February’s Teas – 2013
Numi’s Organic Chocolate Pu-erh took the spot for overall highest scored tea in this month’s tea box. Why? I think Jenny summed it up best in her description: “Gingerbread dipped in cocoa yum. Rich, Creamy and fun.” If you like rich and creamy food and love black tea this is truly chocolate pu-erh bliss. In the category of green tea, Mighty Leaf, new to the Tea Sparrow tea box, stole top marks on the score cards with their Organic Green Tea Tropical. This is a blend that enhances the flavour of the green tea without pairing it. Impressive!
Lastly we brought you back two classics. This month, we attended the Victoria Tea Festival and had an incredible time. We polled the tea enthusiasts we met and they selected Aromatica’s Sangria and Florapharm’s Vanilla Honeybush as their herbal favourites, so we’ve included them as a special treat for this month. We would love to thank all those who took the time to sample the teas and share what they thought. It was a pleasure meeting you all.
Numi’s Organic Chocolate Pu-erh
Description: This velvety infusion combines black Pu∙erh tea and organic cocoa. Accented by whole vanilla beans and sweet orange peel, this decadent blend is rounded off with nutmeg and cinnamon for a spicy finish.
Ingredients: Organic Pu∙erh, Organic Cocoa Powder, Organic Vanilla, Organic Theo Chocolate Cocoa Nibs, Organic Rooibos, Organic Orange Peel, Organic Nutmeg, Organic Cinnamon.
Health: Pu-erh originates from the Yunnan Province of China and has been coveted for its preventative and curative properties for over 2000 years. Pu-erh tea has been proven to lower cholesterol and to support digestion as well as general well-being and longevity. This tea is said to enhance the “qi,” or life force. So get your kung fu on!
Jenny Dent, Tea Enthusiast – “Gingerbread dipped in cocoa yum. Rich, Creamy and fun.”
Mighty Leaf’s Green Tea Tropical
Description: Smooth green tea leaves harmoniously blend with sweet tropical fruits to create a sensation as uplifting as a breeze off the isle of Papenoo. Antioxidant rich!
Ingredients: Green tea, natural tropical flavors, natural flavors, flower petals, pineapple bits.
Health: By now, the health benefits of green tea have been well-established. Here are just a few of the reasons we love it so much: it’s been shown to fight cancer and heart disease, lower cholesterol, prevent diabetes and stroke and to fight infection. It’s tough to beat that!
Michael Menashy, Tea Sparrow Family – “The green tea taste comes through so distinctly. The other blended ingredients are so subtle it does not take away from the tea.”
Florapharm’s Vanilla Honeybush
Smooth aromatic vanilla caramel flavour. Delicious hot or as an iced tea.
Ingredients: Honeybush, natural vanilla flavour, vanilla bits
Health Benefits: This incredibly flavoured caffeine-free tea is growing quickly in popularity but did you know that it also contains high amounts of antioxidants? Although the antioxidants found in rooibos tea are different from those in green tea, they are still known to fight off free radicals in the body. Rooibos tea is also known to fight off cardiovascular disease, liver disease and lower blood pressure.
Michael Menashy, Tea Sparrow Family – “Naturally sweet, wonderful and playful. A full flavoured mellow tea, perfect for drinking throughout the day.”
Aromatica’s Sangria
Sorry, no alcohol in this one. Just lots of delicious, thirst quenching taste. This healthy blend is fantastic when served in a pitcher of cracked ice and sliced oranges. It has the natural deep scarlet colour and luscious taste of traditional sangria without the hangovers and dead brain cells.
Ingredients: Hibiscus, apple bits, blood orange bits, rose hip peels, safflow flower petals, cranberries, lemon myrtle, and lemon peel.
Health Benefits: The phrase “herbal tea” or “tisanes” usually refers to infusions of fruit or herbs made without the tea plant. Regarding their benefits, apart from being the perfect refreshment on hot summer days, they are also packed with vitamin C. So it’s a great way to get your vitamin C without having to eat all the sugars that come with whole fruits.
Jane Pettigrew, International Tea Sommelier: “A good balance, all the ingredients are quite sharp and citrus so needs some form of sweetener such as honey, brown sugar or even a fruit jam or curd. Delicious!”