Category Archives: iced tea

One Year Anniversary and Giveaway!

Posted on August 21, 2012 by | 10 Comments

***UPDATE*** After much delay (sorry about that folks) we have a winner!!! (Drum roll, please…) And the winner is: PurpleLarkspur!  Thank you to everyone who entered and PurpleLarkspur we will be contacting you about receiving your winnings!

True Random Number Generator Result: 3    Powered by RANDOM.ORG

 **UPDATE** Thank you so much to those of you who have commented. To give a few more people a chance we’ve extended the giveaway another week. A winner will be chosen on 9/3. Comment for a chance to win.

First of all, happy 8/20! Last August we were just starting the blog and now we’ve been posting for a full year! You may find it odd that we wish you a happy 8/20. Well, in one of our first posts we talked about how in college all of the roommates bought a big basket of tea as our holiday gift to each other. That house was #820 on the street. Our friends at Syracuse would refer to houses by the # instead of saying ‘so and so’s place.’ As college students always looking for a reason to party we’d often celebrate the house’s day. An odd little story, but that’s the truth and why I’ll always have a big smile on August 20th. (And to your guy friends who lived around the corner…happy almost 8/29!)

So, on to the part you’ve been waiting for, right? The giveaway! What can you win? The prize , shown below, is Stash’s 13 iced tea sampler.*

 

Mandatory Entry: Do you have any made-up holidays like 8/20? What are they?  (comment to tell us)

(One Extra Entry for Each – comment once for each entry to let us know!)
-Follow @Delecteable on Twitter
-”Like” DelecTEAble on Facebook
-Sign up to receive our blog via email. Click on the right column link.
-Tweet this giveaway. (Once Daily) Feel free to copy/paste:
I entered the @delecTEAble giveaway for a chance to win free iced tea! You can enter too: http://wp.me/p1LDej-is #giveaway #teatime Please RT
Remember, each entry must be left in a separate comment. A winning comment will be chosen at random. Winner has 48 hours to reply and claim their prize before a new winner is selected.
Giveaway ends on Monday August 27th, 2011 at 8 PM EST. Only U.S. residents can win but others are welcome to comment.
 
This giveaway  prize is provided by Stash Tea. We will notify the winner and put them in touch with Stash Tea to have the prize mailed directly to you!
Want to know more about what you could win?  We’ve already reviewed Stash Decaf American Iced Tea. We’ll also give you some tasting notes on two of the other flavors included in the sampler.  This week is Lime Green and the 3rd tea review will be posted next Monday when we list a winner.

Review: Stash Lime Green Iced Tea

Katie says:

When I was steeping this tea I immediately noticed a strong lime scent. At first I was afraid that it would overpower the green tea. However, once I tasted the tea over ice I found the lime and green flavors to be a nice balance. I didn’t even add any sugar! This iced tea is a great alternative to pre-mixed iced teas because it packs in a lot of flavor without the need for the added calories of sweetener.

Taste: 4 of 5 leaves: Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 — this tea requires very little effort.

Abby says:

The Stash Lime Green Iced Tea is an interesting twist on the typical green iced tea. Instead of the traditional lemon that is often added to iced tea, this one has lime flavor added for you. It is always fun to try something a little different and with the ease of making this iced tea, why not!

Taste: 3.5 of 5 leaves: A decent tasty tea.

Steepability: 5 of 5 leaves: This tea is easy to make!

*Sampler includes: American, Decaf American, Lemon Ice Green & Black, Lime Green, Moroccan Mint Green, Orange Spice Black, Peach Black, Tropical Fruit Black, Lemon Blossom Herbal, Mango Passionfruit Herbal, Peach Herbal, Wild Raspberry Herbal, and Orange Cranberry Herbal

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Posted in decaf or hearbal tea, Easy to make, giveaway, green teas, iced tea

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Review: Stash Decaf American Iced Tea

Posted on August 15, 2012 by | Leave a comment

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Overall rating:

Taste: 4.75 of 5 leaves: Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 — this tea requires very little effort.

Katie says:

Temperature: cold from the fridge & then over ice
Steeped: As directed for refrigerator method, steeped 4 hours in a quart of water in the fridge
Served: plain at first then with a squeeze of agave nectar and lastly with milk as a tea latte.

Once again our friends at Stash Tea have come through with a delicious sample; and just in time for mid-August, the height if summer heat. I drink hot tea almost daily, year round, but when I wake and it’s already 75 degrees iced tea is in order for the day!

