I found this Pu-erh to be average (good); which is probably what Teavana was going for by offering this tea.  It’s on par with their direct competitors.  Since it’s a loose leaf tea and not a cake or brick, it’s easier for the average tea consumer to steep.  Teavana describes the tea as aged black tea.  Having said that, as a consumer I have no idea how “aged” the tea really is.  The earthy tones you would expect are found in Teavana’s Pu-erh Organic.  I also detect a slight sweet-floral flavor to the Pu-erh.  I steeped the tea in a clay teapot, and it was not bitter.  I do a quick rinse of the leaves before steeping the tea. This is an affordable Pu-erh to help get you started on your Pu-erh journey.  The tea creates a dark liquor.  It’s as black as coffee.  I typically steep Pu-erh in a clay teapot to avoid staining some of my travel/plastic teapots (plus it tastes better).  This Pu-erh was sufficient for about three steepings.

From a previous marTEA blog:

Pu-erh is one of the few teas that has a cult like following. Connoisseurs around the globe revere Pu-erh for all of its fame and glory and they will pay thousands for top-grade aged Pu-erh. The “earthy” black tea from the Yunnan region of China has a history as interesting as its flavor. It is named after the county Pu’er.

Pu-erh is said to have many medicinal benefits such as lowering blood pressure and cholesterol. In addition, it is marketed as a “slimming” tea. For the general tea lover (like marTEA), Pu-erh is just a complex tea with attitude. It’s the kind of tea that dares you to drink it. It’s often described as having an “earthy” aroma and flavor.

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Last year, I tried Teavana’s MatéVana® Herbal Tea and I thought it was very flavorful. So, my decision to try this blend was an easy one. Spiced Nut Maté is full of fun and flavor. I imagine the Teavana crew having loads of fun making this blend or deciding to add it to their inventory.

Let’s cover the ingredients: Roasted Maté, Rooibos, chocolate bits, almond bits, cocoa, cactus blossoms, orange peel, cornflower & sunflower petals, pistachio & macadamia nuts, and red peppercorns

Did I miss anything?  Do you see anything in there you like?  I cannot drink this beverage within 10 feet from someone before they ask me what I’m drinking due to its delicious scent.  The aroma from the maté mix lingers pleasantly in the air.  As you can tell from the ingredients, it’s a few ingredients away from being a cake or cookie.  The pistachio, cocoa, and red peppercorns probably standout more than the other flavors to me.  It’s absolutely delicious.  Chai drinkers might enjoy this mix with all its attitude and spice.  There’s no tea at all in the blend.  Maté does contain a very small amount of caffeine.  Yerba Maté has been growing steadily thanks to tea companies like Teavana.  A lot of people are trying blends similar to spice nut maté, and they are liking the intense and “happy” flavors greeting their taste buds.  If you want to try a maté, and you enjoy some of the flavors mentioned in the ingredients list – try this one.

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The simple pleasure of having your expectations exceeded is one of the joys I get from drinking a wide variety of teas.  I’m not the biggest Earl Grey fan in the world, but I’ll drink it and usually think it’s ok.  Like most flavored teas, the quality of the tea leaf and the balance of the flavoring is key.  If you are new to Earl Grey here’s some background from a previous blog of mine:

My name is Earl, Earl Grey: Earl Grey is a popular black tea blend often referred to as an afternoon tea. I like it anytime of the day (as long as it’s a good one), especially in the morning. There’s one catch to liking Earl Grey, you have to like the flavoring of the Bergamot oil. Bergamot is a citrus fruit described as a cross between the pear lemon and a grapefruit. Whenever I hear someone say they don’t like Earl Grey, they are usually trying an Earl Grey from a supplier that might have overpowered the tea with Bergamot oil.

