52Teas Loose Leaf Mate Tisane 'Malted ChocoMaté'

Tea Information:
Tea: Malted ChocoMaté
Type: Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: 52Teas
Purchase: Here
Description: I had soooo much fun last week with the malted genmaicha, and after hearing several people ask why we didn’t make it a chocolate malt, I decided we should do a chocolate malt tea this week. Here it is, our Malted ChocoMaté!
This is roasted yerba mate with organic cacao nibs and all natural chocolate and malt flavors. It is one delicious energy kick!

Steep Information:
Amount: 3 tsp
Water: 500ml at 212°F
Tool: Breville One-Touch Tea Maker BTM800XL
Steep Time: 7 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: no smell?
Steeped Tea Smell: coco, roasted
Flavor: roasted
Body: LMedium
Aftertaste: roasted
Liquor: translucent dark brown

Meh
not a mate fan
but this was drinkable
hints of coco in small, and after taste but just hints

Rating: 2/4 leaves

Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

I received this product for free in a swap. All my reviews are as unbiased as possible, whether I buy or receive free product. I accept no other compensation other than free product.

52Teas Loose Leaf Mate Tisane 'Flaming Chocolate Mate'

Tea Information:
Tea: Flaming Chocolate Mate
Type: Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: 52Teas
Purchase: Here
Description: Ready for a bit of heat and a bit of sweet? How about a nice caffeine kick to boot? Here’s some roasted yerba mate blended with organic cacao nibs and cayenne pepper for a delicious, caffeinated kick in the mouth.
Ingredients: Roasted yerba mate, organic cacao nibs, cayenne pepper, and natural flavors

Steep Information:
Amount: 3 tsp
Water: 16oz at 212°F
Tool:Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 5 minutes http://steep.it/5%20minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: spicy chocolate
Steeped Tea Smell: roasty, hint coco, hint spice
Flavor: watery, hint of chocolate, roasted
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: spice
Liquor: translucent red brown

I don't like mate or spice, so this was a loser to me.

Rating: 1/4 leaves

Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

I purchased this product. All my reviews are as unbiased as possible, whether I buy or receive free product. I accept no other compensation other than free product.

Bazza Bottled Black Tea and Mate Tisane 'Lychee Mojito'

Tea Information:
Tea: Lychee Mojito
Type: Black Tea, Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Ready To Drink - Bottled
Company: Bazza
Purchase: at your local grocery store
Description:
Ingredients: premium brewed organic black tea using filtered water organic evaporated cane juice, organic agave syrup, natural flavors, ascorbic acid, natural caffeine, malic acid, di-ribosa, maqul berry extract, organic yerba mate.

Tasting Notes:
Steeped Tea Smell: Black tea, hints of sweet fruit
Flavor: slightly sweet black tea, with hints of lychee fruit
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: slight astringency
Liquor: cloudy light brown

I had this cold with my lunch at work. I was shocked that I tasted like real brewed black tea. There were hints of lychee fruit, but it wasn't overpowering. This is a fabulous bottled tea.

Rating: 3/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing






I purchased this product. All my reviews are as unbiased as possible, whether I buy or receive free product. I accept no other compensation other than free product.

Brauerei Loscher KG Bottled Mate Tisane 'Club-Mate'

Tea Information:
Tea: Club-Mate
Type: Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Bottled
Company: Brauerei Loscher KG
Purchase: Here
Description: One gets used to it!
Ingredients: carbonated water, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, yerba mate extract (0.4%), citric acid, caffeine, natural flavors, and caramel color.

Tasting Notes:
Steeped Tea Smell: honey and green mate
Flavor: bubbly, fizzy, acidic, fermented honey
Body: Full
Aftertaste: astringent, bitter
Liquor: translucent yellow-green

I think it tastes better hot than cold (left it in the car in the summer).

Got this drink at "The last hope" and "The next hope" and on various visits to NYC Resistor.

At first I wasn't happy about it, but I needed the caffeine for the convention, and it is true you get used to it. I drink it for the caffeine and for the memories.

Rating: 2/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

Teavana Loose Leaf Black Tea and Mate Tisane 'Himalayan Majestic and Raspberry Riot Lemon'

Tea Information:
Tea: Himalayan Majestic Black Tea and Raspberry Riot Lemon Mate Tisane
Type: Black Tea and Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: Teavana

"Himalayan Splendor Black Tea"
Description: This exquisite tea originates from the pristine hills of Nepal, at the foot of the majestic Himalayan Mountains, at a 6000 ft elevation. The beautiful, tippy leaf yields a coppery-orange brew that is rich and complex in flavor. Excellent hot or extraordinary as an iced tea, it will quickly become the most beloved addition to your black tea collection.
Ingredients: Pure black tea from Nepal
Purchase:


"Raspberry Riot Lemon Mate Tea"
Description: Get all-day energy from the invigorating fusion of tart raspberry and lemon, with a high-octane jolt of pure Argentinean Mate. The brisk lemon and tangy raspberry give this green Mate the character and flavor you're craving.
Ingredients: Green Mate tea, raspberries, apple bits, rosehips, hibiscus blossoms, lemongrass, and pink rose buds.
Purchase:


Steep Information:
Prepared in store, iced, in a Perfect Tea Maker with 3 tsp rock sugar and poured over ice
Served: Cold

Tasting Notes:
Steeped Tea Smell: berry
Flavor: lemon, berry, sweet
Body: Full
Liquor: translucent hot pink

A delicious treat while wandering the mall on a hot day. It tasted like a juice not a tea.