Just one sip of this tea and I knew it was different yet I recognized the flavor. I double checked the packaging and sure enough it was black tea with bergamot. I’ve never had an iced tea with this flavoring before but I LOVE bergamot in hot tea. I take my cuppa earl grey with milk and honey so the taste, for me, was unusual without milk or cream. So…you know what I did next, right? With a splash of milk served over ice this is makes the BEST iced tea latte! At first I was unsure if adding the milk was a good idea. However, trust me, it was! Mmmmm, I have a feeling that I’ll be drinking iced tea lattes all week. Maybe longer. This is the perfect solution if you like your warm cup of tea with milk and honey but have been shying away from hot beverages in the summer heat.

*Iced tea hint. If you like sweetened iced tea but are cold brewing add honey or agave nectar as a sweetener. They dissolve much better in the cold tea than granulated sugar.

Taste: 5 of 5 leaves: Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 — this tea requires very little effort.

Abby says:

Temperature: Cold, over ice
Steeped: As directed, 5 minutes with 2 cups of boiling water, then two cups cold water added
Served: Nothing added

There are just some days in the summer where nothing will do, but a nice flavorful iced tea. For that reason I usually keep a pitcher ready to go in the fridge. This time around I filled it with Stash Decaf American Iced Tea. Good Choice. I noticed it held great flavor, very reminiscent of Earl Grey, even when poured over ice to keep it chilled. This is a nice hearty tea that will hold up to the addition of ice (Hooray!) as well as a slice of lemon if you have it.

It was quick and easy to make. Just one of the large tea bags steeped in two cups of hot water for five minutes, then two cups of cold water added. Then served over ice. I served this batch to a couple of visitors and got good reviews back from them. For that this will remain as a staple in the tea cabinet for a quick and easy beverage to keep on hand.

Taste: 4.5 of 5 leaves: Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 — This tea requires very little effort.

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Posted in black teas, decaf or hearbal tea, iced tea

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Review: Rishi Summer Lemon Organic Iced Tea

Posted on July 3, 2012 by | Leave a comment

This tea is USDA Organic & Fair Trade Certified!

Abby says:

Temperature: Cold, over ice
Steeped: 5 minutes
Served: Nothing added

Steep-your-own iced tea is great for serving lots of people and for tea fanatics like us! It is great to make-ahead so it’s always ready. For me, being without iced tea in the summer is a crime! Lucky for me, with this oversized Rishi Summer Lemon Organic tea bag, I can make 32 oz. of iced tea in a snap! What could be better than a tasty USDA certified organic and fair trade iced tea on a hot day in July?

Ok, ok, now you want to know how THIS is tastes. Of course. More good news – its tastes great! As a black tea, it has a nice robust earthy flavor with just a touch of lemon. Even cold, you can detect a hint of both smokiness and sweetness – not something you typically find. It is a unique, delicious tea that although it has its own strong flavor would go well with just about any summer food. I, for example, was eating a tasty piece of baklava from the Portland Greek Food Festival in all of its over-the-top sweetness glory while sampling this tea. It was a prefect combination! The earthy black tea cut the very sweet honey nicely, while the hint of sweet and lemon in this tea allowed for a nice mingling of flavors instead of just two harsh contrasts.

Taste: 4.5 of 5 leaves – Quite a good ICED cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 leaves — This tea requires very little effort

Katie says:

I suggest sipping your iced tea in these adorable bee glasses that I photographed for Stonewall Kitchen.

Temperature: Cold, over ice
Steeped: 5 minutes
Served: Nothing added

I share Abby’s enthusiasm about this tea. There are several things that made me choose to give it a very high rating.

1) This tea is both fair trade and organic. Those are two good things that for me boost the rating of any tea.

2) This tea is strong enough to make a whole pitcher quickly! You brew the tea in 16 ounces of boiling water, then after 5 minutes add 16 oz more cold water. At that point the tea is about room temp so when you add ice it doesn’t melt quickly like if you try to ice hot tea. Even when after a little ice melting this is still a strong & tasty tea.

3) This tea includes lemon right in the tea bag. You can enjoy the fresh taste of lemon iced tea even if you are without fresh lemons. Bonus!

Most of all, I enjoy brew-your-own iced teas because I like just a hint of sweet. I do enjoy the occasional glass of sweet tea. However, to drink it all day long (as is my style) I like to have just a hint of honey or agave nectar. The rich somewhat smoke taste that Abby was talking about really works well with just a hint of honey to make a nice complexly-flavored tea. If you like to make your own iced tea without waiting for sun tea or refrigerator tea then this should become one of your summer pantry staples.

