Celestial Seasonings

Hibiscus… I was a bit nervous to try it, but I’m glad I did. The tangerine/orange mix is beautiful and somewhat calming. This is a yummy tea that I would recommend to anyone.

Oh man, this is MY tea. Contrarily to many people here, I actually LIKE hibiscus(saying that felt like admitting to a murder). This tea is basically a hibiscus tea, with lemon! Thankfully, the lemon is the main flavor. It’s not necessarily sour, but definitely not sweet. This is ALWAYS in the cabinet. This is basically my first tea. I love you, Lemon Zinger. I really do.

Yum. Lemon gum drop. That is all I have to say.

I bought several kinds of Celestial Seasoning’s holiday teas, and after trying this hot found it kind of disappointing (although as others have mentioned, it smells fantastic), especially compared to their Gingerbread Spice, which both smells and tastes great hot. I had the rest of the box sitting around for the longest time and didn’t expect to buy it again. But then just recently I decided to try it chilled, with lots of sweetener and about 1 tablespoon of fat free creamers (mostly original plain but also some Italian Sweet Cream) for every 8 ounces, added to the pitcher. It was delicious!! Sometimes it takes me a few days to get through a gallon pitcher of tea, but I could have gone through this in 24 hours.

I’d used what I had left to make the pitcher. Now I’ll have to get more as soon as it appears in stores again, and stock up. It’s sold on Amazon, but the current prices for it there are ridiculous.

I’ve been drinking this again all week at work. Today the water was too hot and I got more of a green tea flavor (but not boiled green tea) with some peach notes. Still, it was not bitter. The hotter water did something to change the peach flavors, too, making them taste more “stewed,” which makes sense. There was nothing delicate about this cup. I don’t know how hot the water was, but I definitely prefer it when steeped in 165F water.

The tea bags have a smell fruity, but not specifically like peaches.

The color in the cup is a light yellow orange. The aroma is light. It is peach and, interestingly, the aroma from habanero peppers (not the heat, but the particular aroma they have). There is no hint of citrus (mentioned on the ingredients).

The white tea taste is delicate, as expected, but firm, too, up front. There is a delicate bitter flavor in back. The peach flavor comes to me last. A little citrus comes out in the end of some sips.

Moderate astringency, faint sweet aftertaste.

The tea flavor is nicely uncomplicated. I think the peach is impressively balanced with the tea here. This cup makes me feel relaxed at my desk.

This is one of the first teas I’ve ever had! I’m backlogging, of course. This tea had a decent balance between cinnamon and apples, and it was actually quite pleasant. Smelled like apple cider and was a nice drink for autumn. If I could find a nice apple+cinnamon tea loose leaf tea like this, I may never consider trying it again. Suggestions welcome!

I love spiced teas! This one reminds me of a cinnamon apple cider my aunt makes around Christmastime. The cinnamon almost overpowers the apple flavor, but it certainly doesn’t mask it. I find that I usually taste the apple or the cinnamon – whichever I am in the mood for. That’s how flavorful this tea is, and the chicory and chamomile help give the tea weight. A very delightful tea that I enjoy drinking in the afternoons.

Delish! HUGE SMILE!

Normally I drink herbal Chai in the mornings, since I need flavor and aroma instead of caffeine to.help me wake up. When I woke up this morning and realized we were out of milk, I had to come up with something else to drink.

I decided on Safari Spice. I bought this on a whim a few weeks ago, and had not tried it yet. Next time, I think I will either steep this tea longer or use two teabags. Although I really like the flavors in Safari Spice, none of it hit me until the tea hit the back of my mouth. The initial flavor was a bland rooibos flavor, present, but only really there in spirit. I really want to like this tea, and I love the flavors I got after each swallow, so I will just chalk this up to steeper error and try again when I am not annoyed by having no milk for my chai. Check back soon to see how goes my second cup of Safari Spice!

I love the mix of chamomile and spearmint in this tea. As per the name of this tea, I drink this when it’s “Sleepytime” for me. I wouldn’t say that it puts me to sleep, but it does help me relax at the very end of my day.

