I was introduced to Tea Xotics at the World Tea Expo this year. Tea Xotics is an online tea seller (and Tea House) based in Shingle Springs, California. I love the packing their teas – the graphics are pretty and there is something about white packaging on tea that makes it inviting, clean and a change of pace.
Tea Xotics has many really cool tea blends in their tea line up. The tea we’ll be checking out today is Aloha Girl Tea, a rooibos and honeybush tea blend with island fruits such as pineapple and ginger. Yes, another Hawaii themed tea!
Dry Leaf
I wish I had more information on the ingredients list – my package even says white tea on it, but online it says otherwise plus the tea mostly looks like rooibos/honeybush. Lots of flower petals in yellow, purple and hibiscus reds in this blend, along with big pineapple chunks.
I found this blend needed lots of stirring as the rooibos loved to sink to the bottom of the bag. Aloha Girl Tea‘s leaf smells really fruity!
Steeping Instructions
The steeping instructions state to steep 1 tablespoon of tea in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. After 2.5 minutes is had a fragrant and fruity cup of tea with the deep liquor, almost like a black tea!
Tasting of Tea Xotics Aloha Girl Tea
Oh wow, lots going on in this tea! Sips in juicy, fruity sweet and very flavorful. I taste mostly a tropical fruity flavor with the main fruitiness being pineapple. There is a light hint of spicy warmth that peaks end of sip – this warmth might be the ginger, but I can’t taste it. Aloha Girl Tea finishes with a bit slight tartness, 2/10 on the Tart-0-meter. The cooler Aloha Girl Tea gets, the more tart it becomes. If you aren’t familiar with my tastes, I dislike red rooibos. Aloha Girl Tea has little red rooibos taste, masked with the huge fruity flavor, which adds a backdrop of earthiness throughout the sip. This blend is not watery as some rooibos/honeybush blends can get and no bitter or dry qualities.
Iced: I iced a big serving of Aloha Girl with a splash of light agave syrup for extra sweetness. Aloha Girl iced is really good – I prefer this over the hot cup as it is really fruity and bright! Lots of pineapple flavor (with a tropical background fruit flavor), refreshingly sweet, and a bit of warmth from the spice. I can taste a good earthy sweet background that matches well with the light warmth and tropical fruit flavor.
Comments
Tea Xotics‘ Aloha Girl Tea reminds me of being on the black beach in Hilo with the sun setting. This rooibos blend has a great tropical flavor with a splash of warm spice. Best iced, this is a great rooibos tea that has plenty of flavor!
(tea provided for review)
