bag was a little less than 1/3 filled and deffinitely with dust or fanning grade particles not as condusive to brewing a flavorful beverage.

This tea brews to a rather pretty honeyed amber-red. It really looks very good in a mug.

The aroma hints of hibiscus and raspberry but is extremely subtle. I really had to nose in to get the flavors from the smell.

Speaking of flavors… this tea tastes of dried strawberries, hibiscus blossoms, light raspberry and citrus flavors are also present.

This tea has a very light but protracted tail, creating a longing for more… like a soft sensual touch.

I wouldrecommend this tea to anyone who is a fan of fruity teas. You may want to brew it longer than recommended for more flavorful results.

Advertisement: Adagio Teas

Last month Adagio Teas launched their “Roots Campaign” with a story about a Chinese tea farmer from Fu Jian province who handled Jasmine Tea.

For October we’re greeted by Niklaas Jakobus Slinger a Rooibos farmer from South Africa. Again, this project seeks to shine a light on the hard working tea cultivators whom Adagio sources from while also giving back to them 10% of the proceeds of sales from their product via Adagio’s website.

Mr. Slinger notes several interesting changes in the tea industry including increased paperwork and the need for many more international certifications due to increased regulation. An interesting couple of anecdotes I feel many of us never think about when it comes to starting our own companies or tea gardens.

I highly recommend participating in this unique venture from Adagio Teas.

From an Adagio release:

Starting on September 1st, we will be launching the “Roots Campaign” on our site. A chance for our customers to meet the individual farmers who produce our teas and to gain an insight on the process of growing and making tea. Each month we will be highlighting a different tea from our product line and featuring the tea artisans that grew and crafted this tea. Users will be able to read about who that farmer is, view photos of their land and family, & read their answers to select questions that we have chosen. To show our deep appreciation, 10% of the sales from the featured tea will be donated back to the farmer it was sourced from.

The project is slated to run for 12 months and will feature 12 farmers from different tea-growing regions around the world. We would be thrilled if you were to inform your readers about the campaign before its release in order to help make these contributions as meaningful as possible. At the end of the campaign, we will be conducting followup interviews to find out just how the farmers were able to benefit from the donations.

Here is a link to the first Roots Campaign from Adagio! It’s a great read!

Help a good cause: CharityWater.org