I am skeptical of the much-touted detoxifying/cleansing attributes of this tea. I drink it because I think it tastes good. It’s overpriced, and I’ve noticed the quality of the white tea has gone down (Teavana used to put silver needle white tea in here; now it’s a less expensive variety), yet still, I have to keep this on hand. It’s the perfect tea for those moments when I really don’t know what I’m in the mood for. Black tea? Nah, too close to bedtime. Green? Sounds good, but I don’t feel like being super-vigilant about temp and steep time. Oolong? White? Both sound good, but I’d like a little extra flavor. I don’t want any artificial flavors, though — I just want to taste the flavor of tea, amplified. Bingo! It’s time for Body + Mind.
I generally dislike jasmine tea. This blend does have a lot of it. Open the bag, and the smell of jasmine tea nearly knocks you over. But somehow, in the cup, it works. The jasmine flavors are balanced by the oolong and white. The flavors all blend together to create a mellow, smooth, slightly fruity (without any fruit flavors or chewy bits added, unlike most of Teavana’s blends), softly floral, delicious blend. I have had this iced and it is just as good. The liquor is light amber, about the color of a glass of beer or ale. It’s not necessary to be precise with the steep time or temp, but I don’t advise letting this sit for more than 5 minutes.
You could probably create this blend yourself at home, and save the trouble of a trip to Teavana, but I like to buy it from them. It keeps me on my toes to have to run the Teavana Upsell Gauntlet (“you sure you don’t want a tin for that tea? an iron teapot? some rock sugar?”) and be amused by the so-called advice (“this will help slow down the aging process”) once in a while. I smile into their horrified faces as I request the tea in bags, even though they’ve warned me it will go “stale” in one week sans tin. Then I go home and drink Body + Mind and feel zenlike and calm.
