Tag: Zevia

Black Tea Lemon by Zevia
Black Tea / Flavoured
$2.98 for 355ml (12 fl oz, 1 can)

First Impressions

Another canned iced tea drink review, Michelle? Yes, yes it is.

Black Tea Lemon from Zevia comes in a tall, skinny cream coloured can. There’s a cute little lemon wedge illustration on the front and it’s basically adorable. Like with the other Zevia tea products that I’ve reviewed already, this one is also certified for non-GMO, USDA organic, and fair-trade trade. Again, just because a product does not have those logos doesn’t mean that the product is not non-GMO, organic or fair-trade, it just means that they’ve paid money to become certified in all of those things. Okay, now I can get off of my soap box.

Black Tea Lemon consists of: organic brewed black tea, organic natural flavours, citric acid, and organic stevia leaf extract. There’s exactly 0 calories, 0 grams of sugar/carbohydrates, 0 grams of protein, and 0 grams of fat in each 355ml can. There is also 45mg of caffeine per can, which is much less than the amount of caffeine in a standard small size cup of coffee from the chain green and white coffee shop that you may or may not frequent.

Popping open the can, Black Tea Lemon has a nice deep orange colour. There’s a pleasant lemon aroma to it, and I can smell the black tea base as well. It smells quite like what I was expecting with the two flavours mingling together.

First Taste

Black Tea Lemon has a lovely flavour profile – I can taste the lemon, there’s sweetness to it thanks to the stevia, and also the black tea base. Not too strong to over power the lemon, but not too weak as to not be noticeable. There’s a pleasant mouthfeel to it, and I found that it had some malty notes with the black tea base that were a bit earthy. Quite pleasant to the palate though!

My Overall Impression

I liked Zevia’s Black Tea Lemon. It’s a classic flavour combination, so it was quite enjoyable. I would recommend having this one over ice, maybe with a splash of lemonade for more lemon flavour or just a lemon wedge on the side. The only thing that really stops me from giving it a better rating is the cost – it’s not cheap for a single serving sized can and I’m not about to have it regularly despite how tasty it may be and how convenient it is to have it in a can versus making iced tea at home myself. It is nice for a treat though!

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Black Tea Raspberry by Zevia
Black Tea / Flavoured
$2.98 for 355ml (12 fl oz, 1 can)

First Impressions

Black Tea Raspberry from Zevia was a bit of an impulse grocery store buy. I’m forever walking down tea/coffee aisles in grocery stores that I’m unfamiliar with because I just need to know what they have that I haven’t tried before – and it’s a bit of a bonus when I can share a product that may be easily found in your local grocery stores as well instead of just shopping online and getting to delivered. Although online shopping seems to be the preferred method these days…

This “no sugar, zero calories” prepared tea drink comes in a tall and skinny pop-tab can. A pretty cream colour with an illustration of a raspberry – very easy to determine the flavour of the contents, that’s for sure! For those who are interested, this product is non-GMO verified, USDA organic and fair trade certified. Now, that isn’t to say that if you purchase a product without these certifications that the ingredients aren’t organic or fair trade or non-GMO – it’s just that Zevia paid money to get those certifications/verification after going through the trouble of getting those ingredients.

Black Tea Raspberry is a nice golden colour. It has a really bright berry/raspberry aroma to it. Unlike some of the other brands of canned tea drinks I’ve shared recently, this is not ‘sparkling’ (carbonated), which is nice. I don’t necessarily enjoy carbonated drinks all the time (although recently I’ve fallen in love with La Croix, but that’s more of an indulgence for work than anything else). Black Tea Raspberry consists of the following ingredients: organic brewed black tea, organic natural flavours, citric acid, organic stevia leaf extract. Per serving, which is the full 355ml can, this drink contains 45mg of caffeine. A small cup of coffee from your local coffee shop will contain more than 100mg of caffeine.

First Taste

Black Tea Raspberry smells great! Very fruity, berry aromas. The flavour is quite nice – it definitely has a slight tartness from the raspberry flavour, as well as fruity sweetness. I found the black tea base to be quite subdued compared to the raspberry flavouring. It just played nicely in the background – I found it to be neither astringent or bitter, there was a mild malty note in it that balanced well against the tart of the raspberry. It’s a very smooth drink though, very easy to sip down the whole can quite quickly! Not a bad thing for a hot day.

My Overall Impression

I liked Zevia’s Black Tea Raspberry. I quite enjoyed the flavour of this prepared canned tea drink. I thought it was easy to drink, nicely flavoured, and the raspberry flavour was well represented. I would definitely recommend pouring this one over ice, perhaps with a wedge of lemon or going half-and-half with some lemonade (yum!). Another way to make it even nicer might be to muddle some fresh raspberries and mint leaves in the bottom of a glass before adding ice and the canned drink. I do wish it was less expensive, but I think it’d be a fine summer time treat for those enjoying their patios and decks at home… by themselves.

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

Earl Grey Blood Orange by Zevia
Black Tea / Flavoured
$2.98 for 355ml (12 fl oz, 1 can)

First Impressions

I came across a selection of Zevia Organic Tea drinks at a local grocery store and had to give them a try – the fact that they were on sale didn’t hurt either! Earl Grey Blood Orange comes in tall and skinny can, with a matte feel to it. The can mentions that it contains no sugar and has zero calories, but it’s also sweetened (more on that later). There’s a few certifications indicated on the can, for those who care, as using non GMO ingredients, USDA organic, and fair trade tea.  There’s even a mention that this is a vegan product which… when you think of it – tea should be naturally vegan by default.

Earl Grey Blood Orange consists of organic brewed black tea, organic natural flavours, citric acid, and organic stevia leaf extract. This prepared tea also has 45mg of caffeine per can. For comparison, an 8oz (tall) coffee from Starbucks contains 180mg caffeine. The can opens with a pop tab and the drink itself is a bright orange colour (although darker in a deeper cup). The aroma is primarily that of citrus.

First Taste

Earl Grey Blood Orange is a clear orange (although looking brown in the photo below due to the depth of the glass). The aroma is citrus – nothing really jumps out and said bergamot to me though. The flavour is a black tea plus citrus. The lack of the specific bergamot notes doesn’t scream Earl Grey to me, unfortunately. The tea is sweet, thanks to the stevia. I find a slight astringent at the tail end of each sip, with a bit of mouth puckering happening because of the citric acid.

My Overall Impression

I thought that Zevia’s Earl Grey Blood Orange was just okay. I was a bit disappointed that there wasn’t more complexity with the citrus notes to differentiate between the blood orange and bergamot that’s found in Earl Grey. While the drink itself was tasty, I found it to be lacking in something in the flavour profile that made me think yes, this is Earl Grey and yes, there is blood orange in here too. The drink itself is refreshing, but doesn’t make me think of Earl Grey and blood orange, it reminds me of an iced black tea with citrus notes.

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