Sipdown #18
Wow, the brewed tea aroma is really interesting. It’s unlike anything else I’ve tried. I’ve been making a lot of smoothies lately with my Vitamix (a present from my stepmother that I absolutely adore), and I swear this tea smells exactly like a fresh, ripe banana! Wow, but the taste??! OMG! It’s insane! I thought for sure that I would detest this, seeing as how I generally despise banana-flavored teas. Don’t ask me why. Bananas in a smoothie? Totally fine. Bananas in tea? Yuck, gag, cough, sputter. It doesn’t make logical sense, but then again, I’m human. I don’t have to. :P I’m in quite a mood today, so please forgive my weirdness. Actually, I guess I’m always weird so today is just an abnormally high level of weirdness. Okay, long digression. Back to the tea!
This tastes amazing. I don’t know what this base is, but it is divine! Smooth, flavorful, maybe a hint of malt, but mostly smooth cocoa, bread-y deliciousness! Then the real, authentic, true, ripe banana flavor comes in and mixes with some other element. Floral butter? If that’s a thing, then yes, this tea tastes like cocoa banana bread with floral butter spread. Mmmm! If that doesn’t make your mouth water, then I don’t know what will. There’s also a hint of something almost spicy, like catching a whiff of the spice cabinet without actually tasting anything definitively.
Seeing as how I wasn’t expecting to like this tea at all, I’m that much more impressed that I like it sans additions. This tea is lively and aromatic all by itself. No additives required. As the cup cools, the end of the sip leans toward the bitter end of the spectrum without quite reaching it, so I definitely recommend a 3-minute steeping time. Anything more and I think it may reach full bitterness (without milk to calm it anyway).
Now I’m kicking myself for sitting on this sample from JustJames for so long. I really must thank you, sir, for being such a kind tea sharer. And Stacy!! You are a tea blending magician! I don’t know how you made this, but it is magic in a cup. The added flavorings are so subtle yet impactful. They blend with the base so perfectly that I can’t tell where the flavorings stop and the base begins. Well done, Stacy, well done. I feel truly blessed to have had the opportunity to try this. Thank you, JustJames!! This tea really lifted my spirits today.
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Wow, you got a vitamix as a present! What an awesome gift. I love my vitamix! So glad you are enjoying the tea! :)
Yep! My stepmom is teaching me about nutrition & a lot if her recipes use a Vitamix. It’s the coolest, most versatile kitchen appliance ever made! You can make everything with this thing! Smoothies, sorbet, peanut butter, flour, dough, etc. I was super excited to get it. :)
Oh yeah, absolutely versatile! One of my favorite things to make with the vitamix is roasted tomato and basil soup.
I have a Blendtec and I loooooove it
Ooh, soup! Do you use a recipe from the Vitamix site/cookbook or your own?
The banana in this one really took me by surprise as well. I thought I’d hate banana flavour in a tea, but I love this one! And I totally get your ‘floral butter’ description; it’s really like that! :)
I made up my own recipe. Did not realize that they had one. Every person I have ever made this for, raves about it. I quarter enough tomatoes to fill up 3/4 of a baking pan, sort of like a cookie sheet but has some little walls. I add an onion, cut into 4 discs, and add 5 whole garlic cloves. Everything gets massaged with olive oil then sprinkled with salt and pepper. Goes into the oven at 375 for about 40 minutes until starting to brown then tops. Then they go into a 2 cups of veggie stock and simmer for 10 minutes. Then into the blender with 1 nice sized handful of fresh basil, a nice squeeze of lemon, salt and pepper. Then its done, though I like to bring it back into the pot and let it simmer for like 2 min. It’s absolutely delicious!
Oooh, and I like to make homemade croutons which are super easy. Pumpernickel croutons are awesome!
Oh yeah and sprinkle some fresh chiffonade basil on top of the soup.
@Butiki Teas, wow thanks! I’m really excited to try that out!
@DeliriumsFrogs, I’m glad that description made sense to someone other than myself. ;)
Charoma-I hope it works out for you. :)
Wow, you got a vitamix as a present! What an awesome gift. I love my vitamix! So glad you are enjoying the tea! :)
Yep! My stepmom is teaching me about nutrition & a lot if her recipes use a Vitamix. It’s the coolest, most versatile kitchen appliance ever made! You can make everything with this thing! Smoothies, sorbet, peanut butter, flour, dough, etc. I was super excited to get it. :)
Oh yeah, absolutely versatile! One of my favorite things to make with the vitamix is roasted tomato and basil soup.
I have a Blendtec and I loooooove it
Ooh, soup! Do you use a recipe from the Vitamix site/cookbook or your own?
The banana in this one really took me by surprise as well. I thought I’d hate banana flavour in a tea, but I love this one! And I totally get your ‘floral butter’ description; it’s really like that! :)
I made up my own recipe. Did not realize that they had one. Every person I have ever made this for, raves about it. I quarter enough tomatoes to fill up 3/4 of a baking pan, sort of like a cookie sheet but has some little walls. I add an onion, cut into 4 discs, and add 5 whole garlic cloves. Everything gets massaged with olive oil then sprinkled with salt and pepper. Goes into the oven at 375 for about 40 minutes until starting to brown then tops. Then they go into a 2 cups of veggie stock and simmer for 10 minutes. Then into the blender with 1 nice sized handful of fresh basil, a nice squeeze of lemon, salt and pepper. Then its done, though I like to bring it back into the pot and let it simmer for like 2 min. It’s absolutely delicious!
Oooh, and I like to make homemade croutons which are super easy. Pumpernickel croutons are awesome!
Oh yeah and sprinkle some fresh chiffonade basil on top of the soup.
@Butiki Teas, wow thanks! I’m really excited to try that out!
@DeliriumsFrogs, I’m glad that description made sense to someone other than myself. ;)
Charoma-I hope it works out for you. :)