I typically steep this tea for a while in about 1/2 cup of water. Any more than that and I will wake up at night to pee. If I add any sweetener at all, it’s usually just a small bit of honey.

This tea just does it for me – I am not sure if it is placebo or an herb that actually works, but this tea mellows me out very well as I drink it. And the flavor – mmmmmmm!!!! I think I am in the minority (as most other Steepsters tend to think this is too medicinally flavored), but I really enjoy the many different herbal flavors Tension Tamer provides – especially the catnip and licorice. I can drink this one bag at a time if I need to, but in order for me to get the full flavor I love, I usually steep two teabags with a bit of honey. Perfection.

I can see how many would not drink this tea for the flavor. It’s not fruity, creamy, buttery, or spicy, really. I think it’s herb-y. If you’re used to drinking teas that remind you of some other flavor, or if you’re not that into Ricola-flavored teas, I wouldn’t try this unless it’s at a friend’s house and you don’t have to worry about money wasted on a box of tea you won’t drink. I happen to like it. Could be my offbeat taste buds, though.

It is time to add this to the shopping list again, it is the only bagged tea I allow into the house (other than my hubby’s beloved Tetley)

I think I am “enjoying” the insomnia side effects of the medications I took last night, for today’s blood work. So now I am sipping this and hoping it is just what I need to tip me into bed and sleep. I can hear my hubby in the other room gently “breathing” away, and I want to join him, I truly do…

Damn you body!

An excellent tea to calm the nerves, ease pain and regain female balance. I go to this before I try ibupofen and most of the time it helps immensely. I think it tastes great. If you like minty, sweet, grassy teas and the subtle cinnamon flavor is a nice treat. I find it more calming than Kava tea.

I generally prefer my apple-spice teas to be more apple and less spice, but if you drink Celestial Seasonings, you should know that they’re super-fond of cinnamon, so it’s not a big surprise that this one is heavy on that particular spice. The apple is more of a scent than a taste, really. But it’s really good mixed with a basic black tea (today I’m using Yorkshire Tea because it’s strong enough to stand up to it), and it’s strong enough to take to milk and sugar well.

I had this way back in 2008 and I miss it. I wish they’d come out with it again, I’d stock up. It was so delicious and soothing. Like a little treat without all the extra carbs and calories.

I kind of adore the sweet fruity teas from CS, even though I feel like they’re almost the “kool aid” of teas. This one is thick and dense, and I’m able to keep adding water to the same bag a couple of times (though generally I avoid this with most other teas). It’s dark and rich, not quite perfect for everyday, but once in a while, it’s a delight.

This is sort of like the fast-food hamburger of chai to me. It was loudly pleasant, but my stomach didn’t feel good afterwards.

Made with 6 oz water, 2 oz milk added after steeping and some honey, it was monolithic. I couldn’t tell any of the tastes from any of the others.

The Taste: Neutral. Can’t decide whether I like it or dislike it… but I definitely neither hate it, nor love it. Since I have plenty of wonderful-tasting teas, I would not drink this for the (slightly medicinal) flavor. So, with that in mind, why do I LOVE this tea?

The Effects: This stuff really does tame tension, if you’re willing to use 2-3 teabags. Trust me, the effects are REAL. (And by “Real,” I mean “Don’t drive a car after 3+ cups of Tension Tamer.”) In my mind, Tension Tamer Tea is a good herbal medicine, not just a mere beverage.

The Verdict: This tea is great when you need to relax. The experience of drinking warm herbal tea is rather soothing, especially if you add honey and/or lemon juice to improve the taste. Add in the medicinal effects, and you’ve got a great remedy for today’s stressful world.

Wowser! Crazy aroma, perfect any way! It’s unbelievable – surprise, it’s a bagged tea!

Check out my full review here:
http://keenteathyme.blogspot.com/2011/07/from-wegmans-frederick-to-home-blood.html

This is not the greatest tea ever by any stretch of the imagination, but it is quite nice before bed with a bit of honey and cream. The taste is heavy on cinnamon with just a hint of apple and I can see why some may not be fond of this tea. However, this is a decent caffeine free choice for around $2 a box.