Boysenberry Matcha

Thanks to Rachel for this sample! This is my first matcha ever and it is so awesome! I know I mention in most of my tasting notes that I am not an iced tea drinker. But I wish I liked it, because when I want to really get some caffeine in, iced tea is a quicker vehicle for it and much more refreshing.

Well, this isn’t an iced tea exactly, but it’s a refreshing cold tea. Rachel sent the matcha powder to me in a nicely folded aluminum square. I couldn’t help but feel like a drug user unfolding my little aluminum packet of powder. LOL I took a swig from my water bottle to make room, added my typical two packets of Splenda, and dumped all the matcha into the water bottle. I shook it up and said a prayer.

It’s so good! It’s better than any iced tea I’ve ever had! The taste is light, and refreshing, and berry-ish. It makes me happy. I was afraid it would taste like Snapple or Crystal Lite or something but I should never have doubted. Someday I’ll buy my own matcha and I’ll have my own cold caffeine vehicle.

Although I got in on the tail end of it, I have really appreciated the “free matcha” promotion that Red Leaf has offered. The promotion, along with the positive reviews on Steepster, have spurred me on to go ahead and give flavored matcha a try. The hardest thing has been making a decision on what to order since there are so many exciting choices! I have loved Caramel and Pumpkin Pie, so it was time for something fruity. I found it at http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/boysenberry-matcha.html
This was my first fruity matcha from Red Leaf and I had really been looking forward to trying it because of the great reviews. The delicious aroma of this selection made my mouth water as soon as I opened the packet. I have enjoyed boysenberry syrup on many occasions in the past, back in the days when I used to eat waffles and pancakes. This definitely captures the essence of boysenberry nicely with a great balance between sweet and tart. I was too impatient to pull out the whisk, so I did what others have suggested, and mixed it up with 2 oz of hot water , then added some almond milk, a splash of cream, a small amount of sweetener, and some ice cubes and shook it up to make a chilled latte. I will eventually try it hot, but I have really been in the mood for the chilled lattes lately! So this was the third flavor I’ve had from Red Leaf, and all have been outstanding. I’m afraid they could be somewhat addictive. If you haven’t tried boysenberry, you should! I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Mmmmmm. I have been anticipating the arrival of my Red Leaf order just so I could try this matcha. I quite like the taste of Red Bull, and when I heard this matcha tastes like Red Bull I had to get some to try it.
The smell of the dry matcha is spot on Red Bull, the taste is the same as well. Now I don’t think the goal was to set out to create a Red Bull flavoured matcha, but I guess boysenberry is what Red Bull is flavoured with.
The matcha powder is fine and smooth. The boysenberry flavour is strong and mixes well with the matcha flavour. There is a boysenberry aftertaste but it is not unpleasant at all.
I made this tea iced and as a latte, both were delicious. I think I prefer it cold though.
I orderded robust flavour.
Quite impressed with the flavoured matchas from Red Leaf that I have tried so far. Will be making another order shortly.
You can find this matcha here: http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/boysenberry-matcha.html

When I was thinking about what fruity matcha flavor I wanted to try I decided that Boysenberry sounded the most interesting to me. I’ve previously only gotten the desserty flavors but I wondered what a fruity matcha would be like and if the fruit would go well with the green flavors of the matcha. I decided to get the robust flavor level and also a small tin to make storage easy.

I tried the matcha first made the usual way with hot water and it was very good, but I was very curious about the “water bottle” method I’d noticed some people using so I gave that method a shot as well. I filled up a plastic bottle I had with ice cubes, water, and matcha and shook like mad! I ended up with a delicious iced matcha that was so easy to make and convenient to carry with me to work. If you want to take matcha on the go I suggest this method!

I did enjoy this hot, but I felt like the cold method brought out more of that tangy fruit aspect I was really looking for here. Someone else mentioned this being a bit like redbull in their review and I can really see what they mean. It does taste a bit redbull-y and I’m a former redbull addict so I know what I’m talking about here. Haha.

I have to say I’m glad I picked this flavor out. It’s so much more unique than your typical strawberry or other popular fruit flavor.

I got my matcha here:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/boysenberry-matcha.html

Thanks Azzrian for this sample! :D

So, I have no idea what on earth boysenberries are, but now I want some if they’re similar in taste to this matcha. This tastes great!

I’m drinking it straight right now, and I’m loving the juicy, fruity, berry flavours I’m getting out of this. I may try this as a latte at some point and see how it tastes, but I’m not in a latte mood for now. I imagine it’ll taste great, though! Probably like a berry smoothie or something of the sort.

Yum!

Half milk & half water today, idk, I had it with just hot water last time and I can’t decide which I liked better (although I kept smelling/tasting nori without the milk :P) but …yum! I’m not awake enough to rate things. I like not having to worry about steeping with matcha. MORNING ADVANTAGES.

This matcha certainly has a fruity taste to it that borders on berry flavoring but mixed with milk, it is hard to determine that it is boysenberry as opposed to a generic berry flavor. Still it made for a good snack so thank you Roswell Strange for sharing!

Sipdown (95)!

Looks like my double digits aren’t staying very long; I had a really good mail day today and my Secret Pumpkin package from Anlina arrived as well as my package from VariaTEA! I just need to enter all the new teas into my cupboard…

This one I’m finishing off as a smoothie/milkshake of sorts!

- 1 Frozen Banana
- The last of this matcha (about 2 tsp.)
- 1 cup of milk

It’s pretty good! The banana helps cut down on the chalkyness/mineral notes in the Boysenberry quiet a lot and just compliments the flavour in general.