I’ve had several cups of Teavana’s Earl Grey Creme over the past two weeks.  First of all the scent of the tea is incredible.  It reminds me of Lemon Meringue Pie – unreal. As the tea was steeping the scent rising from the cup had my mouth watering. After the first sip, I was floored. The cream flavor made this tea perfect for my taste preference. It was like a lemon filled cookie and milk balanced with black tea. The vanilla and cornflowers made for an excellent accent of flavors. This is a dairy free product – it’s just flavoring. If you want to take your Earl Grey to another level, I highly recommend this tea. It has a great dry leaf presentation, excellent aroma, and mouth-pleasing flavor.

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Teavana offers an excellent second flush Darjeeling from the Margaret’s Hope Tea Garden. I’m still looking for an accurate story on how the tea garden was named. I’ve read the tea garden was named after the wife of the founding tea garden owner. In addition, I’ve read it was named in honor of the tea garden owner’s daughter. I’ll keep searching for the answer. If you know, let me know. My great grandmother’s name was Margaret, so I like the name simply because it reminded me of my childhood.

This is a solid Darjeeling choice. Its tea grade is FTGFOP; which stands for Far Too Good For Ordinary People. That’s a joke, it actually stands for Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe. This is a higher grade tea; therefore, the price is usually a little higher for the tea. That said, I highly recommend it. Whether you are new to tea or an experienced tea drinker, this is an excellent choice. Teavana describes the tea as: Famous Second Flush Darjeeling with rounded, fruity flavor, and light nutty undertone. If you know someone interested in tea, and you would like to introduce them to Darjeeling tea, this is a great choice. Teavana is really helping consumers get their hands on good tea. They have several stores throughout the country and their online store is reliable and easy to use.

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I wanted to try a Maté, and I picked the right one. My goodness, this is good. It’s so flavorful; I crave it in the mornings. It’s a substitute for both tea and coffee. Yerba Maté is a species of holly, and Teavana credits Argentina as the origin of the shrub. Maté is made by steeping the dried leaves of yerba maté. This particular maté is mixed with almond bits, crushed cocoa beans, cactus blossoms, sunflower, and cornflower petals. The scent and flavor reminds me of a mix between coffee and cocoa. I’ve read that maté has a strong veggie flavor that is reminiscent of green tea. This maté couldn’t be further from that description. If you are a tea and coffee drinker, you should give this a try. The texture of the beverage is very smooth and relaxing. If you like the ingredients included in this mix, you’ll love this herbal. I almost forget that it is an herbal. Lately, due to my work schedule I’ve been drinking more coffee than normal. Yerba Maté helps me get back to tea drinking on the weekends. The ingredients mixed in this maté are very well balanced. This is a great change-up beverage.

I want to stress again that this is not tea. It does contain caffeine. I can’t deny that I really enjoyed this beverage.

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A lot of the people I know that enjoy tea, like to drink Chai. I know ‘Chai’ means ‘tea’ in Hindi, but I’m referring to the spiced-up flavored black tea. Typically, it’s mixed with milk to give it an almost flavored coffee character. Many popular tea stores offer a loose leaf Chai.

This week, I’m drinking Teavana’s Masala Chai. It’s a great way to start my loose leaf hot tea drinking as the summer ends. Teavana describes the tea as: Black tea from India mixed with ginger, cinnamon, cardamom and vanilla. It’s very fragant. As you can tell by the ingredients, it makes for a very flavorful mix. Teavana does not reveal what region or estate the tea comes from, but it is very important to know it’s CTC (crush, tear, curl). I’m not a huge fan of CTC tea, but it works out well for this Chai. I recommend steeping the tea at a temperature of around 195 degrees for no more than 3 minutes. That’s plenty of heat and time to extract the flavor from the tea and spices. I’ve been putting a splash of milk in the Chai to give it a creamy texture, but you can drink this mix without any additives. If you want to sweeten it, you can’t go wrong. In the end, I found this to be very enjoyable. CTC has never been my favorite, but this was very good. I highly recommend this tea to Chai lovers. If you are new to tea, and you want to start drinking loose leaf tea, this is an excellent start.

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