It's time for BOTTLED TEA TALK CORNER
Oct. 3rd, 2010 04:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eskiwenHello, all members of my flist! how are all of you today? Good? Well, today, Eski wants to talk about something very close to her-
BOTTLED TEAS.
lately, I've been switching from soda pop to bottled teas, and I like them a lot better. However, not all teas are created equal. Thus, Eski am going to talk about three brands of teas she's recently tested, and pick a winner from them. :3
Also, let me make it clear-I like sweet teas. I put sugar in my tea at home, so...
First up: Lipton brand carbonated Green Tea with Raspberry
Why I grabbed it: Well, carbonic acid makes for an interesting experience, right? Plus, it would be easier to switch from pop to this.
The first sip: Bubbly, of course, thanks to the carbonic acid, but the flavor ends up kind of getting drowned by it. Tea should be all about the flavor, so I'm not quite sure about this.
The whole bottle: ...ugh, I think I prefer the flavor getting drowned out. The entire bottle is WAAAY too sweet. It's kind of like...when you were a kid, and jammed entire packets of sugar into your mouth in order to get your sweet fix and just ended up getting sick?It wasn't just me as a kid that did that, right? It's totally like that. Sure, I like sweetened tea, but good god, it's like I paid for a bottle of nothing but bubbly bleached sugar that tastes kind of like green tea and raspberry if you really, really search for it. Plus, I think they snuck some kind of citrus in here-and I hate how artificial citrus tastes, and no, I am not kidding; Most 'natural flavors' in drinks are completely artificial. Guh. It also has this weird aftertaste-like the aftertaste you get from most purified water (and I hate that taste SO MUCH).
Bottle design: Classic plastic pop-bottle, with the logo in a dark yellow and green, has a picture of the plant on the label. Nice colors, but forgettable. I just wish it's product was a lot better.
Rating: Not going to get this again. I'd prefer pop rather than this. 3/10.
Second: Arizona brand Southern Style Sweet Tea
Why I got it: Arizona's been around for a while, and has had some pretty good ratings on it. 'sides, it's only a buck, which makes it much cheaper than the Lipton stuff...at least around in my area.
The first sip: Sweet-very-but not overwhelming. Definitely can taste the black tea they used as it's base, and I don't taste any 'natural flavors.' Did I mention I hate it when they sneak artificial citrus on me?
The whole bottle: Again, very sweet, but not overpowering. Southern style sweet teas have the sugar they put in dissolve while it's hot, thus letting the flavor mix in with the tea and not be so prominent. I often do the same with my own tea, although that's often just because I make a lot a tea at once and then put the rest in the refrigerator for the next day, so I prefer sweet teas made in that style. It's a nice tea to drink while you're eating something; I don't recommend drinking it without something to munch on. Luckily, most of the time I get bottled tea, I'm eating something along with it.
Bottle Can design: The only thing that would really detract from this isn't the tea-it's the can it comes in. Tall, yes, but it's a can and not a bottle, so you pretty much have to drink it all in one go or else run the risk of having it spill everywhere. I do know that they make bottles for Arizona tea now, but I don't think they get shipped to my area. :| For the sweet tea, it's a pretty plain bottle: White, with a picture of a southern villa, red lettering. I actually prefer it over their 'normal' tea-the turquoise green, pale red, and manilla yellow checkerboard pattern often makes me want to hit the person that designed it. Their design for their green tea is pretty nice, though.
Rating: A nice tea to drink while you're eating, but really doesn't have that much flavor beyond the sweetness. 7/10.
And for the third: Newleaf brand Honeydew Melon White Tea
Why I got it: Well, I saw it. Looked nice (I'mma sucker for glass bottles) and grabbed it. A little expensive, but not too bad.
The first sip: Oh my god what is this my mouth is having a flavor party
The whole bottle: WHERE HAS THIS TEA BEEN ALL MY LIFE OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOD. Okay, okay, calm down...Oh god, I am not exaggerating when I say that I absolutely love this tea. For one, it's not all that sweet. It's made with pure cane sugar, which is a definite plus. Also, from the taste of it, I can tell they used actual honeydew juice in this-and mixing white tea and honeydew together is purely AMAZING. Both are pretty light tastes, but mixing them together somehow makes both tastes stronger without either flavor overpowering the other. This is the first bottled tea that I DIDN'T just straight guzzle down and actually didn't want to eat anything while drinking it-instead, I swished it around in my mouth to get more of the flavor, which tastes good even when it's been warmed by the mouth.
ETA: while writing this, I opened their plum and green tea one. That too, is utterly delicious.
Bottle design: Glass bottle! That being said, it's a very pleasing shape, and the embossed leaves near the opening are a nice touch. The labels are simple, yet eye catching due in part to how the bottle looks. Nice and elegantly understated in pleasing colors.
Rating: A delicious, just sweet enough tea with tons of flavor. Definitely going to buy in the future. 9/10.
