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I’ve been wanting to try Matcha for a long, long time. But for whatever reason, I’ve been totally afraid of trying it. I kept thinking I was somehow going to screw it up, or that I would purchase poor quality Matcha and end up hating it. Finally, I broke down and purchased some moderately priced starter Matcha and tried it. I made lattes with it and it was okay, but nothing earth-shattering. So I decided to try a flavored Matcha, which brings me to this review for Caramel Matcha from Red Leaf Tea.

http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/caramel-matcha.html

I have always been a lover of all things caramel. I’ve probably tried every caramel cookie, cake, ice cream, tea, coffee, pastry, and countless other items that contain caramel. But I am very picky about caramel flavorings. Many of them taste too artificial, butterscotch-y, or are just too faint for me to enjoy. Happily, this Caramel Matcha did not disappoint me. When I received the package in the mail, I immediately knew my Matcha had arrived. There was a wonderful, strong smell of candy-like caramel coming from the package. After actually opening the package and smelling more caramel goodness, I knew I was in for a treat.

I decided to try this as a latte. So I prepared it using my usual method of 2 grams Matcha, 2 ounces of skim milk, 3-4 scoops of stevia, and 6 ounces of water. I whisked this up using my electric milk frother and tried it. It was very good, but a little strong. After adding another 2 ounces of water, it was close to perfection. This Matcha is very smooth and rich. Even though I used very little milk, it tasted so creamy. The caramel flavor is just right – enough flavor that you can definitely taste it, but not enough to outshine the flavor of the Matcha. This may be one of the best drinks I’ve ever made at home, and I’m actually kind of proud. I don’t have to make any more trips to Starbucks when I want a great latte. So I can save money, time, and calories. Hooray! I estimate that this whole drink took me 5 minutes to make, cost less than $1.00, and has about 25 calories. Plus I didn’t have to drive all the way across town to buy it. The only bad thing is, now I feel the need to try all of Red Leaf Tea’s other flavored Matchas. Oh well…

I think Teavana might have a problem with the consistency of their blend on this tea. While others have said the rose in this is subtle, I found the rose in my bag to be unbearably strong. The best way I can describe this tea in taste and smell is 25% Almond Biscotti and 75% rose air freshener. I’ve had plenty of rose teas before, but this just seems artificial and extremely overbearing. Somehow I managed to finish the cup, but it was probably just because I was too lazy to make something else. Considering this was supposed to be a “tweaked” or “upgraded” version of Almond Biscotti, I am seriously disappointed.

If someone is brave enough to give this tea a try, check out my swap list in discussions. I am willing to swap this for absolutely anything.

Excellent tea. Chocolatey with a very roasted flavor. I normally don’t like ginger in teas, but I can’t really taste it unless I steep for over 3 minutes. Unfortunately it loses most of its magic after the first steeping. The second steep was rather weak and not very chocolatey, but still retained the roasted flavor. Prepared with milk and stevia.

Thank you to The DJBooth for letting me try this one. It’s not harsh like I expected. There are no added flavors and nothing fancy – just a good, strong breakfast blend. I haven’t really paid attention to how much of an energy boost I get from it, but I think slightly more than your standard black tea. Once the stash in my cupboard goes down, I might need to get more of this. Prepared with milk and stevia.

It’s been a very crazy week for me, so I needed one of my favorite comfort teas. I love this tea so much! It’s chocolatey, creamy, and has just a bit of coconut flavor. This is a very flavored tea (you can’t actually taste much of the black tea, but that’s okay). Prepared with milk and stevia.

On a personal note, please send your best wishes and prayers to Minot, North Dakota and the surrounding areas. Thousands of us lost our homes this week due to record breaking flooding. Sometimes just knowing that others are thinking of us makes picking up the pieces a bit easier.

The last few weeks have been crazy for me (flooding, evacuating my home, moving back into my home, and now possibly having to re-evacuate my home). So today I decided I will drink only “Happy Teas” to make me feel better. This was the first one I reached for. It’s just as good as I remembered.

This is a truly great tea. Very creamy and buttery tasting. I am definitely getting the toasted coconut flavor from it. It’s kind of like a milk oolong with coconut. I may need to buy some of this when my sample runs out. Prepared with stevia.

I must be really weird. This is a coconut mango black tea, but I don’t taste any fruitiness. Instead, I taste… cookies!?! It is very buttery tasting and reminds me a lot of Lupicia’s Cookie tea. A very, very good tea, but not what I expected. This is actually one of my favorites. Prepared with almond milk and stevia.

I’m very impressed by this tea. The tea flavor is strong, yet smooth with no bitterness at all. The fruit flavor is very gentle and enhances the flavor of the tea rather than obscuring it. Prepared with stevia.

Upping my rating because this blend really grew on me. A little bit of salt really adds to the flavor. I will be repurchasing this one.