A Surprisingly Tasty Tea

 I've been migrating away from coffee and sliding into becoming a tea drinker. (Don't get me wrong, I still love my coffee but am down to 1 or 2 4-oz cups of espresso in the morning.) 

The first tea I took on as a favorite quite a while back is the Maui Mango from Tiesta Tea. Remember my rant about that?

This tiny bag is too pricey
& the can is even more so

It's rather pricey so I really have to limit myself. I was looking for something similar - a tasty and aromatically pleasing tea with real fruit - when I found this:

The jar is bigger than it looks.

Thank goodness for translator apps - 
or I might know this is "food, food, and food!"

It's a dried fruit tea - I call it Berry Tea - and I did not like it at first. As a matter of fact, I was composing the angriest review ever right after making the first cup. I pushed the tea aside, still steeping, as I wrote about feeling duped. I said that I'd expected fruit tea and had gotten some kind of expensive fruit cake remnants! I was so mad and being so dramatic that I forgot what I was doing when I picked up my mug and took a second sip of the tea. And my tastebuds fell in love with what I now call liquid manna.

The tea smells amazing and looks pretty. Having a cup makes for a relaxing few moments.

BTW, I used too much for this cup.
About half of this would have been fine.

The ingredients are delicious

The trick with this tea is to let it steep much longer than the suggested 3 minutes. I now let mine steep for at least 6 minutes. This gives the fruit time to release all its flavor and goodness. When I add some honey, the tea goes from delicious to "yummly". That's the only word I could think of to describe it.

I was happy for the seal
& the expiry info.

As pro-USA as I have become (as a consumer), I have to admit that this tea out of China is the best fruit tea I have ever laid my lips on.

The Tiesta Maui Mango has real fruit in it but it doesn't really compare to the Berry Tea. For one thing, I really can eat almost every piece of fruit in the Berry tea once it's well-steeped. The Tiesta tea has several pieces of rind that I find too bitter to eat. Also, the fruit pieces in the Tiesta tea are much smaller. The Maui Mango has a stronger fragrance but the Berry tea tastes richer and fresher. Also, the Berry tea is much much more affordable in the long run. I do have to store it in the fridge though. That's how good the fruit is. The only problem I had with the Korean tea was naming it. I was going to call it the "food, food, and food tea" but I settled on "Berry Tea".

Both the Tiesta and the Berry tea are about the same per-ounce price (the Berry is about 1 cent cheaper), I have to use more of the Tiesta tea than I do of the Berry to get the best flavor. I notice that I use almost twice the amount of Tiesta than of the Berry. Also, I enjoy the Berry tea both cold and hot. The Tiesta tea is best only hot - at least for my taste.

Anyway, now I have 2 fruit tea choices. One benefit of Tiesta is that it's more likely to be available. That Berry tea coming from China could disappear from Amazon at any time!

My goal now is to find a local Asian grocery and locate more of this type of tea. I do miss the diversity of the Alaskan population. I especially miss all the various ethnic grocers... Living in lovely but culturally bland Iowa, I will probably have to go to another state to find a decent Asian market! It will be worth it though.

Peace

--Free

P.S.: I run everything past my doctors. When I  told my kidney doctor about this, he had no problem. He said that at least I won't be adding a bunch of sugary creamer to it!"

Making Green Tea Taste Good

 I've been making some changes in my diet for the last couple of years. I've cut back on salt and sugar; I try to do IF every so often (haha); and I have cut back on my coffee intake.

Coffee is supposed to be good for you, but I drink mine with sweetened creamer. That's not good. I have only managed to drink particular brands of coffee black-no-sugar - Luzianne (red bag, dark roasted is one - but I have trouble finding the brands I like. So I have just cut back to one 10-11oz cup first thing in the morning. Sometimes I don't even finish it off.

Tea is my replacement beverage. I found one I love so much that I splurge with a regular subscription via Walmart. I have backup teas because it's too pricey for me to drink too often - I need to use far less per cup! I like anything peach- or mango-flavored.

$9/5.5oz
40-50 cups
(I drink too much of it!)

Green tea is supposed to be good for the body. Okay, but it's not the tastiest tea I've had - at least without some help. I have tried all kinds of brands and types of green tea and just cannot deal with the flat and bitter flavor. I absolutely cannot tolerate Matcha unless it's whipped into some too-sweet Starbucks-like concoction. So I have found a way to drink at least 3 to 4 cups of green tea a day. 

(By the way, I am going to be asking my nephrologist about green tea at my coming appointment. There is a lot of conflicting info online regarding the effects of green tea on patients with CKD. On the one hand, I've heard that it's great because of the antioxidants and, on the other hand, I've heard that it has compounds that could be harmful to compromised kidneys. This is with I don't use Google for my medical issues! I am hoping that my doc will say the tea is okay. I do expect that there might be some limitations or other suggestions from him.)

Here is how I get my green tea fix... I get the affordable Bigelow green tea from Walmart, along with some Bigelow Chamomile Vanilla, and  Twinings' Peach & Orange. Anytime I drink green tea, I add a bag of the Peach & Orange or a tiny bit of the pricey Tiesta Maui Mango. I use a some of the raw mountain honey as a sweetener. The difference is incredible.

