Friday, January 9, 2015

Tasting: Pekoe Sip House


Lately I've been highlighting companies that offer sustainable tea while supporting the community and farmers. Today's tasting reviews are for Pekoe Sip House, another company making a difference. They have three cafes in Boulder, CO and recently launched an online tea shop. Pekoe Sip House offers sustainably sourced tea blends and contribute to the financial and environmental success of their community. You can visit this page to learn more about their strong values.

No Pain Rooibos

The company generously allowed me to select two teas of my choice to sample. I decided on the Sweet Spice Black Tea and No Pain Rooibos. There were many interesting teas to try, but these two grabbed my attention first. 



Let's start with the rooibos. I'm not usually a fan of rooibos, I don't enjoy the taste. But I wanted to keep an open mind so I asked for a rooibos blend. I've started to enjoy teas I never thought I would, so why not give it a try! 

The ingredients for the blend are: organic rooibos, organic apple, fenugreek seed, cardamom, lemon, black pepper, cinnamon, clove, ginger, and turmeric. The leaves have a very strong cardamom, masala chai-like scent. Rooibos and lemon are also quite prominent. The brew has a similar chai/lemon aroma. It has an interesting flavor, one I haven't encountered before. Earthy, tart, sour, spicy, and sweet all at once. Many flavors playing off of each other. I particularly enjoyed the clove, ginger and citrus notes in the brew. The tea is warming, sweet, and cozy. The rooibos flavor is quite tame within the spicy carnival. Ginger and turmeric are known to provide pain-relief. I'm not going to tout the health benefits of tea, but the headache I had before I started drinking the blend started to dissipate by the end of the tasting session.

Sweet Spice Tea
Now, on to the Sweet Spice Tea.  This is a whole leaf black tea blend, with orange peel and cinnamon oil. I think I may have mentioned awhile back that I love cinnamon tea in the colder weather. It's a super comforting, warm flavor. The leaves are spicy, sweet with a hint of citrus. It smells as good as it tastes. This tea honestly tastes like one of my most favorite spicy cinnamon teas but without the sneaky artificial flavor. The dry leaves have more of an citrus tang than the brew itself, which is fine by me. It is tingly, spicy, and satisfying. There is a pleasing sweetness as well, perhaps from the cinnamon oil. This is a tea I could drink daily in the winter, especially on blustery, snowy days. Imagine snuggling by a fire, looking out the window at gently falling snowflakes. This tea is the perfect enhancement to a peaceful winter moment. 

Thank you very much to Pekoe Sip House for the samples. Best of luck with your new online shop. If I'm ever in Boulder, I will make a beeline to one of your cafes! If you are interested in purchasing their teas, you can visit the online shop.


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