Incredible Tea
We purchased more Teas from Kate (Tea Noir). For those who may not be in the know, Etsy is an online crafts market which has some of the best crafts people I know of, we have purchased a myriad of products from people on the site and everyone has been astonishingly effective.
I highly suggest her for all your tea needs. Her products are simply beautiful, incredibly flavourful and are nothing less than a cup of delight.
We decided to try the following teas/tisanes.
Tarted Up – Tea Noir’s exclusive, zingy Tart grapefruit-ginger loose tea.
Strawberry SubLime – Summer 2007 is here, and so is Tea Noir’s summer seasonal blend!
Why not relax by the pool or on the sand with a tall, icy glass of this new green tea blend? Or, if you’re stuck at the office, make up a glass and pretend you’re sipping a strawberry margarita in the sun!
The base for this blend is premium gunpowder green tea, with its subtle smokiness and delicious fragrance. Those wonderful leaves have been blended with lime and strawberry oils and topped off with a touch of organic strawberry leaf to create a truly special summer brew.
Strawberry SubLime brews up a beautiful honey gold and has an intense aroma. It’s great hot or cold, but we think you’ll agree that iced is definitely the way to go in the summertime! Try brewing it extra-strong and adding a hint of seltzer for something special.
Get Strawberry SubLime while you can – this is a seasonal blend that will vanish at the end of summer!
Turkish Delight – Turkish Delight is a delicious, unique artisan tea blend exclusive to Tea Noir. The base for this blend is premium, tippy Yunnan black tea that brews up into a delicious amber liquor.
Those tea leaves have been blended with cardamom seeds, pistachio, and rose essence to mimic the complex flavours and aroma of really good Turkish delight candy. We’ve also added red rose petals, cultivated without chemicals, for that special little oomph, making this tea blend as much a treat for the eyes as for the mouth!
Turkish Delight is amazingly aromatic – one whiff will transport you to the bazaars of Istanbul (or is it Constantinople?) and the delicate, complex flavour that accompanies the scent will keep you coming back for more. C.S. Lewis was right – Turkish Delight is dangerously addictive, especially in tea form!
Backwoods – Now Tea Noir is pleased to introduce Backwoods, an ode to Vermont in autumn. Blending sweet, distinct maple and tasty black walnuts, one sip will transport you to the countryside. Yum!
The base for this blend is premium, tippy Yunnan tea that brews up superdark and rich. In with the tea leaves are chunks of walnut and natural maple flavour straight from the Tea Mistress’ Vermont back yard.
Backwoods is great black, but it’s simply amazing with cream and a hint of sugar – or, better yet, a drizzle of maple syrup in the cup!
Heart of Darkness – Heart of Darkness blends roasted yerba mate with the classic flavours of masala chai – cinnamon, ginger, and black pepper. The result is a rich, full-bodied brew that goes down smooth and keeps you going all night long.
So what is this yerba mate stuff, anyway? Well, mate is a traditional South American herb that’s a great alternative to normal teas. When it’s simply dried, it’s herbal and grassy, a little like the best green tea you’ve ever tasted.
When it’s roasted, like in Heart of Darkness, though, mate is toasty and rich – kind of like coffee! Yerba mate is incredibly smooth, without a trace of bitterness even when it’s brewed super-strong. Trust us, you’re going to love mate at first sip!
Like coffee, yerba mate packs a punch, for those times you need to stay awake. While some folks claim that mate’s wallop comes from a chemical other than caffeine, that’s not true – mateine, the active ingredient, is just a chemical synonym for caffeine.
However, many people notice that they don’t get jittery from mate the way they do from coffee. It’s a strong buzz, but a much gentler one.
Heart of Darkness brews up a rich, smooth, and fragrant pale gold colour, despite the darkness of the herbs. It’d be great plain, or with a splash of milk and some sugar, like a traditional masala chai.
Because yerba mate must be cut, not left whole-leaf like standard teas, this tisane is going to brew up a bit cloudy, with a bit of sediment at the bottom of your cup. That’s okay! Just drink the dregs; they’re delicious and nutritious, too – mate is packed with vitamins and other beneficial compounds.
