Today's Tea: Feminini-Tea

Feminini-Tea from Steeped Tea

Description: Blended for emotional stability and stress relief.

(From Steeped Tea: Wellness)

Ingredients: Apple pieces, rooibos, ginger pieces, cinnamon pieces, cardamom, fennel, juniper berries, raspberry leaves, chamomile, lady’s mantel, cloves, orange peel, St. John’s wort, black pepper, silver weed, natural flavors.

Caffeine: 0 (Caffeine free)

Brewing Instructions: 1.5 tsp    100°C/212°F    4-5 minutes



Steph's Thoughts:
I was wandering around the Morden Corn and Apple festival yesterday, and I came across a little slice of heaven. Steeped Tea consultants (Christie, Charlene and Misty)  had a booth set up, and they had a stash of tea. Well, I knew where I was spending my money! (also, it was my "lost spot" - when I got separated from my group, they knew to find me at the tea booth. Everyone finds it hilarious. Perhaps I have a bit of a problem...)

They had a wide array of flavours and types of tea, and so choosing one... okay, SEVERAL, was quite the challenge. I was intrigued by one of the wellness teas called "Feminini-Tea." The catalogue touted it as "blended for emotional stability and stress relief," which made me laugh. If that's the case, I need a truck-load of this tea. In talking with the ladies, they said that it helps with "time of the month" cramps, and one of their customers calls it her "Anti-B**** Tea" (pronounced anti-BEE tea). I'm all about any non-drug product that alleviates cramps, though to be honest, they are few and far between.

Dry leaf notes are of dried apple and raspberry leaves. When steeped, the smell of cinnamon, cloves and cardamom come through. My thought on the first sip was that it tastes like chai with a bit of fruit in.  You can taste the apple, and upon more sips, it tastes a little bit like mulled cider with a hint of orange peel.

It DOES help with the cramps, though. I could've used this 2 days ago! I feel like it helped even out my mood as well, though it could've been because TEA in general, rather than Feminini-tea.

I would recommend steeping this tea for 4-5 minutes, as it does get quite strong when steeped longer. It took me quite a while to finish it because my Timolino keeps tea quite hot, and I steeped this in boiling water.

It doesn't require any sweetener, as it is fairly sweet on its own.


Verdict: It's really yummy, and effective. Total tea-cupboard staple.

Today's Tea: Super Ginger TeaPop!

Super Ginger TeaPop from DAVIDsTEA

Ingredients: Organic: Ginger, certified fair-trade green rooibos, pink peppercorns, black pepper, white pepper, flavouring.

Caffeine: 0 (caffeine free)

Brewing Instructions: 1.25 tsp    98°C/208°F 4-7 min

(From DAVIDsTEA: Super Ginger)

Brewing Instructions for TeaPop: 4 tsp     98°C/208°F 4-7 min  
Use about half (maybe a little more) of the water you would normally use to steep a cup. Pour steeped (and sweetened, if necessary) tea over a LITTLE BIT of ice (1/3 to 1/2 a cup) until cup is about a quarter to a third full and let it cool. Top up cup with carbonated water. Give it a stir. Enjoy.



Steph's Thoughts:
So I zipped into DAVIDsTEA today to top up my stash of Super Ginger, and there were NEW PEOPLE there! Kathie, the Chief Operating Officer, and Steve, the District Manager had graced the store. They're both totally awesome, and very friendly.

I had hoped to pick up something with a bit of ZING because I had a pretty awful afternoon at work. I was thinking a cold black tea, but Steve had another suggestion - a Super Ginger TeaPop.

Now, I've reviewed both Super Ginger and TeaPop in other reviews. Today I'm doing it together!

Having recently consumed Caribbean Ginger Beer, I would liken this to a very mild Ginger Beer or strong Ginger Ale. It's definitely got a lot more kick than, say, Canada Dry (which is actually very mild, and a little too sweet, to be honest). The nice part about tea pop is that you can put in as much or as little sweetener as you like. If you've got a Soda Stream, or a can of club soda (or a bottle of Perrier, or other such sparkling water, if you're so inclined), you're good to go.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - the thing I love about TeaPop is that it's carbonated, but without all the empty calories that pop would offer, and it's probably better for you too, without a whole crapload of additives.

The downside to using water from a SodaStream is that the bubbles tend to go a little flat over time. I suppose canned pop does too, but not to such a degree that SodaStream water does. Unfortunately, I forgot about my TeaPop due to the revival of the Household Drama Llama (otherwise known as an extremely whiny-for-no-apparent-reason dog, and an infestation of fruit flies which are EVERYWHERE, even after we cleaned up ALL THE THINGS), and so it kind of got flat. It does have a little more kick than normal tea (the only way I can explain it is microbubbles that only your tongue can feel), but none of the big bubbles that tell you your drink is carbonated.

A question my husband asked me about this, to which I did not have an answer, was, "Instead of having to quadruple-strength steep your tea, then cool it, then add carbonated water, could you just make a cup of cold tea and stick it in a SodaStream and make the tea bubbly?" I have no idea. Could you? I understand the logistics of not doing it that way in stores, as they probably make a lot of TeaPops over the course of a day, and it's a lot easier to use ONE bottle of water and just keep adding water and making it bubbly, rather than having to use, and WASH, a different bottle for every TeaPop. That, and the logistics of pouring each and every TeaPop INTO the bottle, which in my experience results in 10% of tea in the bottle, and 90% of tea turning the floor into a lake. So. But I mean, other than that, COULD you just stick your iced tea into a SodaStream? Inquiring minds want to know, readers!

So. What do I think of today's Super Ginger TeaPop? While it was carbonated, it was super. Now that it's less carbonated, it's ... really strong. And not quite as sweet as I would like. So, moral of the story is, ignore the Drama Llama and finish your tea. The drama will still be there when you're done, but the tea might not be good after you're done dealing with the drama.

Verdict: Yummy when carbonated. Especially good if you like Ginger Ale.