Tea Review: Iced Teas by Salada

It's time to chill out with some refreshing iced tea, an innovation that goes back to 1904, when a tea vendor decided to help people cool off at the St Louis Worlds Fair.  This truly American invention is now one of the most popular ways to drink tea, thanks to the RTD bottled industry.  And every June is National Iced Tea Month.

There are numerous way to make iced tea.  Either you can use cold water and steep your tea for an extended period of time or you can brew hot tea and then ice it down.  There are a bevy of iced tea makers - machines dedicated to the sole practice of making tea, often with convenient pitchers, which in its self can be a handy item to own.

So when I was asked to try Salada Tea's Iced Tea Line, what with it being the National month-long celebration of icy camellia sinensis, I was more than happy to oblige.

Now there's nothing that differentiates their tea from any other tea that you could use to create iced tea, if you were using tea bags, although their iced tea bags are indeed bigger. I tried to show the difference in this photo. And while the instructions say to use 2 of these "Family Sized" bags, I found that using 3-4 tea bags was better because the taste of the green tea is fairly washed out.

This fairly washed out taste is common with "naturally decaffeinated" teas because to decaffeinate them they must be soaked (twice) in the processing - leaving you with a less robust taste.  This process also diminishes the antioxidants that people prize green tea for having, which means any supportive health claims having to do with "decaffeinated green tea" are grossly over-exaggerated.

I tried all 3 of the iced teas (Raspberry, Tropical and Peach Nectarine), only to find them to be rather similar.  A weak iced tea accented by a touch of fruit flavoring.

I wish I had something more to say besides "hey, I like the super-sized tea bags" but I am now the owner of 3 big boxes of 18 mega-tea bags.....and as they say, "That's Salada Tea".

Tea Review: Coconut Creme Tea

Coconut Creme Tea from Persimmon Tree

I have a passion for anything tropical, from palm trees to ukulele music.  It's a well-known fact that Madam Potts lives on a tropical island in her own mind.  So when I was asked to review this tea, I queued up the Arthur Lyman CDs.

Tea Company: Persimmon Tree Tea

In Review:  Coconut Creme Tea

Dry Review:  White Peony leaves, accented Blue Cornflowers, Red Safflower and white bits of shaved coconut

Steeped Review:
HOT:  This subtle white tea is infused with a coconut essence, that makes for a simple pleasurable delight.  The enjoyment is in its simplicity.

ICED:  I think I like this even better when iced.  The natural sweetness of the coconut makes for a refreshingly cooling drink!

Personal Thoughts:  It's overly simple - the blank canvas of a light white tea whereupon a splash of coconut has been added.  The main thing I question is the use of flavorings which are not accounted on the website as being either natural or artificial.  In every "herbal" infusion of theirs, they allude to a flavoring, which for me means that something is added and/or covering up in the name of low-quality and instant flavor association. I realize that this is a popular practice these days - but not one I personally enjoy.

NOTE: There are people with allergies to "artificial" and  even to "natural" flavorings, so this is something to be upfront about.

Madam Pott's Peach Tea Cooler

The tea used in this recipe is
LeafSpa's Organic Peach White Tea

Prep Time:  6 minutes
Difficulty:    Easy

Madam Pott's Summertime Peach Tea Cooler
Ingredients
2 parts Peach White Tea
2 parts Peach Schnapps
Splash of Club soda or Seltzer
Ice

Directions
Brew Peach White Tea approximately 5 minutes.
(tip: for iced teas, always brew extra strong)
While steeping, fill cocktail shaker and glass with ice.
Fill cocktail shaker with the brewed hot tea and shake until all the ice is melted.
Pour the (now) iced tea over the ice in the glass, add Schnapps and a splash of soda.

Enjoy!

This was reprinted from the Monmouth County Tea Examiner site with full permission.

The $500 Iced Tea

Celestial Seasonings is holding a contest for the Best-Ever Iced Tea Contest.

The rules are simple:

#1: Create an iced tea concoction using
Celestial Seasonings Teas

#2: Submit it by July 31st

Not a bad bargain....buy some teas (hey bags are more convenient anyway for the summer which can be a lot of "on-the-go").... Have fun creating something fun. Hope to win 500 smackaroos.

For more info about the (literary) inspiration for this contest and details about What You Win, visit: THE BIG ICED TEA CONTEST

Winners will be notified in August.

I may have a crack at it for the fun of it and keep a running account of my Iced Tea Adventures! I certainly encourage my readers to join the fun and not only to submit their concoctions to the good people @ Celestial Seasonings, but to also send your receipes my way and I will create a list of Reader's Iced Concoctions. There you are....

Let the Summer Iced Madness Begin!

Tea - on Ice!

I found an iced tea blend that I REALLY like. It's been awhile since I posted a recipe, but I'm feeling extra mad today. So by all means, enjoy this cooled down delight and if you try it out, let me know how you like it. If you would like to try it but have not these ingredients laying about, then as always, shoot me an email:

Summertime on Ice
Lemon Grass
Speramint
Hibiscus
Lemon Peel
Anise Seed


Stay Cool,
Madam Potts

Iced Delight: Strawberry Kiwi

FINALLY! Spring - warmer weather and tank tops...and ICED TEA!

Besides the myriad of crazy fun concoctions I make on my own, I stumbled across a tea that makes a fantastic iced treat - Essencha's Strawberry Kiwi.

So pack that in your to-go bottle and go hit the park and enjoy the sunshine!

At least that's what I'll be doing!

A Watched Blog Never Boils

It's been a long time.....but surely thoughts and pots have been steeping.

What I'm about to blog will seem common, ordinary and replete of any magical quality, but despite the pedestrian nature of it all, it's changed my drinking habits.

I spent the majority of the summer drinking iced tea. I do not mean the bottled and processed sugar-loaded stuff on the shelves....I mean real, honest to goodness iced tea.

And while this is not a candidate in the realm of "amazing things", I myself was amazed, as up til now, I have never liked iced tea.

I have always thought it took too long and never tasted good anyway....but then...all I knew was the powdered stuff or the bottled stuff and a very nasty sun tea my mother made out of the cheapest Red Rose tea bags....but I digress.

Having found a short cut has no doubt been the biggest factor in my new habit. No longer must I wait for the sun to brew the tea in the yard, and no longer must I brew tea and stick it in the fridge til it cools down....

Simple as it is, you take a container, fill with ice. Brew the tea (though not to full boil). Pour the tea in the container. Close the lid tight and shake it 10 - 20 times and there you have it.

Keep it Mad, Keep it Cool...