Yes, I know this post is late. My day really got away from me yesterday and I did not have time to type it up and post here. My apologies.
A few weeks ago there was a request for reviewers from Utopia Tea. I naturally hustled to send off an email and ask for some samples to review. As luck would have it a few days later I get an email telling me tea is on the way with no hint of what might be on the way. I have to tell you I often prefer it this way. I find there is less chance of a preconceived idea about what the tea will be like this way.
Last Tuesday the samples arrived…two samples, one a tea – Organic Ceylon and the other a tisane – Fruity Sangria. But my time being as sparse as it was it wasn’t until Saturday morning that I actually had time to try it! I know what is the world coming to?!
First I tried the Organic Ceylon Black tea from Sri Lanka. Funny side story someone once tried to tell me that Ceylon and Sri Lanka were two different places…yeah… Right so the Ceylon. I’ve had plenty of blends that contain Ceylon, but in all honesty I have not to my knowledge tried a straight Ceylon. So I was looking forward to this…something new!
Organic Ceylon from Utopia Tea
I like the sample packaging that the teas came in. clearly labeled as to what is inside and the back offered me more information about the tea and a few methods to prepare the tea. I always find this helpful when trying a new tea for the first time.
As I waited for my water to come to a boil I prepared my Saturday morning second breakfast of choice…peanut butter on toast. First breakfast was cereal…boring. So my first round of toast was ready to eat, now I just needed my tea.
One of my favorite eats to enjoy with a cup of tea.
Finally, my water was ready! But let me back up…the dry leaf smelled a bit on the malty side, even hoppy I thought (as in the hops in beer). I must say this made me really happy seeing as I can’t have beer anymore due to the whole Gluten thing and all the Gluten Free beer is nothing like real beer (sigh). The tea when steeped turns this awesome color:
What color would you call this?
But the flavor was not what I was expecting…very light and not at all as robust as I’m used to with say an Assam, my typical morning tea of choice. It was then I noticed that on the packaging this was suggested as more of an afternoon tea…well there we are. But I still found it went very well with my peanut butter on toast. It went so well that I actually forgot about my second round of toast…
Good thing peanut butter hides a lot of things!
Sure this wasn’t my usual morning wake-up tea…but it was a nice way to ease into my relaxing day of me. After I finished my tea I was off for a massage. Something I only get when they send me my birthday month discount. It was worth every penny of what I had to spend…my back feels pretty awesome right now.
Later that evening I broke out the second sample. This one a Fruity Sangria tisane that contained: Elderberries, tart hibiscus, citrus, lemongrass, apple, orange, rosehips, and more! It smelled like a lovely fruit salad when I opened the package. I was a little uncertain of the addition of hibiscus. With me it can sometimes be a good thing, but most times it’s a total turn off.
[NOTE: I did not get any pictures this time as I was also trying to do last minute food prep for the bridal shower for my sister.]
Good news the hibiscus is hard to pick up in this tea. What I am getting is pretty good, but still kind of light on over all flavor. Maybe a little sweetener would add to it or bring out more of the flavor (I really don’t like to add any to any tea or tisane) and this is suggested by the packaging. The one flavor I do get a lot of is citrus. Not bad, just not my thing in any tea or tisane.
I think this would be great for the fall when I find myself under the weather. I have found that I tend to prefer more herbal tisanes when I don’t feel well. So perhaps I’ll give it another go when I’m not feeling my best.
Where to buy: http://utopiatea.com/
Organic Ceylon – 4oz will run you $9.00 and the price does go up from there. This tea is also available in tea bags if you are so inclined. Plus it can be purchased by the pound.
Fruity Sangria – 4oz (only) will cost you $7.00 and that is the only size that tisane comes in for purchase.
Bottom line if you haven’t tried out Utopia Tea you should. They have fast friendly service, nice website, and from what I’ve had some quality tea (I ordered from them sometime last year when I first got into tea).
Thanks again to Jason at Utopia Tea for sending me the samples.
I’ve now tried quite a few pure Ceylons, and I’ve found they are less likely to “wow” me than single-origin black teas from a number of other regions, but I also tend to like them a lot and I rarely encounter one with objectionable qualities. I also find they tend to be less strong and rich than Assams, so the one you describe here sounds typical.
That would really be a bummer about not being able to drink beer. I love beer! My dad kinda lucked out…he has some terribly inconvenient food allergies, including to wheat, corn, and oats. But he’s able to have gluten, and somehow, he’s fine with barley, so he gets to drink beer!
It does seem pretty typical to what I’ve read about straight Ceylon teas. But I found I liked it. Nice mellow cup for the afternoon.
The beer thing does bum me out a bit. There are quite a few beers I miss drinking. But health first, right? Plus there are hard ciders I can drink…I will say it is not the same. Oh well.
I like Ceylons – not quite as much as I used to, as they once topped my list of faves. I agree, it’s not quite “wow” but very pleasant and mellow, and always a good reliable cup. I’m not much of an Assam fan, so for me Ceylon teas still ranks higher than those.