Simple Truth Organic

I’m not sure when or why my tastebuds changed, but I went from actively disliking jasmine tea to craving it. Maybe the strong aroma is no longer triggering my migraine brain like it once did…

This is cheap, off-the-shelf grocery store jasmine, which I wouldn’t exactly recommend (I’ve always found bagged green tea a bit iffy) but it works for my purposes, which is easy coldbrewing. Plunk four teabags into a liter of cold water, stick in the fridge overnight, remove the next morning, and add two tablespoons of peach syrup. It’s soooooo good! There is something about the floral/fruity taste of jasmine (I always get a sort of “grape candy” flavor from jasmine) mixed with the sweet peach that just works for me. I’ve been downing liters of the stuff during this unending heatwave.

Single bag from a TTB. The black tea here is pretty low quality. The spices are there, but they’re pretty mild. I prefer a spicier chai. This one is just a little bland, but not terrible.

Day 18 of Sara’s Old Tea! Part 6 of 6!

Finally done with day 18, heh. This is a nice mint blend. The spearmint stands out a bit over the peppermint. It’s nice if you’re feeling extra minty. Probably nice just before bed.

Post from yesterday when the site was borked (again…)

My stomach suddenly feels very nauseous… which probably means I have a migraine brewing in the background (GI often hits me first). Whenever the tum goes I always reach for either mint or ginger, and I have an unopened box of this… which was a handy replacement of a mint tea I really loved that I got from a friend that came from Trader Joe’s (which I don’t have in my area), that was called “Mint Melange.” I liked that one because it was a blend of peppermint and spearmint, with a subtle citrus touch from lemongrass. But they stopped carrying it. Now I’ve found that same blend under the Simple Truth Organic line in my local Fred Meyer (owned by Kroger). So simple, yet still my favorite of the “bagged mint” teas I’ve found because of the peppermint/spearmint/lemongrass combo. Soothing, and great warm or cold.

Admittedly, I never made a single cup of tea with this… at least, not that I can recall. After I ran out of ginger from my long-ago co-op run in San Francisco, I needed something to make ginger rice for my abysmal tum-tum days, and this seemed the best option I had available at my local grocery. The rice has been good, but I have to use quite a few teabags to get a good flavor. Will happily replace with straight finely chopped herbal ginger if I get so lucky again. Until then, this cheap tea is getting the job done.

Delicious jasmine green tea. This was my favorite tea before I discovered loose leaf teas. Very clean tasting with less bitterness than some of the other teabag versions of jasmine green tea I’ve tried.

I have never been the biggest fan of green tea, but I had some from Taylors of Harrogate that was Jasmine Green many years ago and fell in love with it. So, when I saw this product on the shelves at a local Kroger affiliate I figured I’d give it a try. I like to give organic things a fair try and see if I like them, often I do, and often I’ll switch. This was NOT one of those times.

When I opened the box I found tea bags wrapped in plastic wrappers. That alone was disturbing enough. The whole idea of a plastic wrapper being used in tea is just strange to me and totally contrary to what most people probably thing of when they go for an organic product. Next was the horror story that was this tea.

When I brewed it I did not notice a delicate green color, it came out a golden brown, which was strange, and the floral notes of jasmine were totally artificial in smell. Next came the tasting. It tasted like someone took dust and sprayed it with some sort of jasmine perfume. It was absolutely terrible. I poured the entire cup out and threw the box away.