Mother's Little Helper (Organic)

The past two days have been a bit rough, so I went out last night and picked up some of the Spring collection from DAVIDsTEA. I ineptly brewed a cup of Strawberry Fields this morning. I think I should stay away from black tea until I can brew it properly.

As my jaw and shoulders are very tight with tension, I made one of my favourites. This tea never fails to relax me. I want to pick up The Big Chill soon so I can have a bit of variety with my verbenas.

This was good, but not very original. Most herbal teas I’ve had use mint to kind of cover up what I assume are more medicinal, less appealing flavors. I do like mint, but I wasn’t wow-ed by the flavor. As for the relaxing benefits, I was already pretty relaxed as it was right before bed. I didn’t have trouble falling asleep…but I don’t have trouble with that too often so I am probably a poor test subject. Glad to have tried a sample though.

Day 11 of the 24 Days Of Tea calendar!

I had very, very low expectations for this tea. I hate chamomile. With a passion. HATE. IT. But…deal with myself…try everything except coco chai rooibos, which makes me gag it’s so gross.

Made a cup. Drank the full cup. THE FULL CUP. I did it, guys. It’s very minty, almost disturbingly so. Definite hint of lemongrass, but not nearly as strong a flavour as what you would expect given the appearance of the tea (95% lemongrass, maybe?). Not very rosehippy, even though I could see big chunks of rosehip in the half-tin I steeped. Very strange indeed. And not entirely unpleasant…but still had that not-so-tasty aftertaste of chamomile. So I drank the cup quickly to avoid the after-taste, and then finished it off with a small glass of raspberry lemonade. lol.

Verdict: not nearly as gross as I thought it would be, it is very nearly “good” if it wasn’t for the chamomile. Still a yuck after-taste. Would not buy.

Day 11 of the advent calendar. I didn’t love this one. The peppermint is nice. I enjoy peppermint flavour in tea. The hibiscus ruined it for me though. I’m not a fan of hibiscus to begin with but I can tolerate it if I find that it mixes well with the other flavours. I found it was too pronounced here. I’m also not a fan of chamomile. Luckily, the chamomile in this tea is mild so it didn’t bother me. I re-steeped this tea and the hibiscus was lighter and less offensive the second time around. This isn’t a tea I’d ever buy for myself. Just wasn’t that crazy about it.

Im only drinking this because I’ve been having tremendous difficulty falling asleep at night lately and I’m hoping this will help. Im not a fan of this tea simply because I despise chamomile but I drink it anyway because I know I need it. I’m not reviewing this for the taste as much as I’m reviewing for the potency and ability to help me fall asleep and thus far I’m feeling me eyes get heavy. Good job DT, not only do you make some tasty teas, you make some helpful ones too! BTW this is brewed in a teapot so the tsp and oz are quite large

Dry, this tea smells very fresh and minty.

After steeping it for 5 min in water that I let sit for about 2 min after it finished boiling and adding a spoonful of honey this tea is delicious as always. I made it in a clear mug tonight and it has a wonderful pink color, reminds me of watermelon juice for some reason.

After letting it cool for a while, I can finally have another taste of this wonderful tea. It’s light and fresh, with a fairly strong minty flavor, a slight grassy-ness to it, and an almost strawberry like taste. Perfect. Relaxing, soothing, and comforting all at once, my favorite bedtime tea.

This was perhaps my least favorite mint tea ever. It smelled like poop!

Maman died today.

The postcard came in the mail last night. I was asleep. I saw a man come in, however. He was dressed all in grey. He wore an off-tilted hat with a white ridge around the brim, and then he handed me the letter sealed with a gold wax seal. I thought it was a nice gesture as no one takes the time to put a nice seal on letters anymore. Without thinking, I responded with a “Thank You”, and the man drove away.

Afterwards, it struck me that I needn’t have said that. I had no reason to thank the delivery boy; he was probably getting paid to do it. I thought: how many more letters would he deliver that day? He reminded me of a fellow that I used to know; a friend, even, Raymond was to me. He lived a simple life. In the mornings, Raymond didn’t go out; it was only until the evening that he went out. He always had the company of a young girl, and he even told me one time that he couldn’t go on without them. He was unusual. Or was that Edward?

Regardless, the letter came to me – Maman had wanted that I see it. I peeled back the seal and peeked inside, but there was nothing in it. An empty envelope, inviting yet unsettling. Perhaps she had run out of time to fill it? Perhaps it was a message. A gift, even: hope. Maybe I could become somebody or do something as well. Without an interruption, I would have kept on going without a direction.

As soon as I had grasped these feelings, I began to feel drowsy again. I couldn’t fight back the sensation, so I began to think back to the man with the grey hat. He continued to go on doing his job; continued to go on working towards whatever it was that he was working towards, and went on despite fatigue or hunger. But his task, being so simple, so mundane, surely could not be significant. Rather, looking back down at the now open envelope, I began to feel disappointed. I thought that despite the white hope that Maman gave me, I would lack the ethic and would thus fail. I can’t fail.

I wish I could go on, but I must go to sleep now for the light is blinding.

http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/lost-in-translation-what-the-first-line-of-the-stranger-should-be

I don’t like the taste…. but man did this make me sleepy! Didn’t think it would work.

I recommend if you have trouble sleeping.

I’m not sure with what this tea is supposed to help mothers. Maybe they could use it as a punishment? “If you hit your sister one more time, so help me God I will get out the Mother’s Little Helper. Don’t make me do it!” That’s what I envision.

This tea. Just no. It tastes like what I imagine laundry detergent would taste like. You are avenged for the lavender chamomile, Virginia. I won’t rate this because I obviously have a problem with some flavor in here. I’m sure if you like all the ingredients, it would be…. ingestible?