White August's Camellia Sin (My Happy Place) Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Not Stated
Price: Free sample (regular price – 16.95 for 50g)
Vendor: White August Tea Company
Brewing Method: Per Instructed - 1 teaspoon of leaves, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 206°F, steeped for 5-7 minutes
Overall Score: 3.2 out of 5

Based on the description of the tea on the package and on White August's website, this herbal tisane is a blend of chamomile and bananas... at least that is the only ingredients that they mention. However, looking at the dry leaf blend there appears to be more to this tisane than just chamomile and bananas.

The dry blend smells sweet and fruity - kind of a mix of apple and banana aromas. I can find the chamomile flowers and banana pieces, but as for the other stuff... hmm... maybe some lemon grass and rooibos? The chamomile definitely gives the floral aroma, but there is a hint of spice somewhere in there.

The aroma of the steeped tisane is very apple-like. It reminds me of hot apple pie between the sweet fruitiness and the background spice aroma. The liquor is a deep orange color.





The tisane is really hot! I got excited and didn't let it cool enough before I took a sip. Let's try this again. The tisane tastes just like it smells... there is a sweet apple flavor but the banana is hard to find. It tastes very similar to apple cider. It has the flavor profile of rooibos, woody and fruity, so I believe my suspicion of the little red flecks in the dry blend being rooibos is correct. I can see this being a dessert tisane as it is super sweet and the flavor is straight to the point.

Just like with the previous reviews of White August’s teas, I would really appreciate more information. What little is given is nowhere near enough for me. It would at least be nice to know all of the ingredients that are in this herbal blend.

White August's Walk in the Park Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Not Stated
Price: Free sample (regular price – 8.95 for 50g)
Vendor: White August Tea Company
Brewing Method: Per Instructed - 1 teaspoon of leaves, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 206°F, steeped for 5-7 minutes
Overall Score: 3.8 out of 5

According to White August’s website this herbal blend consists of “a medley of tangy berries and essence of roses.” It doesn’t specify what kind of berries are in the blend. I can identify raspberries by scent, but the rest of the “medley” is a mystery to me. Pieces of rose petals can be seen throughout the blend. This combined with the dried berries gives the blend an overall purple hue and a sweet, fruity aroma.

The herbal blend smells fruity while steeping; kind of like warm berry pie or how Jell-o smells before putting it into the refrigerator to chill. The liquor is a beautiful bright red color.





The herbal infusion tastes incredibly sweet. I am drinking this hot, but I can tell it would be much better iced. It tastes a lot like a berry Kool-Aid except it is naturally sweet enough in which there is no need to add sugar. I can’t really taste much of a rose or floral essence, but the berries come through nicely. Yes, grab some ice and get ready for a low-calorie sweet treat with this herbal blend.

I am dropping a few points not because of the taste or quality of the blend, but because of the lack of information. A one sentence description is all that is given. There is no actual tea involved with this blend so it is not the origin or estate I am concern about, but I am not too pleased with just the word “medley.” A list of the actual berries would suffice and I doubt would be that hard to add to the description.

P.S. I let the tisane sit until it was room temperature then I poured it over ice. Oh yeah, it is so much better when cold.

Mighty Leaf's Spirulina Stamina Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: United States, South America, China
Price: Free sample (regular price - $9.95 for 4oz.)
Vendor: Mighty Leaf
Brewing Method: Per Instructed - 1 teaspoon of leaves, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 205°F, steeped for 5 - 7 minutes
Overall Score: 2.5 out of 5

Spirulina Stamina is a blend of rosehip, cinnamon, balm mint, schizandra, black currant, black berry leaves, green mate, and spirulina. The very first ingredient that I smell is cinnamon followed by the fruitiness of the black currant and black berry leaves. Both aromas together make for a sweet and spicy combination.

The aroma of the liquor reminds me of warm berry pie. I say that because it has the spicy scent of the cinnamon with the tartness and fruitiness of the berries. The color is a light orangey-yellow.





The taste is a little harsh at first. It is rather tart in the beginning and then the heat from the cinnamon settles on the back of my tongue. After I get past the cinnamon, the tea has a cool, fresh flavor to it which I believe is from the balm mint. Finally, a fruity flavor sneaks up from the background.

Would I have this tea again? Probably not. It is not that it is a bad tea, it is just not my cup of tea. I believe this would be a great blend if the cinnamon were left out. Cinnamon has been an ingredient in several teas that I have tried and I have always wished it to be left out because the spice leaves the mouth feeling hot instead of refreshed. I do not enjoy that kind of kick when drinking tea.

However, if you like the kick of cinnamon mixed with minty and berry flavors, then this tea would be worth checking into.

Pearl Tea’s Counting Sheep Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Egypt
Price: Sample (regular price - $16.50 for 3oz.)
Vendor: Pearl Teas
Brewing Method: Per Instructed - 1 teaspoon of leaves, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 194°F-203°F, steeped for 2 - 3 minutes
Overall Score: 4.3 out of 5

Counting Sheep is a blend of orange, chamomile, citrus peels, rose-hip peels, orange blossoms, lemon grass, nana-mint, and hibiscus. I will have to say that this is one of the prettiest blends I have tried yet. The mix of yellow and green chamomile, green lemon grass, yellow and orange citrus peels, and the beautiful rose-hip and hibiscus makes this blend an amazingly appealing. I just hope it tastes as good as it looks. I can smell the orange aroma immediately. Upon a closer inspection I can smell the floral scents of chamomile and hibiscus mixing with the citrus aromas.

