"TeaCo's Fruit 'Teas' are a rich and flavorful fruit drink that is made from a blend of dried fruit pieces, rosehips, hibiscus, and natural flavorings.
These 'Teas' do not contain any actual tea leaves, therefor they are cafeeine-free and provide a delicious and healthy alternative to our regular tea base. These blends contain no added sugar, so they are a low calorie alternative to regular fruit drinks. They are also a good source of Vitamin C and low in carbohydrates." -TeaCo
Ingredients: Dried Strawberry and Kiwi pieces, Rosehips, Hibiscus, and Natural Flavorings.
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For those that don't know, a tisane tea is just a fancy word for a herbal tea. Basically, it just means that there is no rooibos (which is sometimes considered a herbal tea too) or camellia sinensis in the blend. Herbal Teas are the ones that are dated back the furthest in history. Many plants and flowers have medicinal properties and for centuries people have been boiling these plants into teas to reap their benefits.
This specific tea contains rosehip and hibiscus. You will often see these two together in tea. Rosehip, or rose haw, is the fruit of a rose plant (not all rose plants make rosehip) that is usually a red-orange color, but can also range from dark purple to black in some species. It is a vitamin-C rich fruit and is often fed to chinchillas and guinea pigs as a way for them to get their vitamin-C. It's also given to horses to improve coat condition and hoof growth. It's vitamin-C content is so high that it's labeled as one of the most vitamin-C rich plants on the planet. Along with tea and a vitamin-C producer, it's also used to make Pálinka (a Hungarian brandy), the hairs inside rosehip are used in anti-itching powders (some, not all), and as a potpourri.
Hibiscus is rosehip's little partner in crime when it comes to tea. As I said before, they are often used together. Their flavors are mellow and blend well with nearly everything. Hibiscus is a flowering plant and it's the flower that is used in most tea blends. These flowers come in many colors; ranging from light pink and white to bright yellows and red-oranges. They also attract butterflies, but also bees. It too is rather high in vitamin-C. Due to it's beautiful coloring and myths surrounding the plant, a red hibiscus flower is traditionally worn by Tahitian women. A single flower is tucked behind the ear. It is used to indicate the wearer's availability for marriage. Some countries crush them up into a sticky juice and use them for making bubbles, this is mostly done by children. A 2008 USDA study shows consuming hibiscus tea lowers blood pressure in a group of pre-hypertensive and mildly hypertensive adults. Three cups of tea daily resulted in an average drop of 8.1 point in their systolic blood pressure, compared to a 1.3 point drop in the volunteers who drank the placebo beverage. Study participants with higher blood pressures readings (129 or above) had a greater response to hibiscus tea: their systolic blood pressure went down by 13.2 points. These data support the idea that drinking hibiscus tea in an amount readily incorporated into the diet may play a role in controlling blood pressure, although more research is required.
While rosehip and hibiscus is wonderful, it is not the star of this tea. The stars of this tea are the strawberry and kiwi. Personally, I would never put a real kiwi in my mouth. I dislike the texture very much, but I do love the taste. The strawberry even takes a backseat to the flavor of the kiwi in this tea. It's tart and yet very sweet. It even takes over most of the scent. That doesn't mean I can't taste the strawberry in it. When you drink it, the strawberry is most certainly the first thing you taste. It's sweet and smooth. But once it washes over your tongue the kiwi takes over and hits you with that strong tart flavor.
The color is very nice. It's a pretty, rose pink color. The longer it steeps, the darker the color. After a seven minute steep time, mine is bordering on a dark pink-red color. Since there is no tea leaves in it, you can steep it for longer periods of time without it becoming bitter. Also, since it's fruit drink, it does well cold or iced. I think it would be nice bottled up with some ice to take with you around town or to the beach. I can just imagine sitting on a beach chair with the sound of the waves and people splashing in the water nearby with my hand wrapped around a bottle of beautiful pink tea with ice cubes floating around in it. It being just sweet enough to wash over your tongue without feeling sickly-sweet with the heat of the beach sun. That would be wonderful.
Overall, a good summertime tea to turn into iced tea (which I'll probably do when it warms up more). Not something I would drink everyday or make for a party or house guests, but just something to sit outside with.
This is not likely to be a tea blend you're going to find sitting on your grocery store shelf, but there is always Amazon. When looking for a fruit tea, always look for brands that have fruit pieces in it. I'd also always recommend loose leaf for these teas, because then you can see the fruit pieces. If you want this specific tea, you can purchase it from TeaCo's website: www.teacoteas.com
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