Least fave: the Chamo-Vanilla Honey

The Peach & Orange tea is not one I normally would have chosen but I was in a hurry and using Walmart's Scan & Go app (yes, I will be doing a little review on that!  I did a review of that) for the first time. I haven't even had it without the green tea yet. Turns out, I kind of dig the Peach & Orange.

I definitely use too much of the Tiesta! 
🤣

I already have some Hibiscus tea, but I blogged about why I need to limit my intake...

So I have been drinking 2 cups of green tea (sometimes 3) almost every day. What I have noticed is that it's an appetite suppressant. Interesting. I should have (and may have) known that before now but it surprised me.

I might try drinking one of my green tea concoctions with no honey. I think I might be able to if there is some Hibiscus or strongly-flavored fruit tea in the mix. Even so, the honey has to be better than all the sugar in those yummy creamers I love. 

 I don't know if this will help anyone else who has been struggling to like green tea but it works for me. I actually have come to really enjoy the drinks. I'm not sure if I will ever completely be off the coffee but I am certainly drinking a lot less of it these days.

Peace

--Free

DISCLAIMER: I am not a healthcare professional. This is just a personal blog, not a healthcare source. Talk with your healthcare team before you start consuming regular amounts of anything. I do know that, for me, hibiscus tea lowers my BP so I have to be careful!

Tiesta Tea Made Me Giddy (UPDATE 9/24/23)

UPDATE: When I first tried this a couple of years ago (and loved it, as you can see from the original post), I only bought it a couple more times. The Amazon price is ridiculous. Recently, when I started drinking less coffee and more tea, I found the Tiesta Maui Mango at Walmart for a much better price. I like this tea so much that I drink at least one cup each day. I subscribed to the Walmart purchase but I still have to limit myself from finishing off a can of it before the new delivery! My favorite way to drink it is with the Arashan Raw Mountain honey The honey is not so sweet that the takes away from the flavor of the tea. By the way, I did also try a small bag of the Tiesta Citrus Sunburst, and... yuk, it sucks! It's a good thing I only got the small bag because I ended up putting it on our giveaway table, hoping the worst person in the building would grab it. (I pay just a couple dollars less for a 5.5oz jar of the Maui from Walmart than what Amazon charges for the 2.1oz bag of it!)

***************

Ever in pursuit of healthy alternatives to calorie-laden beverages, I ordered some Tiesta Tea the other day. 

By the way, I am in panic mode about my kidneys. My last labs were so bad that I wasn't allowed to have my infusion until after I see my doctor. My stress level is at its highest right now. So, prayers are welcome.)

Anyway.

Before the bad news about my kidneys, I was already looking for something tasty to drink to replace the sugary coffee I love. Well, I like tea and I like fruit, so I splurged and got some Tiesta herbals.

I tried the Maui Mango first because the reviews were raving good.

The other one I have tried is the Chunky Watermelon.

I loved the Maui Mango so much that I got downright poetic in the review, which is all I can say about it here:

I got this smaller amount because I thought, "How good can this tea be for this price?!?!" But... the minute I opened the bag, the lovely smells wafted up and did my soul good. I was worried that it wouldn't taste as good as it smells and I was so wrong. This smells like kisses and a paid vacation and tastes like "I love you".

This is what you hope that a fruity tea will taste like. I think I am ruined for anything else so I will have to buy more. BTW, I am not a huge herbal tea lover. I got this because I did want a watermelon/strawberry tea & saw all the amazing reviews for this one. Now I cannot wait to try the Chunky Watermelon that is on the way.

I really like all the lovely little bits of joy in this. I've saved them and will be blending them into my smoothie later.

I haven't tried it cold yet but I think it will be delicious.

My best friend who LOVES all kinds of tea will be getting some of this as a surprise. She will be ecstatic.

One thing tho: somebody needs to tell this poetic idiot how to get the bag open properly. I ended up just shredding the top and re-sealing it all in a 2nd baggie! Seems like there's a cute method to it, but I couldn't figure it out.

I meant every word. I loved it so much that I hurried to order the Chunky Watermelon. It's good but... nothing like the Maui Mango.

Maui Mango bits & pieces

The Chunky Watermelon is very weak in its aroma. However, I can't complain about the taste because it is good and very true to watermelon. - but to real watermelon and not those artificially-flavored sweets so many of us are used to.  More of the fruity aroma comes out of the Chunky Watermelon tea when it's steeping. The Maui Mango aroma slaps you upside the head the minute you open the packet. In a good way.

Chunky Watermelon
more colorful than shown

I have to admit that I am going to try getting more of the Maui Mango so I can sip on it while I go on a fast from chewing foods. The Watermelon is one that I would buy again but only if they are out of the Maui Mango.

What I really like about this tea is that I don't have to sweeten it when drinking it hot. I do like to add a touch of natural honey to it but I don't have to.

There are samplers and various sizes for most budgets but it is not cheap tea because it is not cheap tea. It's worth every penny and I can't wait to try more.

Peace

--Free