Choco*Latte

Superb! This is my first tea by American Tea Room and I am thankful to Kristin for the swap! I really like this…. chocolate!!!!! chocolate!!!!!! And no caffiene such a plus. I am funny with my rooibos tisanes. I just started venturing out and buying some but this is one that I do not taste any rooibos at all. I am glad! So even if you don’t normally drink rooibos don’t let that inhibit you from trying this tea! Thanks again to Kristin!!

Thank you to QueenOfTarts for swapping this!

This smells like powdered hot chocolate in the bag. There’s a crazy amount of cacao husks in here, but I’m sure that just adds to the decadence.

Brewed at the below parameters and it smelled just as good. Upon inital taste sans additives, it tastes like chocolate rice. Not sure why, but it did. Like a very chocolatey rice pudding that was less creamy and sweet.

But add some sweetener and a bit of creamer…. OMG – crazy good! And it’s made even more awesomer (urban dictionary!) by the fact that it’s caffeine-free! I already have plans to stock up on this for winter because this might be all I drink outside a good strong morning cup.

Thanks so much to QueenofTarts for this sample I’ve been wanting to try…

This stuff is so weird looking, I mean it’s full of husks! There isn’t as much rooibos at all in this blend. Perhaps that is a blessing in disguise, I don’t know.

I used about 1 tsb in my small $4 Daiso teapot. This definitely needed 5 minutes of steeping time and I think I should have used more of the sample because it was kind of thin. But this is a little teapot that makes only about 8 oz. of tea. It really does smell exactly like chocolate! The taste is… well it’s interesting. It’s certainly palatable but I don’t think I am in love with it. It reminds me of a chocolate liquor or something of that nature. I can’t help but wonder if this would be better with something added to it. In any case I will certainly try a resteep soon using more of what I’ve got!

Kristin said, “You rooibos haters stay with me. I didn’t taste any rooibos in this tea.” And that was the reason I chose to try it. She was talking to me. I’m the total rooibos hater.

Wow! I’m so glad I put aside my pre-judgement and tried this. It is chocolate and absolutely delicious! Full chocolate taste with no unpleasantness. No bitterness. Little astringency. Not even that awful dusty taste that rooibos often has. Even the aftertaste is yummy. The smell is pure hot cocoa. I will be ordering more of this. Thanks to Kristen’s great review I’ve found a new favorite for the no-caffeine part of my day. Mmmmm!

Just got a bit of this from TeaEqualsBliss … thank you, oh, thank you …

2TB for 500mL water, lightly sweetened with stevia, no milk.

From the aroma, I expected a thin-bodied, faintly cocoa-tinged woody rooibos. Which can be just fine, so I happily set it steeping. For quite a while in a covered mug — hey, it’s rooibos, and I also had a cup of Assam brewed.

Instead, I’ve got a heaven-is-chocolate-scented silky, medium-bodied cup of bliss. Tastes a lot like a properly-made cocoa, but no powdery mouth-feel. So smooth, almost creamy, and I haven’t added milk. The vanilla is an inspired touch and smooths everything out.

I’m astonished at how good this is. No caffeine. No calories! A puntload of antioxidants! One of the tisanes, and one of the best cocoa-based drinks I’ve ever drunk. The rooibos itself is a tiny bit woody on the aftertaste, but then I did steep it for 15 minutes. Highly recommend.

Cocoa goodness. Try with some almond milk for a creamy treat.

I’ve been drinking this stuff almost every night since Kristin was kind enough to send me some here in language-camp hell. It’s like an adult hot cocoa, and I don’t actually like hot cocoa despite my general love for all things chocolate. I definitely want to try this one in a tea latte sometime. In the meantime, I don’t think it’s possible to oversteep this stuff. It’s good and rich without being sweet. Chocolate tea sounds kinda grim to me, but this is just delicious, and if you dislike rooibos generally I cannot even taste it in here.

The most chocolate-y blend ever. Do not be afraid of the rooibos. The chocolate smothers the ickiness of the rooibos……So far, I have been impressed w/the quality of American Tea Room…..

I got a one-shot of this (again) from a Twitter friend, and this time…did it up as it should be done. As a latte. You won’t find a more healthy hot cocoa substitute anywhere. Well, unless you add vanilla syrup to the latte, which I did. Who cares? Lattes are guilty pleasures…the healthy base just makes it – uh – less guilty.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2010/07/29/review-american-tea-room-choco-late-8/

The loose tea smelled like olives to me! It was very strange, but since I like olives I actually liked the smell.

I think this tea is a pretty good idea (as in, they came up with clever ingredients to achieve the flavor they were going for), and its probably as chocolatey as you can get without actual chocolate pieces in the mix. However, while I enjoyed the cup, I found myself thinking – "if I want something chocolate flavored, I might as well drink hot chocolate! Chocolate is just one of those flavors I don’t think can (or rather, should) be imitated.
To me, it’s like fake sweeteners – either drink real sugar (honey, agave, etc.) or drink/eat something else!

Anyway, this is an enjoyable tea, well made for what it is.