Tag: Oteas

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Oteas’s Oolong Tea with Ginger

Oolong Tea and Ginger by Oteas
Oolong Tea / Flavoured
$7.49 for 33.75g (15 sachets)

Oteas has provided me with Oolong Tea and Ginger for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

Oolong Tea and Ginger is a blend from Oteas that comes portioned into tea sachets with plastic free packaging. Oteas encourages recycling of the cardstock box, the inner liner (that holds all the tea sachets) can be composted at home as well as the tea sachets themselves – how great for the environment! The sachets themselves are the pyramid-shaped ones, I tore it open to take a better look at the contents since that’s what I’m all about.

The aroma of the dry leaf is definitely ginger-heavy. The listened ingredients are Chinese oolong tea (green tea) and natural stem ginger. I’m a wee bit confused about the classification of oolong tea and green tea (since they are different types of tea), but I also know that some oolongs behave more like green tea in terms of steeping time and temperature, so I’m not too fussed. But if you read the packaging and get confused too, you weren’t alone.

Preparation

Oteas recommends steeping Oolong Tea and Ginger in 85-90°C water for 2-3 minutes. With my kettle, I opted to do an initial steep with 85°C (185°F) water for 3 minutes. I did steep the tea in the pyramid shaped tea sachet, and found that it was pretty full with the expanded leaves when I was done steeping.

First Taste

Oolong Tea and Ginger steeps to a really nice golden orange colour. It has a strong ginger-forward aroma, which is well reflected in the steeped tea itself. There are some grassy and earthy notes from the oolong that balances well against the ginger – with really reminds me of a ginger ale of sorts. It’s a nicely balanced blend.

A Second Cup?

I restepeed Oolong Tea and Ginger once, adding an additional 30 seconds for the subsequent steep. I found that the ginger notes weren’t as strong, as I think I used up some of that flavour in the initial steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved Oteas’s Oolong Tea and Ginger. I thought the balance of flavours between the oolong base with the ginger was really well done, I appreciate the plant-based, compostable packaging materials that Oteas has sourced out to use for their products. The flavour of the tea is nice and I find that the ginger is really flavour forward, which makes for an easy blend to reach for when you’ve got an upset stomach if ginger helps you.

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Oteas’s Black Tea with Turmeric

Black Tea with Turmeric by Oteas
Black Tea / Flavoured
$7.49 for 33.75g (15 sachets)

Oteas has provided me with Black Tea with Turmeric for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

This is my first time getting to experience the new plastic-free packaging from Oteas. I noticed that the box is a bit shorter than the previous boxes, and doesn’t have plastic shrink wrap over the box. The cardstock box is recyclable, the inner liner and the tea sachets are all made from plant-based materials and are compostable in home composts – so nothing fancy is required! I think that’s really neat and shows a huge commitment to being environmentally friendly by using green-friendly materials.

Now onto the tea itself – it does come portioned out into tea sachets with a string and tag, I did open it up to get a better look at the tea itself. Black Tea with Turmeric contains just two ingredients: black tea and turmeric powder. Both ingredients are very visible in the tea itself. I mostly smell the turmeric, I can’t really smell the black tea base because the turmeric is such a strong ingredient.

Side note about turmeric – if you often use a plastic gravity tea infuser or steep in anything made of plastic, turmeric will stain it yellow. There’s no ifs, ands or buts about it – it will stain. So to get away from that, steep in something ceramic or use a stainless steel infuser – much easier to clean and keep your teaware stain-free!

Preparation

Oteas recommends steeping Black Tea with Turmeric using 100°C (212°F) water for 5 to 6 minutes. I opted to do an initial step for 6 minutes at the recommended temperature.

First Taste

Black Tea with Turmeric steeps to a deep reddish orange – not nearly as yellow as one might expect, but I think the black tea base as a lot to do with that. I can definitely smell the turmeric. There’s a nice smoothness to the tea, with a strong turmeric flavour that gives it a bit of tang and mouthfeel that lends itself to a pucker. No astringency or bitterness noted, I did find that there was a nice malty flavour from the black tea base, which does shine through the strong turmeric flavour.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Black Tea with Turmeric. I found that it didn’t resteep very well as the turmeric wasn’t as strong. So if you’re a fan of the turmeric, stick to the initial steep (6 minutes over 5 minutes, for sure!). If you’re a fan of a black tea with milder turmeric flavours, keep resteeping!

My Overall Impression

I liked Oteas’s Black Tea with Turmeric. I love the environmentally friendly recyclable and compostable packaging, I think it’s a great direction for any company in this day and age to go, especially for something that is single use. The initial steep of Black Tea with Turmeric was definitely a favourite over the resteep, because the turmeric is just that much more strong and enjoyable – so it really depends on what you like in your tea (I really wished that the turmeric had more of a presence in the second steep!).

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Oteas’s Strawberry and Cream

Strawberry and Cream by Oteas
Fruit Infusion / Flavoured
$6.95 for 30g (12 sachets)

Oteas has provided me with Strawberry and Cream for the purposes of providing an honest review.

First Impressions

The first thing I noticed after removing the shrink wrap plastic from the box of Strawberry and Cream is the aroma. There is such a rich and strong strawberry aroma from the dry leaf – it’s very inviting and it reminds me of the smell of strawberry and cream ice cream. I can smell the strawberry and hibiscus, which is nice.

Strawberry and Cream comes portioned into tea sachets – which are biodegradable, as per Oteas. Strawberry and Cream consists of: hibiscus, apple pieces, rose hip peels, orange peels, strawberry pieces, and natural flavouring. I don’t really smell the orange or apple, but I think that’s because the strawberry and hibiscus are so strong in comparison (perhaps the natural flavouring is also strawberry?).

Preparation

Oteas recommends steeping Strawberry and Cream in 100°C (212°F) water for 5 to 10 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions and steeped for 7½ minutes.

First Taste

Strawberry and Cream steeps to a very bright pink colour, very quickly. The aroma from the steeped tisane is very much like the dry leaf – strawberry and cream ice cream, but the hibiscus is more fragrant so there’s a nice floral overtone to the fragrance of the overall cup. I found that Strawberry and Cream has a nice sweetness, a good amount of strawberry flavour, with some tartness that I’m attributing to the hibiscus.

I had this both hot and iced, and while it’s really good hot, I liked it better iced. The level of fruitiness lends itself well to be a summertime treat and I would even recommend mixing it with a bit of lemonade to make it even more summery.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Strawberry and Cream, but I think I sapped out all the flavour in the initial steep. I would recommend steeping Strawberry and Cream just the initial time – so make it a good one!

My Overall Impression

I loved Oteas’s Strawberry and Cream. I think it has a great strawberry flavour and really tastes like the name suggests. I would highly suggest having this tea iced (perhaps cold steeped?) and if you wanted to put it over the top, add some lemonade for a great summer drink! The flavour is great and I think it’d be great to pair with a picnic or barbecue party.

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