DAVIDsTEA- Santa's Secret (Unpopular Opinion??)

Name: Santa's Secret
Company: DAVIDsTEA
Type: Black Tea
Price: $8.50 for 2 oz.
Suggested Amount: 1.25 for 8 oz.
My Amount: 1.75 for 8 oz.
Caffeine: Medium

I need to start with this: I can't stop smelling this tea. I mean it's actually been becoming a serious problem. Every time I walk by my tea counter, I have to open up the tin and give it a sniff. Also, I'm a sucker for the novelty, and the mini candy canes break my heart every time.

I will say however, that in my personal–and most likely unpopular–opinion, this tea makes for a great potpourri and a not-so-great tea.

Don't get me wrong, I don't actually think this tea is bad. I just don't see the hype that has had me waiting the whole year to actually get my hands on this tea.

I like the idea of the peppermint and black tea mixture, but I just felt that the tea was too weak to live up to the peppermint. After a bit of sugar, I could go for it, but it isn't something I would purchase again. So far, I've only really liked the Sweet Almond Green (which I did love) from DAVIDsTEA's winter collection and I'm a little bummed about it. 

Anyone else enjoying the winter collection more than me?

1st Steep:

• Time: 5 min.
• Temp: 205°F

Ingredients:
Black tea, Peppermint, Sprinkles, and natural an (←don't know what that last one is)

Tea Liquor:

• 1st Steep: Red-Brown

Flavor: Peppermint, Smokey, Smooth, Weak

Rating: (3/5)

The Republic of Tea- Good Hope Vanilla Tea

Name: Good Hope Vanilla
Company: The Republic of Tea
Type: Rooibos
Price: $10.00
Suggested Amount: 1 bag per 6 oz.
My Amount: 1 bag per 6 oz. 
Caffeine: Caffeine-Free

I saw another blogger review this tea and they way that they went on about it made me want to get it STAT. So, I overcame my laziness and hiked on over to my local grocery store (who, uncharacteristically have a huge Republic of Tea stock). I immediately came back home and steeped myself a cup.

... I was apathetic. While I can see why some people might like this tea, it was a little bit underwhelming as a Vanilla tea. I was just expecting a little more pizzazz with the vanilla, and I only really tasted an okay cup of rooibos.

I will say that the woodsiness of the rooibos made up for some of its downfalls. I guess I would say that if you're looking for a bagged Rooibos (and not vanilla...) then this wouldn't be a bad place to start. 

Also the packaging was a little unsettling in how they played up the whole "African Chic" aesthetic. However, unfortunately this inauthenticity is not uncommon in the tea market.

1st & 2nd Steep:

• Time: 5 min.
• Temp: 205°F

Ingredients:
Rooibos, Natural Vanilla Flavor, and Vanilla Beans

Tea Liquor

• 1st Steep: Deep Red-Brown (It's actually quite beautiful)
• 2nd Steep: Light Brown (not as sexy as the first steep)

1st Steep

2nd Steep

Flavor: Woodsy and slightly vanilla

Rating: (2.5/5)

DAVIDsTEA- Sweet Almond Green Tea

Name: Sweet Almond Green
Diet: Organic and Kosher
Company: DAVIDsTEA
Price: $9.50 for 2 oz.
Suggested Amount: 1.25 tsp. per 8 oz. 
My Amount: 1.25 tsp. per 8 oz.
Caffeine: Low

This tea is a literal dessert. Honestly, I had to drag my mom away from this tea, and it took bit for me to get over the fact that I only had a sample of this one. Without doing any reading on this tea, the first thought I had about this tea after one sniff was that it smelled exactly like tho italian almond cookies (marzipan??). 

Let me just get it out of the way now– the taste totally lived up to the cookie smell.

I usually love my green tea unflavored, but this tea has completely converted me. The green tea really complemented the almond flavor, and neither overpowered the other. However, I don't really think I felt the flowers in this one. I will also say that there was a slight bitterness, but it didn't take away from the tea in any way. What really impressed me was that despite its smell the sweetness was very natural– and wasn't artificial as I had worried it might be.

The second steeping was also delicious. The almond flavor fades a bit, but the green tea really holds up.

It also doesn't hurt that this tea was super pretty. The cornflowers and almond chunks made me feel luxurious. 

I was super impressed and I will definitely be by buying this tea.

Dry Leaves

Steeped Leaves

1st Steep:

• Time: 2 min.
• Temp: 175°F

Ingredients:

Green Tea, Almonds, Marigold Flowers, Cornflower Petals, and Natural Almond Flavoring

Tea Liquor:

• 1st Steep: Honestly, it looked like white wine with a tinge of green.

Flavor: Almonds and a slight grassiness and bitterness.



Rating: (4.5/5)

Mighty Leaf- Green Tea Tropical

So I picked this tea up at the supermarket because my mom had raved about this brand and I'd heard that it was a good supermarket tea. Read my review to see why I don't think I'll be getting this tea for myself again. Maybe for my mom who's still trying to get used to the flavor of green tea- the fruit flavor might help her.

Tea Box and Sachet

Sachet w/ Dry Leaves

Name: Green Tea Tropical

Company: Mighty Leaf

Price: $7.66; Sachets

Suggested Amount: 1 Sachet for 8oz

My Amount: 2 Sachets for 16oz
Caffeine: Not very much

1st Steep: 

• Time: 3 Minutes
• Temp: 175°F

2nd Steep:

• Time: 3.5 Minutes
• Temp: 175°F

Ingredients: 
Green tea, natural tropical flavors, natural flavors, flower petals, pineapple bits

Dry: Smells wonderful, you can definitely pick out the pineapple smell. Nice full leaves and very minimal tea fannings. You can see the blue cornflowers, some red flower, but I didn't see the pineapple bits that others have talked about.

Tea Liquor:

• 1st Steep: Very nice deep golden colour.
• 2nd Steep: Dark Yellow

2nd Steeping

1st Steeping

Flavor: Fruity, Weak

Notes:
 On first taste I unfortunately found this tea to be weak and lacking in any tropical flavors. With some previous experience with teas that have artificial flavoring, I knew that a tiny bit of sugar might help bring out the tropical taste I was looking for. After a teaspoon of sugar I found that the tea did get much better, but as the tea cooled instead of getting less bitter like other teas, it actually got more bitter. I wouldn't suggest a second steeping because its just weaker.

Overall, I guess I would suggest this to someone who isn't used to Green teas and wants to slowly get into it.

Rating