Buddha Teas

Buddha Teas was kind enough to offer up some tea for reviews, and I accepted. I was surprised when I opened the box and saw that it was bagged tea. Uh oh! Usually bagged teas aren’t very good, but I soldiered on.

Let me say, the packaging is gorgeous. It is definitely eye catching, and of very high quality materials. Really well done.

My next “uh oh” moment came when I read the package and saw that they recommend steeping up to 10 minutes. For this review I went with a shorter steep but at some point will try it the other way.

I have to say, this tea really surprised me. It was really good! I’m not sure that I would have known it was bagged tea if I had done a blind taste test, so kudos on that. In this case, the bag makes it really convenient since it can be used on the go. I love it when I am surprised like that.

I found the tea to have a hearty flavor and that “oolongy” taste (what makes that anyway?) This tea is definitely worth taking a look at. Don’t let the bag scare you!

I am so sleepy! I have been awake since 8 o’clock last night, yep, my sleep schedule is doing that funky flip from nocturnal to diurnal that it does ever so often. Usually it happens to me the most during winter and summer, probably because I am less likely to leave my house, I am a giant weenie when it comes to temperature extremes. I am finding myself debating going to sleep after I get done with today’s tea or waiting until Ben gets home from work at midnight, though I seriously doubt I will make it that long without the help of tea!

And speaking of tea, how about we jump right into Buddha Teas’ Organic Crown Chakra Tea, a blend of Lavender, Rose, and Nutmeg while also being infused with the essence of amethyst. Ah amethyst, such a beautiful form of quartz, beloved by the ancient Greeks because they believed it would keep you from getting sloshed! I could go into detail about how these herbs were selected for assisting meditation and awakening the Crown Chakra, but I will admit that I am very much so not an expert on Chakras, having only dabbled in the past. I do know that the aroma of this tea is intense, I could smell the lavender from outside of the box it was shipped in, so that was a first! After I waft through what feels like a cloud of purple and give the teabag a sniff, I do notice a hint of rose and a delicate hint of warm nutmeg, the little bit of spice goes nicely with the headiness of the flowers. Man is that lavender some intense stuff, I currently have it sitting on my desk as an air freshener, and feel a little fear storing it with my other teas.

Brewing the tea seems to mellow the lavender out and makes the nutmeg and rose stand out more. The rose is reminiscent of a summer rose garden, heady but not overpowering, the nutmeg adds a slightly sweet warmth to the brew. I do wish I would have reacted a little quicker, because the moment I poured the water onto the teabag it turned the water vibrantly purple, this faded to the color I actually snapped with my camera, but still the purple was cool.

The taste is pretty intense, but I am drinking a tea made out of lavender and roses, it being anything other than a heady flower explosion would just be sad. I will say that this is not for the faint of heart, the rose is a heady perfume and the lavender borders on soapy, at the finish there is the warmth and subtle sweetness of nutmeg. There is a little bit of bitterness, in a floral way, if you have ever indulged in teas made from certain flowers you will know this bitterness, of course adding a little raw honey gets rid of that almost herbaceous bitterness immediately and turns the tea into a floral sweet treat with a spicy finish. So, I liked this tea, but I like really strong flowery teas, I could very easily see it being something that is very hit or miss with people.

For photos and blog: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2015/02/buddha-teas-organic-crown-chakra-tea.html

Backlog:

I’ve never made any big secret about the fact that I prefer loose leaf over the bag – I think most of us here do. So, when this tea was sent to me to review by Buddha Teas, I really had my doubts. Oolong teas just shouldn’t be in a tea bag, they need that room to expand.

But I tried to go into the review with an open mind.

The box says it’s a four seasons Oolong, but I would question that because I’ve had a few four season Oolong teas and they weren’t like this. This reminded me more of a Formosa Oolong. It was toasty and warm with more fruity notes than floral notes. The four seasons Oolong teas that I’m familiar with have always been more floral and vegetal than toasty/warm and fruity.

I thought maybe I steeped it wrong so I got another bag and tried again – and got the same results … this is definitely more like the Formosa Oolongs than the four seasons Oolongs that I’ve known.

It’s still a pretty tasty tea – regardless of ‘name’ and even regardless of the bag. Sure, it’d probably be even better without the bag but it’s pretty good.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/12/13/organic-oolong-tea-from-buddha-teas/

This was a box sent out to me by Buddha Teas. I really appreciate your generosity! They have an impressive selection of healing herbal teas on hand. I especially want to try their chakra teas one of these days!

Before I begin, I must give a little bit of a disclaimer. I have been dealing with migraines for quite some time. I almost always have a headache and the stupidest things can trigger intense brain pain at any moment, causing me to be mentally and physically crippled for hours on end. Even scrolling on my phone too fast will set it off. My type of headache is typically tension related.

That being said, I have a few tips and tricks that I do to help me ride the wave. I have read recently that feverfew is really effective in easing migraines. I was super stoked to be able to try this tea out from Buddha Teas.
The packaging is pretty slick, the feel of the box is much nicer than the usual store bought cardboard. Although I didn’t think it was necessary for the little glue strip keeping the lid on, I thought the package was fine without it. (actually, I thought it was some kind of booger at first! Lol)

The teabags are wrapped in the same color black velvety-textured material. The teabag is your average paper teabag, although I liked that this was made from eco-friendly items. There is also a cute little quote on each of the teabag labels.
Now on to the steeping! I used boiling water and tested steeping at 4 minutes and at 8 minutes. I believe the 8 minute mark is best for this type of tea because it allowed the subtle flavors to become more prominent.

The flavor of this tea is very fresh and herbaceous. The lemony tang of the lemongrass shines through as the main flavor. If the lemongrass wasn’t there, I may be able to tell what feverfew tastes like. I’m glad it is not an unpleasant addition. Rather, it is the most crucial.

I took this at the first sign of an oncoming migraine. I forgot to take any kind of painkiller, like I usually do. I put a heat wrap on my neck and sipped on this tea instead. I noticed that the coupling of these two factors help keep my migraine at bay. It felt pretty effective and it worked pretty quickly. I think almost any trace of my headache was gone in about 20 minutes. Which is a life saver for me!

Thanks Buddha Teas for letting me review your selection!