Buddha's Herbs

I had this one a couple days ago. I have been craving it since. Yes, it is a simple bagged chamomile and yet it is not. I personally think this might be the perfect time for a bag. Late in the evening I just want a cup to relax with. I don’t want to mess with strainers and stuff. While I think the bag does dull the flavor just a bit, I also find this one to have enough flavor that I don’t mind. My wife says she doesn’t like chamomile when it tastes too appley and she really enjoyed this one. To me it tasted a lot like apple pie filling – especially sweetened. Who’s right? Doesn’t matter as we both thought this one was pretty good. I think it is less than a quarter ($0.25) a cup.

Today is Columbus day, I do not like Columbus day because it means there is no mail, meaning my nice expected packages are just sitting at the post office instead of arriving in my greedy clutches. Also Ben’s college didn’t get a day off so that also made me sad. No matter, the day is almost done (well for some, I am rather nocturnal) and tomorrow I will have mail, for now though, there is tea!

The people at Buddha’s Herbs were kind enough to send me a sample of their Green Tea to review and I have to admit when I saw the ingredients of this tea I was intrigued. Green Tea with Chamomile, Thyme and Peppermint? Sounds like fun, and full of health benefits, but I have a confession: I do not drink tea for the health benefits, I drink it for the sensory pleasure. So, let us start with the olfactory analysis! The first thing I notice is the mint, as per usual with a tea containing mint its aroma is almost always the first thing that pops up. After the initial minty blast I start to notice a straw like aroma from the chamomile and a nice herbaceous note from the time, there is also a nice bit of vegetal from I assume the Green tea. I also noticed a hint of dill which made me think of pickle spices and makes me want to eat pickles.

Once I give the tea bag a nice hot bath the mint aroma calms down and the chamomile like straw aroma becomes more prevalent. The thyme is still present and very pleasant and mixes well with a mild green aroma. I am glad the mint is a little more calm since I was worried it would overwhelm. The tea still has a strong savory aroma, which I like.

This tea is very refreshing! The taste is a touch herbaceous and a tiny touch sweet. Luckily the mint is mild allowing the other flavors to shine through, and those flavors are rather herbal. The green tea adds a touch of mild vegetal (and I mean really mild) so mainly you taste the chamomile and to a lesser extent, thyme. As the tea cools the mint becomes stronger, giving it a cooling quality. I certainly think this tea would be great after a rich meal or on a hot day to cool you off, I think it would be good iced as well.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2013/10/buddhas-herb-green-tea-tea-review.html

The St. John’s Wort Tea dry bag carries with it a smell like sour chamomile. Mm. Tasty. When you’ve got it steeped and sitting in the cup, that scent doggy-paddles around until it becomes something less off-putting, but still… off. The liquor is dirty yellow, not unlike the dubiously sanitary lake at your old sleep-away camp.

Now, here’s the thing: St John’s Wort is a natural an-tea-depressant. So if it turns out to be a disappointing tea, then at least you’ll feel too content to care. (By the way, gotta wonder about a sample set that includes teas which help out lady-functions and induce happy feelings. What could Buddha’s Herbs be insinua-tea-ng?)

But as always, we’re here for flavor first, and the flavor you get is… Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/10/08/snooty-tea-review-buddhas-herbs/

Now, if you don’t hate honey-sweetness and warm-tone floral in your cup, then get your face in this Chamomile Tea. The dry bag is like walking into a beehive during peak season. If you’re drinking chamomile before bed, this is one of the rare times that you actually want to go for a bagged tea. (What?!) This is simply for efficiency–bagged herbal teas are nice and heavily processed, so the shock of boiling water sends the flavor and medicinal properties shooting straight into your cup, rather than slowly emerging as they do with the full leaf. In short: sleepytime comes pronto. (The reverse is true with caffeinated bagged teas–you’re getting an energy boost immediately with those chopped-up leaves.)

The liquor here is the same color as the St John’s Wort, but luckily the smell and taste are… Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/10/08/snooty-tea-review-buddhas-herbs/

Pay attention to the tiny print on Green Tea with Herbs, where it says, “(Contains Chamomile, Thyme, and Peppermint).” These are the herbs that come through immediately with the dry bag. Very pungent, like a Wiccan midwife’s kitchen. In the cup as well, no green tea aroma at all–it’s just herby herbaciousness.

Hoo, what a sip. The thyme turns it into a chicken soup tea. Li-tea-rally. If it weren’t for the heavy balancing act that the green tea has going on here–pulling all these savory flavors into a more thoughtful direction–then you’d swear this was some fancy broth de poulet, where the chef took his grandma’s old cure-all recipe and then added some extra herbs and spices for pizzazz. Seriously, next time you’re in a culinary bind à la Bridget Jones’s Diary… Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/10/08/snooty-tea-review-buddhas-herbs/

The dry bag of Raspberry Tea smells nothing like raspberries. No fruitiness. Zip. Nada. Of course, this is what happens when there isn’t actually any fruit in the tea–we’re just doing the leaf here. So the smell you get is on the mulchier side. Think mildewed Lipton. In the cup, it evens out a bit as it loses some of the mustiness, but the aroma is still fragrant with, “Drink this because its good for you” rather than “Drink this because it’ll taste good.”

“Supports female system,” we’re told on the box. It also mentions something about helping testosterone-deficient men as well, so why not say that it supports the system in general? Let guys enjoy their soggy not-Lipton with just as much excitement as the ladies!

Or not enjoy, which is more likely, as Raspberry Leaf tastes like… Full review here: http://snooteablog.com/2013/10/08/snooty-tea-review-buddhas-herbs/