I can smell the apple-like aroma of the chamomile as the blend is steeping. The citrus aromas float around in the background. I wasn’t exactly sure what color this was going to turn out, so the yellowish-green color was a nice, beautiful surprise.





The taste is very floral and fruity. I can taste the chamomile first. The aftertaste holds the orange and lemon flavors. The apple-like taste of the chamomile with the citrus flavors makes this a rather sweet and refreshing blend.

The blend is not bitter or astringent. The tea is very sweet on its own so I don’t think there is any reason to add sugar (plus, this blend is meant to relax you and sugar would only contradict that). I believe this tea would be nice to have in the evening while winding down – just as it is recommended. It is sweet enough to act like a no-calorie dessert and it is caffeine free so you can rest easy.

Mighty Leaf’s Chocolate Mint Truffle Review

Type: Rooibos
Origin: South Africa
Price: Sample (regular price - $9.95 for 15 pouches)
Vendor: Mighty Leaf
Brewing Method: 1 bag, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 200°F-205°F, steeped for 5 minutes
Overall Score: 4.0 out of 5

Chocolate Mint Truffle is rooibos infused with chocolate and mint. I could smell the mint as soon as I opened the package. The fruity aroma of the rooibos followed. I couldn’t really smell any of the chocolate, but mint is an aroma that normally over powers anything else that is with it. The tea bag is about half full (or half empty) with the blend. The mix has a brownish-red color to it because of the dark rooibos, but I can see some flecks of the green mint.

The chocolate aroma comes out while the tea is steeping. The fruity rooibos and the mint are still present, but the aromas of all the ingredients finally came together with the addition of hot water. The liquor is a very deep red color, but in a deep cup such as the one in the picture, the liquor looks brown.





The taste is overall very mellow. I taste the sweet, fruity rooibos first and then the aftertaste is the mint with the rest of the rooibos. The plus side is that this tea is rather sweet with no bitterness at all. The down side is that I really don’t taste the chocolate in this blend, which is kind of disappointing because I love chocolate as much as the next person. I am surprised at how much of the rooibos flavor I get compared to the mint. My mouth feels cool, but the mint is no where near overpowering.

By the time I reached the bottom of the cup, I was still missing the chocolate. Even though the idea of mixing two loves - tea and chocolate - seems fantastic… in reality, I’m not sure if they will ever go together in the way we hope. But, what is to stop us from trying, right?

Organic Detox Infusion Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: United States
Price: Sample (regular price - $9.95 for 15 pouches)
Vendor: Mighty Leaf
Brewing Method: 1 pouch, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 200°F-210°F, steeped for 4-5 minutes.
Overall Score: 3.7 out of 5

Organic Detox Infusion is a delicate mix of organic peppermint, organic burdock root, organic dandelion root, organic spearmint, organic licorice root, organic red clover flowers, and basil. I could smell the mints immediately after opening the package. This blend was really colorful – I could see a lot of greens, whites, reds, and yellows. There were a lot of large bits in the pouch and very little dust.

I could smell the mint and the licorice in the finished brew. It definitely didn’t smell as minty as the dry leaves. The liquor is a deep yellow color.

I was afraid that I might not like this tea after I saw that one of the ingredients is licorice. However, after I tasted it, I quickly found out that this blend has just the right amount of mint to hide enough of the licorice so I don’t make a funny face after swallowing.

The licorice and mint is all that I taste, really. The mint creates a nice cooling effect in my mouth and throat. I can taste the peppermint slightly more than the spearmint. The cooling effect is not too overpowering - like the “I-just-ate-a-whole-candy-cane” type of feeling – it seems to be just the right amount of mint.

So, even though this has the dreaded (in my opinion) licorice in it, I think I could see myself drinking this tea again. The mint takes my mind off of the licorice and leaves a pleasant sweet, cool aftertaste.

Choice Organic Tea’s Chamomile Citrus Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Egypt
Price: Sample (regular price - $8.49 for 15 pyramids)
Vendor: Choice Organic Teas
Brewing Method: 1 pyramid, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 200°F-210°F, steeped for 4-5 minutes.
Overall Score: 4.1 out of 5

Chamomile Citrus is what it says it is – chamomile and orange peel, but with some hibiscus thrown in, as well. The leaves definitely smell very flowery and fruity. I saw a lot of white, yellow, and orange colors in this pyramid of whole leaves. I could actually see the long stems on the whole chamomile and hibiscus flowers.

I could smell more of the chamomile than the citrus while the leaves were steeping. The liquor was a very deep yellow, almost tan, color.