Taste: 4.5 of 5 leaves – Quite a good ICED cuppa!
Steepability: 4 of 5 leaves — This tea requires very little effort

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Posted in black teas, iced tea

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Iced tea cocktails

Posted on June 15, 2012 by | 1 Comment

Last week we reviewed Sweet leaf half and half lemonade iced tea. I mentioned that they have a cool website, did you check it out? Well, you should! Not only do they have a cute design, but they also have tea cocktail recipes. Since here in New England it’s going to be  a beautiful weekend, why not sit on your porch with a tea mixed drink? We’re showing just a preview of their cocktail recipes. Visit their website to see more.

And don’t forget, it’s Father’s day weekend. I bet your dad would love a nice shandy! Have you ever had one? It’s  must try!  Adding lemonade is great way to further lighten up a wheat beer and give it a hint of summer taste.

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Posted in iced tea, tea cocktail

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Review: Tazo Plum Pomegranate Green Tea

Posted on June 12, 2012 by | Leave a comment


Overall Rating:

Taste: 4 of 5 tea leaves – Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

Abby says:

Temperature: Cold
Served: Over ice, in a glass

What a tasty treat for a hot summer day! I found this tea to be quite refreshing with great flavor. Although I liked drinking it very much and will certainly seek it out again, there isn’t much tea taste. Katie, could you taste the green tea among the plum and pomegranate juices? It seems that plum and pomegranate juice go really well together to create a sweet and light summer drink!

It’s not a bad idea to stock the fridge with several bottles for whenever you might need a quick, yummy pick-me-up. This tea would be great for anyone, as it is sweet, but not too sweet. To me it tastes more like a full-flavored juice blend. Though, I didn’t find much tea essence, I still really enjoyed this combo. In fact, I think it could easily be used to create a variety of light summer cocktails. I’ll have to get to work on that idea and report back!

Taste: 4 of 5 tea leaves – Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

Katie says:

Temperature: Cold
Served: Just grabbed the cold bottle from the fridge and drank

I find this tea to be more like a light version of juice than iced tea, that said, it is very good. The clean taste of green tea blends well with the plum and pomegranate juices. When I drink juice, I tend to water it down with sparkling water or coconut water; so I really enjoy this juice/tea blend. Perhaps I’ll have to make some iced green tea to try my own juice blends. I bet white grape & green tea would be quite yummy too. The finishing flavors of this iced tea are a mild version of the sweet/sour pucker you get from eating pomegranates.

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I was, however, sad to see that tazo is longer offering the tea leaf reading (seen under the cap) on their website. It was a cute little gimmick. If you’re missing that fun feature here’s a link so you can do your own tea leaf reading: http://tarotcanada.tripod.com/TeaLeaves.html

Taste: 4 of 5 tea leaves – Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

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Posted in green teas, iced tea

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Review: Sweet Leaf Half & Half Lemonade Tea

Posted on June 5, 2012 by | 1 Comment

Overall Rating:

Taste: 4 of 5 tea leaves
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

Abby says:

Temperature: Cold
Served: Over ice, in a glass

Now that summer is unofficially here, Katie and I are excited to review some iced teas!  We both continue to regularly drink hot tea, but surprise, surprise, we both love iced tea too!  This week we reviewed Sweet Leaf Half & Half Lemonade Tea.  I like Sweet Leaf because they don’t use an artificial ingedients in their bottled teas and are USDA certified organic.

Okay, so most of you probably already know that I am typically not a fan of tea that is sweet.  In fact, I usually drink my tea with nothing added.  However, that goes out the window somewhat when it comes to iced tea.  When it comes to the cold stuff I like both sweet and unsweetened varities.  This tea is definately sweet!  In fact one 16oz. bottle (two servings) contains 48g of sugar. That is sweet!  But this IS Half & Half we are talking about here.  To me it tastes good and really reminds me of summer!  The balance of tea and lemonade is just right.  I found it refreshing, tasty and easy to drink – maybe too easy to drink! :)

Taste: 3.5 of 5 tea leaves – A decent tasty tea.
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

Katie says:

Temperature: Cold
Served: Over ice, in a glass

Abby & I realize that although we drink hot tea year round, all day long in-fact; that’s certainly not the case in for many of you. As we welcome June we thought it was certainly time for some iced tea reviews.

From the name of this tea, sweet leaf, you know it’s going to be sweet. Abby doesn’t love sweetened teas. I am an admitted sugar addict. What I don’t like is the fake sugar “sweetener” taste. I’ve had sweetened iced teas in the past that have been ok, but I find to good ones to be few & far between…with many being sickeningly sweet. This tea uses real organic cane sugar. While it is sweet, I’d say pleasantly so.

I’m always looking for a hint of sweet after lunch like a small bite of candy. This tea is a nice change to fill that sweet craving. I love that the makers of this tea, Clayton & David, say “Clayton’s grannie ‘Mimi’ taught us never to use ingredients that you can’t pronounce.” I like that policy when it comes my food!

