Category: Review

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JusTea’s Glowing Green

Glowing Green by JusTea
Green Tea / Straight
$17.00 for 60g

First Impressions

I picked up this tin of Glowing Green at a local retail shop shortly before the 2018 Vancouver Tea Festival and I was kicking myself because I could have gotten in there instead (along with so many pretties that JusTea had available). I’ve talked about JusTea before on One More Steep – they’re a tea company that partners with a tea farm in Kenya to create a fair trade tea product. Tea that comes in tin like the one shown below come with a hand carved, beaded wooden spoon.

Glowing Green is a straight green tea, with tea grown from Kenya. The tins have pretty tight fitting lids, that feature a clear plastic window on top so you can see the tea inside. Each tin is hand-wrapped with Kenyan fabric, which I think is a really nice feature about this product. The tea leaves themselves are gorgeous and they look like they’d be pretty large once steeped. There’s an earthy aroma to it that reminds me of what it smells like after it rains, with vegetal notes that remind me of dark green, leafy vegetables.

Preparation

There weren’t any steeping instructions on the tin, but on the JusTea website they recommend steeping Glowing Green in 175°F (80°C) water for 3 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions.

First Taste

Glowing Green steeps to a pale yellow. There’s a lovely aroma to it, it reminds me a lot of grass/hay with a hint of cabbage. The flavour is the same as the aroma of the steeped tea. It’s really quite inviting, I find that there’s almost a floral sweetness to it this green tea which makes it pleasant to sip. I found it to be nicely balanced between the different flavours that I was able to find in my cup.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Glowing Green five times (six steeps total). I found that the tea was a darker yellow for the first two resteeps before getting lighter after that. The flavour profile remained very similar to the initial steep, I found that the vegetal notes got stronger with the first two resteeps and then weren’t as prominent after that.

My Overall Impression

I loved JusTea’s Glowing Green. I really enjoyed the subtle flavours within this tea, I found that it was a really nice green tea with some great flavours that popped up throughout each sip – the grassy notes, the hay flavours, the bursts of vegetal notes were all nicely present and well-balanced. I liked the fact that this tea resteeped really well, which really shows me the quality in the tea leaves. And I really like knowing that the tea is fair trade, and that JusTea also works with artisans who hand carve spoons to help create economy on a local scale in Kenya. It’s always important to me, as a consumer, to know that people are being paid fairly for their work and efforts, and I love that JusTea shares on their website how they do that.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.

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Seven Sisters Tea’s Southern Belle

Southern Belle by Seven Sisters Tea
Fruit Infusion / Flavoured
$3.50 for 50g

First Impressions

I’m on a Canadian tea company kick this week for my third in a row! Southern Belle is from Seven Sisters Tea and it’s a fruit tisane. This tea came in a sealed, resealable silver foil pouch. This is obviously a sample packet since the tea comes in 50g increments. The blend itself has a very strong fruity aroma to it, and I can mostly smell the citrus and hibiscus in this blend.

Southern Belle consists of: apple, hibiscus, rosehip, orange, and natural flavouring. All of the ingredients, aside from the flavouring, are visible.

Preparation

Seven Sisters Tea recommends steeping for 5 to 6 minutes, with no mention of temperature. I opted to go with 100°C (212°F) water, which is a common temperature for herbal blends, for 6 minutes. If steeping for iced tea, Seven Sisters Tea recommends refrigeration overnight (I would recommend cold steeping).

If you’re ever in doubt about how long to steep a tea for or what temperature of water to use, you can refer to my steeping guide.

First Taste

Southern Belle steeps to a deep, dark red – thanks to the hibiscus. The aroma of the tea is a nice fruity blend, I can detect some citrus notes. The flavour is tart and sweet, I found it to have the nice subtle sweetness of apple flavour while the citrus is still very present throughout. The hibiscus definitely makes its presence known thanks to the colour and tartness.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Southern Belle and found the colour and the flavour to be really weak compared to the initial steep. I think Southern Belle is good for just one steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved Seven Sisters Tea’s Southern Belle. I thought that the flavour was really nice, and the colour was just amazing thanks to the hibiscus. If you’re a fan of iced tea, this is definitely a good option for having iced/cold. I think the fruity flavours are pleasant and it really makes you pucker up thanks to the tartness. If you’re not a huge fan of hibiscus, you may want to add some sweetener to it or take a pass on this one since you can’t really avoid it.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.

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New Moon Tea Co’s Relax and Renew Tea

Relax and Renew Tea by New Moon Tea Co
Herbal Infusion / Straight
$12.98 for 24g

First Impressions

I can’t remember when I got this tea, I’m pretty sure that I received this tea as a gift and it got lost in my stash because I don’t remember having bought this one – and I am aware that New Moon Tea Co’s packaging and logo has changed since this one was made. That said, properly stored tea and herbal tisanes do keep well provided they are stored properly and in sealed containers! Relax and Renew Tea came in a kraft paper pouch that is plastic lined and resealable.

All of the ingredients in Relax and Renew Tea are very much visible. This blend consists of organic: chamomile, lavender, lemon balm, and cornflower petals. The first thing I really smelled was the lavender. I had to really focus to smell the lemon balm because the lavender was just that strong. It does make me want to relax though, I think lavender has that effect on a lot of people.

Preparation

New Moon Tea Co recommends steeping Relax and Renew Tea for 5 to 6 minutes, with no temperature listed. I opted to go with 100°C (212°F) water, which is a common temperature for herbal blends, for 6 minutes.

If you’re ever in doubt about how long to steep a tea for or what temperature of water to use, you can refer to my steeping guide.

First Taste

Relax and Renew Tea steeps to a clear golden yellow. The primary aroma that I get from this herbal infusion is the lavender, which is not a surprise considering that it’s the strongest aroma in the dry leaf as well. On first taste, I have to say it’s incredibly floral – the lavender flavour is strong compared to the rest of the ingredients. I found it to be very relaxing though, it makes me think of other lavender scent things and the calming effect that I get from the scent in general. I don’t really taste the chamomile though, which is a shame because I really enjoy chamomile, and I find the lemon balm is mostly present in the tail end of each sip.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Relax and Renew Tea again and found that it was quite weak compared to the initial steep. The lavender is still the predominant flavour. I found that chamomile was still lost in the blend.

My Overall Impression

I thought that New Moon Tea Co’s Relax and Renew Tea was just okay. If you’re a fan of lavender, I think you’d really enjoy this blend. The lavender is very strong and it lends itself to a very floral cup of herbal tea. That said, if you’re hoping to get more of the chamomile or lemon balm, those flavours aren’t strong enough to overcome the lavender. I found that the lavender was a bit strong for me, which is why I’m not rating it higher. I think I would like it more if the chamomile or lemon balm played a stronger role in balancing out the lavender.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.