And if you read this far, congrats! Comment and tell me what your favorite bottled tea is, if you drink bottled tea! or hell just your favorite tea in general.
Join us next time, when I talk about gourmet chocolate!
BOTTLED TEAS.
lately, I've been switching from soda pop to bottled teas, and I like them a lot better. However, not all teas are created equal. Thus, Eski am going to talk about three brands of teas she's recently tested, and pick a winner from them. :3
Also, let me make it clear-I like sweet teas. I put sugar in my tea at home, so...
First up: Lipton brand carbonated Green Tea with Raspberry
Why I grabbed it: Well, carbonic acid makes for an interesting experience, right? Plus, it would be easier to switch from pop to this.
The first sip: Bubbly, of course, thanks to the carbonic acid, but the flavor ends up kind of getting drowned by it. Tea should be all about the flavor, so I'm not quite sure about this.
The whole bottle: ...ugh, I think I prefer the flavor getting drowned out. The entire bottle is WAAAY too sweet. It's kind of like...when you were a kid, and jammed entire packets of sugar into your mouth in order to get your sweet fix and just ended up getting sick?
Bottle design: Classic plastic pop-bottle, with the logo in a dark yellow and green, has a picture of the plant on the label. Nice colors, but forgettable. I just wish it's product was a lot better.
Rating: Not going to get this again. I'd prefer pop rather than this. 3/10.
Second: Arizona brand Southern Style Sweet Tea
Why I got it: Arizona's been around for a while, and has had some pretty good ratings on it. 'sides, it's only a buck, which makes it much cheaper than the Lipton stuff...at least around in my area.
The first sip: Sweet-very-but not overwhelming. Definitely can taste the black tea they used as it's base, and I don't taste any 'natural flavors.' Did I mention I hate it when they sneak artificial citrus on me?
The whole bottle: Again, very sweet, but not overpowering. Southern style sweet teas have the sugar they put in dissolve while it's hot, thus letting the flavor mix in with the tea and not be so prominent. I often do the same with my own tea, although that's often just because I make a lot a tea at once and then put the rest in the refrigerator for the next day, so I prefer sweet teas made in that style. It's a nice tea to drink while you're eating something; I don't recommend drinking it without something to munch on. Luckily, most of the time I get bottled tea, I'm eating something along with it.
Rating: A nice tea to drink while you're eating, but really doesn't have that much flavor beyond the sweetness. 7/10.
And for the third: Newleaf brand Honeydew Melon White Tea
Why I got it: Well, I saw it. Looked nice (I'mma sucker for glass bottles) and grabbed it. A little expensive, but not too bad.
The first sip: Oh my god what is this my mouth is having a flavor party
The whole bottle: WHERE HAS THIS TEA BEEN ALL MY LIFE OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOD. Okay, okay, calm down...Oh god, I am not exaggerating when I say that I absolutely love this tea. For one, it's not all that sweet. It's made with pure cane sugar, which is a definite plus. Also, from the taste of it, I can tell they used actual honeydew juice in this-and mixing white tea and honeydew together is purely AMAZING. Both are pretty light tastes, but mixing them together somehow makes both tastes stronger without either flavor overpowering the other. This is the first bottled tea that I DIDN'T just straight guzzle down and actually didn't want to eat anything while drinking it-instead, I swished it around in my mouth to get more of the flavor, which tastes good even when it's been warmed by the mouth.
ETA: while writing this, I opened their plum and green tea one. That too, is utterly delicious.
Bottle design: Glass bottle! That being said, it's a very pleasing shape, and the embossed leaves near the opening are a nice touch. The labels are simple, yet eye catching due in part to how the bottle looks. Nice and elegantly understated in pleasing colors.
Rating: A delicious, just sweet enough tea with tons of flavor. Definitely going to buy in the future. 9/10.
And if you read this far, congrats! Comment and tell me what your favorite bottled tea is, if you drink bottled tea! or hell just your favorite tea in general.
Join us next time, when I talk about gourmet chocolate!
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2010-10-03 08:45 pm (UTC)Oh man, I want that!
...Our Wawa didn't have it. :( But it did have the new Bret Michaels tea from Snapple (ugh, diet tea, not very good), and this... Compassionberry? stuff? It was okay.
Arizona's Arnold Palmer Half and Half is really good, though. Arizona is good in general, really.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-10-03 08:48 pm (UTC)The top one is their now discontinued Roze Marzipan tea. I've got a little of that left and have been rationing it to myself like my life depending on it.
Still available is their Almond Biscotti black tea. Milk and honey make this one just. Teagasm worthy.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-10-03 09:32 pm (UTC)I don't drink bottled often, but I like Arizona and Sobe's green tea. The latter has a very subtle mint note and is the lightest-tasting bottled green tea I've ever had, which I prefer to having teas inundated with flavor like Lipton's raspberry white tea. ICK.
(no subject)
Date: 2010-10-03 11:46 pm (UTC)