Rating: 2/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

Mate Factor Company Loose Leaf Mate Tisane 'Dark Roast'

Tea Information:
Tea: Organic Dark Roast Yerba Mate Loose
Type: Yerba Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: Mate Factor
Purchase: Here

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 tsp
Water: hot spigot water
Tool: kati loose tea system (my Review here.)
Steep Time: a little over 5 minutes (http://steep.it)
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: grassy, smoke
Steeped Tea Smell: roasty, molasses
Flavor: gritty, thick, roasty, smoky, woody
Body: Full
Aftertaste: astringent and bitter
Liquor: opaque dark brown, like coffee

A gift from TeaEqualsBliss.

I enjoyed this, I have found I only like roasted mate and not green mate.

I think a bit of cream and sugar would go well in this.

Steepster Reviews

Rating: 2/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

ESP Emporium Loose Leaf Mate Tisane 'Sweet Orange Mate'

Tea Information:
Tea: Sweet Orange Mate
Type: Mate Tisane (Tea is technically only from the camellia sinensis plant)
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: ESP Emporium
Purchase: Here
Description: The popular fresh taste of fruity, sweet oranges goes well with the moderately strong, spicy, slightly smoky Mate tea. The strikingly decorated, delicious specialty is a high-grade offer for the rising demand for Mate tea. The well-balanced addition of pleasant licorice gives the necessary sweetness to this fresh and slightly tangy blend.
Ingredients: green and roasted Mate tea, licorice roots, orange peels and blossoms, natural flavoring.

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 tsp
Water: 12 ounces hot spigot water
Tool: kati loose tea system (my Review here.)
Steep Time: a little over 5 minutes (http://steep.it)
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: orange, grassy, a little mint (cross contamination?)
Steeped Tea Smell: grassy, hints of orange
Flavor: grassy
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: grassy
Liquor: translucent olive green

I like it better than most mate I have had, didn't get much orange, but i got a green tea flavor as opposed to the overpowering flavor i usually get from mate.

This was a gift from TeaEqualsBliss, Thank you!

Rating: 2/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

Compass Teas Loose Leaf Green Herbal Yerba Mate Tea 'Cherry Bomb'

Tea Information:
Tea: Cherry Bomb
Type: Green Herbal Yerba Mate Tea
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: Compass Teas
Purchase: Here
Description: Blast away that bad mood! This delicious cherry flavored tea is full of goodness and is sure to lift your spirits (especially since it tastes kind of like fruit punch when sweetened)

This blend contains Yerba Mate, which is a natural and nutritious stimulant that is said to help provide mental clarity, improve digestion, burn fat, relieve pain, enhance memory & immunity, and has a reputation for being a great energy & mood lifter.
Ingredients:
Yerba Mate- Mood lifter, weight loss aid, immunity booster
Green tea- Antioxidant rich, helps keep body hydrated, may help reduce your daily calorie intake which can lead to weight loss
Rose-hips- Vitamins A, C, D, E, antioxidants, immunity booster
Dandelion leaf- Mood lifter
Hibiscus- Vitamin C, immunity booster, weight loss aid
Cherry flavoring- Perfectly enhances the natural goodness of this tea
Rose petals- Accenting feature

Steep Information:
Amount: 3 tsp
Water: hot spigot water
Tool: kati loose tea system (my Review here.)
Steep Time: a little over 1 minute (http://steep.it)
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: fruity, floral
Steeped Tea Smell: cherry, fruity, floral, spring!
Flavor: cherry, fruity, floral
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: floral
Liquor: translucent orange-red

Enjoyable, makes this dreary winter day a little more like spring. I bet this would be good iced as well.

This was a gift from TeaEqualsBliss!

Rating: 3/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

Samovar Loose Leaf Mate Tea 'Peppermint Yerba Mate'

Tea Information:
Tea: Peppermint Yerba Mate
Type: Mate Tea
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: Samovar
Purchase: Here
Description: Flavor Profile: High-flying peppermint and eucalyptus are grounded with bittersweet earthiness.

Tea Story: Yerba Maté is the quintessential South American beverage. It is the national drink of Uruguay, where people sip it from hollowed gourds (known as chimarrao) through filter-tipped metal straws (called bombillas) throughout the day and commonly carry thermoses of hot water under one arm to replenish their brews.

Maté has some macho connotations because gauchos ritualistically consume it around campfires. However, serving maté is a standard welcome gesture and maté is a common beverage choice in variations on afternoon tea. Some el cebadores (maté drinkers) drink it straight, while others blend it with burnt sugar, orange, grapefruit or lemon zest, gin or fresh mint.