The taste was so sweet and floral. The citrus provided a nice, fruity aftertaste. The brew had that “apple” flavor that I have heard described with chamomile. It was not astringent or bitter at all. It was actually very sweet. If you want to add sugar to this, then I think you are crazy! The taste was also very crisp and clean. It was mellow and the aftertaste didn’t last very long.

The Choice Organic Tea reviews stop here… for now. I am not particularly into bagged tea, but there were a lot of whole leaves in the pyramids of each of the teas that I reviewed. Also, I love how these teas were organic and fair traded. Their website has loads information, plus all kinds of teas to choose from so check it out when you get the chance!

Sweet Liquorice Mint Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Not Stated
Price: Sample (regular price - $8.49 for 15 pyramids)
Vendor: Choice Organic Teas
Brewing Method: 1 pyramid, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 200°F-210°F, steeped for 4-5 minutes.
Overall Score: 2.5 out of 5

Sweet Liquorice Mint is an herbal blend of liquorice, peppermint, and spearmint. The peppermint was what I smelled first when I opened the package. That aroma was followed by spearmint. The leaves are really colorful with green, white, and brown pieces in the pyramid.

I could smell more of the liquorice as the leaves were steeping. The mints were still in the background, though. The liquor is a vibrant yellow color.

I personally do not like liquorice so I knew this review was going to be interesting. When I took a sip, I instantly knew this tea was not for me, but for those of you who like liquorice, I will try to write an unbiased review.

The sweet liquorice was what I could taste at first – and it really is sweet. The mint no longer had a strong presence after the leaves were steeped. It seemed to be all about the liquorice. There was a little bit of a cooling effect in my mouth in the aftertaste, but not as much as I thought there would be considering there are two kinds of mints in it (but I am not sure what the ratio of liquorice to mint is in this blend).

The reason this tea received a low score is because of my personal preference only. I did not enjoy this tea because I just don’t like the anise flavor. If you like these flavors then you might want to try it out for yourself to see what you think instead of just going by what I say. If you would like to know more check out the descriptions and reviews on Choice Organic Tea’s website.

Island Breeze Iced Tea Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Not Stated
Price: Sample (Regular price - $14.95 for 10 bags w/ tin. Each bag makes 1 gallon.) **On Sale for $11.21 until August 15**
Vendor: Mighty Leaf
Brewing Method: Per instructed - 1 bag, 1/2 gallon of filtered water, heated to 200°F-205°F, steeped for 5 minutes, added ice until liquid reached top of 1- gallon pitcher, chilled in refrigerator
Overall Score: 4.6 out of 5

Island Breeze is an herbal blend of hibiscus, rose hip, blackberry leaves, rose hip seed, and natural flavors. When I opened the package, the dry leaves definitely smelled fruity and flowery, but I could not distinguish any one certain ingredient (even though, I wish I knew what “natural flavors” were in it). It had an aroma of fruit punch, basically.

The blackberry aroma stood out while brewing. The liquor was a very bright pinkish-purple color. I really liked how the color turned out with this tea.

Just as I suspected, the tea tasted a lot like fruit punch. The blackberry made the brew very fruity, sweet, and refreshing. The other herbs gave this tea a nice, flowery aftertaste.

You all know that I never add sugar to my tea, whether it needs it or not, but I think this tea is sweet enough without sugar. However, if you would like to bring out more of the blackberry flavor, I’m sure sugar would do the job.

There was no bitterness or astringency. It was a little tart at first, but that died down after a couple of sips. Overall, I think this tea would make a refreshing, flavorful, sugar free treat any time.

Chamomile Citrus Review

Type: Herbal
Origin: Egypt
Price: Sample (regular price - $9.95 for 15 pouches)
Vendor: Mighty Leaf
Brewing Method: 1 bag, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 200°F-205°F, steeped for 5 minutes
Overall Score: 4.8 out of 5

Chamomile Citrus is a an herbal blend of rosehips, orange peel, chamomile flowers, lemon grass, lemon myrtle, nana mint, and hibiscus flowers. The orange peel, green lemon grass, and the mixture of light and dark pieces of the other herbs made this bag of tea very colorful. I could plainly see the herbs and flowers that made up this tea.

The aroma was a little more subtle than I thought it would be. I thought I was going to be hit with a wave of citrus. To my pleasant surprise, I could smell the orange and the lemon distinctly but it was not overpowering. While the tea was steeping the aroma was very fruity. The orange and lemon smell seemed to blend together. The liquor was a dark yellow, copper color.

This tea tasted just like it smelled – lemony. The lemon was the main flavor that I tasted, along with a hint of orange. The flavor was noticeable, but subtle, which made this tea very soothing. There was no harshness or astringency to it. Actually, it was refreshing. I’m sure icing this tea would make a nice caffeine free treat, as well.

Chamomile is a very calming herb. It is consumed to halt a racing mind and relief stress. By adding citrus flavors to chamomile, it made the tea even more of a relaxing experience. Because this tea was caffeine free, I could see myself having a cup while lounging in front of the television or reading a good book before bed time.

I wish I could taste more of the orange than the lemon flavor, but that is just my personal preference. On the other hand, I really liked this tea, plain and simple.

Caution: Do not consume chamomile if you are allergic to ragweed.