Overall I find this to be a very good bottled iced tea. No strange ingredients, plenty of tea flavor (the lemon doesn’t take over), and quite sweet but no where near the sickeningly sweet taste of some iced teas. (The sweetened diet kind are my least favorite!) If you prefer less sweet in your iced tea you may want to opt for a lower sugar or unsweetened tea.  If you like sweet tea give Sweet Leaf a try, it’s a good one! And…check out their website, it’s quite spiffy!

Taste: 4.5 of 5 tea leaves – Quite a good cuppa!
Steepability: This tea is bottled!

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Posted in black teas, iced tea

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Review: Mango Oolong Tea from Teas’ Tea

Posted on September 13, 2011 by | Leave a comment

Taste: 4 of 5 tea leaves

Steepability: N/A, bottled

Temperature: from the fridge

Steep time: N/A, bottled

Served with:  Nothing added by me, this tea comes ‘lightly sweetened’ with cane sugar. It has 80 calories per 16.9 oz bottle. Though it is branded as lightly sweetened it does have quite a sugary flavor.

Katie says: (Abby’s not a fan of sweet tea so she skipped this review) Teas’ Tea was kind enough to send us some bottles of their Mango Oolong tea to try out for this review. Oolong is a semi-fermented black tea, and has a very distinct slightly toasted or smoky taste, although it is quite different form kombucha (if you are familiar with that fermented tea). Oolong leaves are are fermented and then dried for use while kombucha is tea-based but the actual liquid is fermented more like an ale. In this iced tea the rich oolong flavor is muted, and you very much taste the mango. It has a very pleasant taste, not quite as sweet as most bottled iced teas, but quite sweet never the less. I do like the fruit tea flavor and it is great for warm days like today! This is from their ‘lightly sweetened’ offerings, however, if you don’t like sweets this may not be for you. Abby and I hope to get our hands on some of their unsweetened teas soon. If we do we’ll let you know! It’s so hard to find a good bottled unsweetened tea, so we have high hopes for that product.

Also, it’s award winning, congrats! TEAS’ TEA MANGO OOLONG WON FIRST PLACE AT THE NORTH AMERICAN TEA CHAMPIONSHIP

*Please note, we were given free samples of this product but in no other way compensated for writing this post. The review is in our own words and reflects our true feelings about this product.

For more information about this company:


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Posted in iced tea

Orange Mint Iced Tea Recipe & Giveaway

Posted on August 23, 2011 by | 26 Comments

UPDATE: And the winner is…Jessica Duplisea! Thanks to everyone who entered. Jessica, we will be contacting you about receiving your winnings!


Drawing was out of 22 because we disqualified 2 ping back comments (links on our own blog) and 1 from Stash tea…they have enough tea! ;)

*   *   *

Yesterday I made this fabulous Orange Mint Iced Tea.

orange-mint-iced-tea

Many people have heard of sun tea, but have you heard of refrigerator tea? It’s like it sounds…gather all of these ingredients and put in a quart-sized covered container. I used a large nalgene bottle.

4-6 bags of your favorite black tea

1/2 Orange, sliced (use the other half for garnish)

12-14 mint leaves, chopped (I put mine in a T-sac so I could easily remove the mint after steeping but you don’t have to)

Place all of the ingredients in your bottle. Refrigerate at least 6 hours — overnight works well. In the morning you’ll have deliciously fresh iced tea. And…you’ve been warned. This tea is stronger than it tastes! I was described as having hummingbird-like energy today!

Now on to the giveaway. Win samples of three of Abby & my favorite teas! Also, be on the lookout for reviews of these teas soon.

TO ENTER:

Mandatory Entry: How do you prefer your tea? Hot or iced?

(comment to tell us)

(One Extra Entry for Each – comment once for each entry to let us know!)
-Follow @Delecteable on Twitter.
-”Like” DelecTEAble on Facebook
-Follow DelecTEAble NetworkedBlogs.
-Tweet this giveaway. (Once Daily) Feel free to copy/paste:
I entered the @delecTEAble giveaway for a chance to win free tea! You can enter too here: http://bit.ly/rpcjPV #giveaway (Please RT)
Remember, each entry must be left in a separate comment. A winning comment will be chosen at random. Winner has 48 hours to reply and claim their prize before a new winner is selected.
Giveaway ends on Monday August 29th, 2011 at 8 PM EST. Only U.S. residents can win but others are welcome to comment.

*This giveaway is not sponsored. We simply want to get the word out about our new blog and introduce you to some great teas!
Photo thanks to my friend Jess who gave me these amazing straws that she found at Gus & Ruby.

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Posted in giveaway, iced tea, recipe