Our Peppermint Yerba Maté is an intensely invigorating blend of caffeine-filled maté and uplifting peppermint. The aroma is sweet, herbaceous and earthy with a tinge of bitterness. It has notes of fresh mint, eucalyptus, honey, dry leaves and sandy soil. The flavor is a balance of bittersweet earthiness and bracing mint, followed by aftertastes of bittersweet wood and earth that coat the tongue and mint on the roof of the mouth. It is incredibly refreshing, without the full-on caffeine of straight maté. This blend is organic certified, and the yerba maté was shade-grown for a smoother, less bitter taste.
Ingredients: Organic Argentinian shade-grown yerba maté, organic peppermint.

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 tsp
Water: 500ml filtered water 175°F
Tool: Breville One-Touch Tea Maker BTM800XL
Steep Time: 3 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: STRONG peppermint, then a little vegetal
Steeped Tea Smell: mild peppermint, hint of vegetal
Flavor: vegetal, sweet, peppermint
Body: Light
Aftertaste: tingly, vegetal
Liquor: translucent yellow-green

Read Steepster for other reviews here

I do not like grassy teas or yerba mate, but this one I found drinkable thanks to the peppermint. It's kind of soothing actually.

Rating: 2/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing

Samovar Loose Leaf Mate Tea 'Yerba Mate'

Tea Information:
Tea: Yerba Mate
Type: Mate Tea
Packaging: Loose Leaf
Company: Samovar
Purchase: Here
Description: Flavor Profile: Mineral rich, earthy and sweet with notes of bran, hay, and sweet grass.

Tea Story: Our honeyed take on Yerba Mate sweetened up a bit with the delightful anise flavor of organic licorice root. This herbal is the only herbal we have that has caffeine. Yerba Mate was originally sipped
by the Guyarani Indians in South America. Today, Yerba Mate has become a daily ritual all over South America and now San Francisco too.

In the fields and villages of rural Paraguay, Yerba Mate consumption provides a reflection of the strongest traditional values of rural Paraguay. When receiving guests, a host always invites them to drink Yerba Mate not just out of courtesy but also because of tradition.

Yerba Mate is customarily sipped from a gourd, called aguampa, through a metal straw, called a bombilla, while being passed from person to person. In this fashion, Yerba Mate is consumed in the presence of family, friends, co-workers or guests because it provides an opportunity for social interaction.

People take the time to visit, share ideas, and get to know each other while drinking Yerba Mate These customs demonstrate their place in Paraguayan culture as a tradition based in community and regard for others.

The people of Paraguay have enjoyed Yerba Mate for hundreds of years. Yerba Mate has been regarded as a traditional herbal medicine and healthy daily ritual throughout regions of South America. In Europe, it has been recommended as a stimulant that reduces stress, obesity, headaches, and arthritis.

The nutrients of this naturally caffeinated drink comprise of 24 vitamins and minerals, 15 amino acids, potent antioxidants, and 196 active compounds (superior to green tea's active compounds). Yerba Mate does contain caffeine (in spite of the "myth" about "mateine"). However, compared to coffee, Yerba Mat?contains up to 50% less caffeine. As a result, a serving of Yerba Mate provides a more balanced stimulation without the nervous jitters often associated with coffee and other highly-caffeinated beverages.

Yerba Mate is more than just a yummy herbal infusion - it is used as a tonic, a diuretic, and as a stimulant to aid gastric function in herbal medicine systems throughout South America and is regarded as a rejuvenating, healthy drink to aid in everyday life.

We tasted a lot of Mate out there, but finally hooked up with a small collective of family farmers in Paraguay to supply us.

We chose them for two reasons:
1. We really liked the full, strong, bittersweet, vegetal taste of their product.
2. We wanted to help support them maintain their traditional farming methods and culture. There are other small farmers all over South America who are currently seriously threatened by big agro-business, and they are being tempted to convert all of their farms to soybean production. The problem with soybean farming is that in a few years their land gets depleted of its nutrients, they use pesticides and chemicals to produce the biggest crops in the fastest way possible, and their local economy is threatened by big-business interests.

Brew up the best Yerba Mate around, and help to support these small family farms. We think mate tastes best when sipped in the traditional gourd, guampa, from the traditional metal straw, bombilla.

Samovarian Poetry: Bittersweet & vegetal, a antioxidant boosting beverage from South America

Food Pairing: Yerba Mate earthy and slightly bitter, but it pairs well with morning pastries: raisin bran muffins, croissants with lots of butter, Samovar's Quinoa Ginger Waffles.
Ingredients: Organic Argentinian shade-grown yerba maté.

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 tsp
Water: 500ml filtered water 175°F
Tool: Breville One-Touch Tea Maker BTM800XL
Steep Time: 3 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: bitter, vegetal, grassy
Steeped Tea Smell: grassy, vegetal, a little sweet
Flavor: sweet at first, then vegetal and grassy
Body: Light
Aftertaste: bitter
Liquor: translucent yellow-green

Read Steepster for other reviews here

I do not like grassy teas or herbal infusions, and this was grassy, even though a bit naturally sweet. BLEH

Rating: 1/4 leaves


Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing