Celestial Seasonings

So I have a confession to make. Even though I’ve primarily drank loose leaf for the past two years or so, I’ve been re-indulging in Celestial Seasonings teas lately, especially this one. I don’t know what it is about CS that attracts me, a loose leaf drinker, to go out of my way and find some of the rarer ones. Maybe it’s the cute cover arts (especially this one- I mean, it features bears painting candy canes- what’s not to like?!). Or maybe it’s the nostalgic novice tea drinking years of my life. I remember getting into tea around the time I started my first year of college. Freshman year was a great year for me and very exciting. It’s no surprise that tea held a very special place in my life, especially CS teas which I drank very often.

So, I see no reason for not enjoying a bagged tea occasionally… or even often as it’s the case with this tea! I love the cooling simplicity of this tea. It’s minty and slightly green with a touch of comforting vanilla. There really isn’t a wrong way to brew this tea. Even though CS recommends cooler water (they consider it a green tea), I haven’t found this tea really anything more than an herbal with a tad of green to it. The only way I can pull out the green tea flavor is to let the bag infuse for 15 or so minutes. Even then, I swear it might just me mentally thinking it’s there. The big point is, though, the tea won’t run bitter on you. I’ve had this brewing for two hours once and it still tasted good!

I love a good strong peppermint flavor. This really works for that. The longer it steeps, the more menthol-y it gets. good stuff. I think Twinnings does a strong peppermint, but this one is nearly as good and less costly. I’m all for it. I wish I had some right now…

This is basically what I expected from Celestial Seasonings. Light actual black tea flavor with a hint of pleasing bitterness at the end, but mostly overwhelmed by bright, fruity bergamot. I can see it appealing to a wide audience this way, which is what I think they were going for. Still, I’m kinda surprised that I’m the first to review it, since it’s such a common company.

I got this tea from a bank lobby in Ohio, before heading to the 1000-Mile Yard Sale with my friends and family. It’s apparently specially made and packaged for the Keurig brewing system, but I brewed it in my steel infuser and it was fine.

Anyway, this is good. Probably the only thing I’ve tried by these guys that I’d like to drink again.

From the chai teas I have tried there are none that seem to taste or smell like celestial seasonings chai blend. This in my opinion is unfortunate because I find I like their blending despite being cheap ingredients which is normal for bagged teas. The taste is mild compared to most chai teas and has less of a cinnamon flavour. Despite most people on the internet claiming that Stash is a way better brand than celestial seasonings due to the quality of ingredients I would still recommend Celestial’s chai over Stash due to the choice of ingredients, not the quality. Also it would seem that the honey vanilla white variety is a better choice than their plain chai since the vanilla and white tea better suites the mild chai blend.

This is super amazing. I love normal sleepytime, but this vanilla blend is scrumptious. :)

Caitlin and I had tea again. I have been keeping these “zinger” teas down to a five minute steep because I remember not liking them when I tried to drink them when I was a little girl. This one tasted pretty good. It was nice and orangey without being overpowering or sour. It tasted like warm semi-sweet orange juice. It would actually be nice to drink for breakfast if I didn’t want black milk tea.

The only thing that amused me was that the liquor looked about the same as the True Blueberry I had. Dark and slightly red. I think the redness must come from the hibiscus that the two share in their ingredient list. Hibiscus is Caitlin’s favorite tea, so she tries to get blends that has hibiscus as one of the first two ingredients on the blends. Which is good for me, because I have been very curious about hibiscus.

My friend Caitlin, my roommate Laura, and I had a makeshift tea party at dinner tonight. Caitlin and I had this tea. We had it hot and plain.

It was pretty good. It was a little sweeter than I am used to with just a hint of tart punch at the back of your throat. I normally don’t really like blueberries, but this was pretty good. I have a hunch that it would make an awesome summer iced tea.

Sipdown!
I finally finished off a box of this and just remarked on someone’s else’s tastng note today that I’ve been drinking this for years, a sweet cinnamon-y concoction that’s nice with soymilk or creamer of your choice.

It isn’t the best herbal chai in the world but it makes me feel kind of warm and cozy since I have such a long history with it.

It’s funny how unpopular this tea is on Steepster! I’ve had this in my kitchen cabinet for as long as I can remember so it’s kind of a comfort tea for me now. This reminds me of cinnamon graham crackers tonight while I’m watching episodes of “We Shall Remain.”

This is good with the vanilla almond milk I purchased yesterday. It somewhat satisfies my craving for dessert.

This has been an old favorite of mine for at least 15 years. It has been a while and now it seems a bit sweet and all I taste is cinnamon and star anise. I actually like cinnamon a lot so I don’t really mind. I can’t imagine drinking this with sweetener but with soymilk/milk it’s pretty good and it has helped me to cut down on a lot of dessert cravings over the years. When it comes to herbal teas I try to pick a less expensive brand….

I’ve been drinking this tea for at least 15 years and I recently picked up a box again – it’s been so long! I really like it as an after dinner dessert tea with some soymilk. It reminds me of cinnamon toast and you certainly can’t beat the price. Unlike “chai” tea it is also gentler on my stomach.

This is a great variety pack. Very good for bag tea. Peppermint is my fav to have on hand for my asthma or around christmas. The chamomile is great for right before bed, a relaxing feeling.

Stir with a candy cane and add a tea spoon of honey. Delicious.

Ooh yummy. The perfect bedtime tea, especially for those insomniac nights where you just can’t sleep. Sometimes I can’t even finish the cup because I fall asleep. :)