Chocolate Panda

backlog from last week. I had this when i popped in to silkroad and it’s the reason i totally want to go pick up one of those silly zokurkwekrhwekrj things. not the popsicle one but the slushie one! This tea + milk in the slushie maker thingy was soooo good. i wish i’d been able to try this straight as well but overall i think what i like about this one is the addition of the vanilla. It also makes me want to try out stacy’s peppermint patty in the slushie with milk :) I’d be hard pressed to say which i like better ONLY because i didn’t get to try this one straight. I’m pretty sure stacy’s would win though….pretty sure :)

I’ve had this a few times over the years, and remember when Silk Road first started selling but apparently I never made a tea note? Huh. This is what happens when you only drink your tisanes and rooibos right before bed!

I generally don’t like cocoa or chocolate in my teas; I find it adds a powdery/chalky texture that I associate with stale candy bars. While that vibe doesn’t go away here I find the mint and anise clean it up a bit, preventing the Chocolate Panda from becoming the Muddy Trash Panda. The vanilla swings the mint into peppermint or chocolate mint territory.

I think when I first bought this years ago I thought it would be a creamy chocolate rooibos, but it’s more of a herbal palate cleanser, which isn’t a bad thing! I’m appreciating it more this time around.

I wish this tea had a bit more chocolate flavour, but it is still one of my favourite chocolate mint teas. It is very nice plain or with light sweetener and goes well with milk. In the summer I make it iced with honey. The best part about it is that you can re-steep it 4-6 times without losing any flavour.

This is very different than what I was expecting. When I hear Chocolate Panda, I think chocolate, maybe a touch of mint. What I’m getting is a silky licorice with some… honeyed chalky chocolate? Totally drinkable, just really different from that I expected.

Janelle you rock for getting this off my wishlist by sharing some with me. Thank you!

Quite enjoyable! The best chocolate mint rooibos I’ve had came from a tiny tea store in a little town that I carefully rationed when I learned the store had closed. Chocolate Panda isn’t the same but it’s quite a good substitute, plus it’s got some added flavours. This tea delivers the quality taste that I’ve come to expect from all Silk Road teas. Overall: yum!