My wife and I have been very busy in the best possible way after the birth of our son. We are extremely blessed and happy.  It was a very important time for me to take a break from blogging.

Ito En | Peach

Today, I did want to write a note about Ito En’s peach flavored RTD.  I’ve been a big fan of Ito En’s authentic and healthy ready-to-drink teas (here are some of my favorites): Oi Ocha, TEA’S TEA, and Sencha Shot

Ito En’s Peach flavored ready-to-drink tea:  This is a black tea that is sweetened with natural cane sugar.  It is not too sweet (15g sugar per fl oz).  The natural peach flavoring is well balanced and it makes the beverage very refreshing.  The black tea flavor definitely takes a back seat to the fruit flavor.  So if you are looking for a strong black tea flavor, you will not find it in this RTD.  This tea is all about fun.  It’s not nearly as serious as some of their other brands.  As a consumer, I appreciate their variety.  I’m not always in the mood for a Sencha Shot.  Sometimes I want a flavorful iced tea from a trusted brand and that is what Ito En offers.  This tea makes for a good lunch time companion.  Again, if you are looking for a serious black tea with a recognizable black tea flavor, this is not going to do it for you.

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Ito En Mango

This was really interesting for me.  The majority of the Ito En teas I’ve tried have been serious with pure and authentic strong tea flavors. You had to be an experienced tea drinker to appreciate the quality of the ready-to-drink teas they offer. Until now…this Mango flavored black tea changed all the rules.  I didn’t look at the label before taking my first drink.  Other than knowing it was mango flavored, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  When the lush mango flavors mixed with sweet natural cane sugar hit my tongue, I was pleasantly surprised.  The flavor of this tea is simple: Sweet Mango.  The tropical fruit flavor definitely out weighs the black tea in this mix.  I think this is a great addition to their line of products because it has a fun factor to it.  I could see me drinking an Oi Ocha when I’m craving a pure and unsweetened green tea. Then I can switch to this sweetened mango flavored black tea when I’m in the mood for something with a few more calories. The bottle label states that there are 50 calories & 14g sugars per 8 fl oz.  There’s no doubt that this was a good tasting beverage – if you like sweet mango flavors.  If you are looking for a strong black tea flavor, you’re not going to find it in this bottle.

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Today, I’m trying Dr. Andrew Weil for tea – Darjeeling Elemental Purity.  Dr. Andrew Weil for tea is distributed by ITO EN.  This is an individual tea bag.  The mesh tea bag came sealed in a plastic wrapper.  The wrapper appears to do an excellent job at retaining the freshness of the tea.  Since the tea bag is mesh, you could clearly see the finely cut Darjeeling black tea.  The string on the bag was very short.  Depending on the cup you use to steep the tea, it could be problematic.  I steeped the tea in water that was just below a boil.  I let the bag soak for about 2-3 minutes.  The scent from the infusion was fresh, and it gave me hope that this would not be disappointing.  I could smell a faint grape-like scent with a classic muscatel vibe that was inviting my mouth to take a sip.  Unfortunately, that’s about all of the positive things I can say about this tea.  It was lacking the powerful taste properties usually present in Darjeeling teas.  All in all, it was very bland.  The finely cut tea in the mesh tea bag does not even lend itself to presentation points.  There was nothing awful about this tea.  It smelled good, and it didn’t taste horrible.  It just fell below the standard set by so many other tea brands.

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