Tag: Green Tea

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Angry Alpaca’s Bohemian Raspberry

Bohemian Raspberry by Angry Alpaca
Green Tea & Oolong Tea / Flavoured

I received Bohemian Raspberry as a gift as part of a tea swap for the holidays in December 2020 from the lovely Jann of Tea With Jann (check her out on YouTube!). As it was a gift, I won’t be looking up the price, but I will include the link to the company’s Facebook page so you can check out their other available tea blends as well as Bohemian Raspberry.

First Impressions

Some things that really stood out to me was the feel of the packaging – it has a soft paper-feel to it with fibres that hang off a bit, and it’s resealable. The label is fun – bright colours with a crocodile?! I find the idea of a ‘naturally aggressive tea’ to be a bold statement, which makes me want to try the tea even more. The name of the blend itself is punny, which I do like. The back of the packaging has a clear window to see the tea, and a label that includes instructions, ingredients, the fact that this tea is made in River Hebert, Nova Scotia (hello, maritimes!), as well as including an artist credit to the cover art (a British Columbian artist by the handle @GOZNO. All in all, a very nice first impression with the packaging.

The tea itself has a really bright berry aroma to it. I can definitely see the leaves, petals, and berries mixed it. I can smell the green tea, not so much the oolong, but also the floral and berry aromas as well. It definitely reminds me of something that could be had iced and I’d probably be pretty happy about it. Bohemian Raspberry consists of: green tea, oolong tea, dried strawberries, dried raspberries, hibiscus, lime leaves, calendula, carthage and sunflower petals.

Preparation

Angry Alpaca recommends steeping Bohemian Raspberry in 90°C (194°F) water for 3 to 5 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions and did an initial steep for 4 minutes.

First Taste

Bohemian Raspberry steeps to a very pretty golden yellow colour. It has a strong berry aroma to it, and I can smell the oolong! The flavour of the tea itself is nice – get some grassiness from the green tea, some strong floral notes, I can definitely taste the berries, and there’s a buttery quality that lingers in the background that I believe to be from the oolong base. It’s well balanced with not a whole lot of sweetness, but it doesn’t seem to really need it. Bohemian Raspberry is pleasant hot, but I imagine it would be stellar as an iced tea with those fruity flavours. I’m a bit surprised that it didn’t end up steeping a bit more pink or more tart, given the presence of the hibiscus.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Bohemian Raspberry once by adding an additional 30 seconds to the steep time and found the flavour to be a bit lacking compared to the initial steep. The fruitiness from the berries just wasn’t as forward as I would have wanted it to be, but the green tea and oolong tea bases both shine a bit more. So I would recommend resteeping if you’re a fan of the base teas.

My Overall Impression

I loved Angry Alpaca’s Bohemian Raspberry. I really enjoyed the flavour profile that they were able to create with both the green tea and oolong tea base. I think the fruity flavours are nice and really shined in the initial steep. I’m definitely going to set aside the rest of the bag for some cold steeping/iced teas for this summer because I just really think it’ll do well iced or cold steeped. Plus, I do need to give bonus points to a company who takes such care in their design to include fun artwork, highlighting Canadian artists, and giving their tea blend a punny name.

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Dessert by Deb’s Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding

Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding by Dessert by Deb
Green Tea / Flavoured
$16.00 for 75g

Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding came in my birthday box (a perk for being an annual subscriber) from Dessert by Deb.

First Impressions

Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding (say that one five times fast!) comes in one of my favourite tea pouch colours from Dessert by Deb – just this pretty matte bronze-ish pouch. So pretty, it definitely gives some fall vibes and as a fan of most things autumn, I don’t mind seeing it in January. This blend is part of the Little Cottage Bakery Collection and it just makes me want to get into it! The name is really the part that makes me want to try it.

Ripping open the pouch and getting a sniff, it really does go well with its name! I definitely smell raisins, the brown sugar, and maple notes. All together, it makes me think of raisin buns from a bakery that I grew up near. Not a whole lot from the hojicha base, but there is a hint of nuttiness in the background that I’m going to attribute to the hojicha. Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding consists of organic: roasted green tea, Canadian maple, cinnamon, raisins, brown sugar, and apple.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding in 200°F (93°C) water for 5 to 6 minutes. I opted to do an initial steep for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding steeps to a very pretty reddish brown. It has some lovely raisin and cinnamon notes to it, and when I take a sip, the first thing that I notice is the raisins. Then it’s followed by some sweetness, molasses and maple notes, and just a hint of nuttiness. I did end up adding some evaporated milk to my cup, as the label suggests drinking it as a latte. Definitely adds a little something – some creaminess, a level of decadence. I’ve never had a cinnamon raisin bread pudding, but it definitely tastes like some kind of baked good to me.

A Second Cup?

I did attempt to resteep Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding. It didn’t do very well with the resteep, I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that the brown sugar and Canadian maple would have dissolved fully in the initial steep, so a lot of those flavours were missing in the second steep. However, there was more of a nuttiness from the hojicha base, so it was nice to find that come out.

My Overall Impression

I loved Dessert by Deb’s Hojicha Cinnamon Raisin Bread Pudding. It has some great flavours that remind me a lot of a freshly baked raisin bun. I’d follow the recommendation from Deb to have this as a latte, as it just added a little something extra. However, the tea was very pleasant without the addition of milk, so it nice to have straight as well! I was a bit disappointed that the hojicha base wasn’t more prevalent in the flavour profile, but I still greatly enjoyed it and think it makes for a great dessert tea.

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TeaSource’s Green Mango

Green Mango by Name of TeaSource
Green Tea / Flavoured
$9.00USD for 4oz

I received Green Mango as part of my swag bag from the 2020 Virtual International Tea Festival.

First Impressions

Green Mango came as part of my swag bag, and it is a 12g sample so I didn’t have a lot to work with. The packaging is nice for a sample – a sealed, resealable shiny black pouch with a glossy label on the front. TeaSource doesn’t waste a lot of space and incorporates all the necessary information on the label. The back of the pouch is clear plastic so you can easily see the tea leaves inside.

Green Mango consists of: green tea, natural flavour, and calendula petals. The aroma is very fruity and reminds me of mango a lot. I don’t really smell the green tea base or the calendula petals, but the mango really shines through for being an invisible (flavouring) ingredient.

Preparation

TeaSource recommends steeping Green Mango in 175°F (79°C) water for 3 minutes, and I followed the steeping instructions for the initial steep.

First Taste

Green Mango steeps to a yellow colour, and smells a lot like mango. The flavour, however, is lacking in mango. There’s some nice grassy notes from the green tea base itself, and hints of floral sweetness, but I don’t actually taste a lot of mango. It’s kind of muted compared to the aroma of the steeped tea, which is a bit disappointing considering how fruity the tea smells. The green tea base has a nice flavour though, which is appreciated.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Green Mango and found that it wasn’t much improved – I’m still missing the mango flavour. I would recommend Green Mango for just the one steep.

My Overall Impression

I didn’t like TeaSource’s Green Mango. I really liked the concept behind this green tea blend, and the aroma of the mango flavouring was really inviting and made me want to try it. Unfortunately, the aroma of the mango flavouring didn’t translate into mango in the flavour profile of the tea, and I found myself wondering what was going on. I did enjoy the green tea base, but found it a bit confusing for the taste buds to smell the mango, but not taste it. The green tea and calendula petals has a lovely flavour though, but the missing mango found me not enjoying the tea as much as I could have.

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