Bedtime

Purchased this because I’ve been having some hectic sleeping patterns lately. Waking up in the early hours for no reason, being unable to sleep in the first place, or just waking up an hour after sleeping. Nothing like insomnia, and it hasn’t been for long, but it’s been annoying!! So here I am, resorting to herbal remedies first.

I was looking for valerian root teas and it was a toss-up between this one and Pukka’s Nighttime blend since both of them have won Great Taste awards… the other one had plenty more liquorice root in it, though, and when it comes down to it, I’m never going to be a fan of liquorice!! I’ll brave Yogi Tea’s love affair with peppermint and cardamom if it means I get to avoid the greater quantity of liquorice!

The fennel is the most dominant flavour here, and then naturally the peppermint and the cardamom, although the aftertaste is aaaaall fennel. I don’t actually know what valerian root tastes like so I’m unable to pick that out. Somehow this brew feels much more refreshing than sleep-inducing, but I suppose it’s just for settling the system? It’s enjoyable, either way — and I’m definitely appreciating the spices sweetening the fennel at the finish of each sip! (I might try the Pukka if I get through this packet and I’m still sleeping badly…)

Had this tea for the first time tonight, mainly because I have been having trouble sleeping lately. I used to hate licorice, but now don’t mind it. If you don’t like licorice you will hate this tea. Reminds me of throat coat a lot, except this one makes me yawn. Fingers crossed I get to sleep tonight :-)

I have a strong desire to like Yogi. In my mind they are a charming, honest little company run by Zen masters and herbalists, and they seem so sincere about their products. But then I try them and regret it deeply…

Unfortunately, Olivia and Auggy’s reviews are spot-on. It seems that Yogi tried to blend together every natural ingredient they could think of that promotes calmness and relaxation (just look at the description!) and then, discovering that the combination was nauseating, decided to try and mask the flavors with a surfeit of stevia. FAIL.

Contrary to Mary Poppins’ suggestion, you cannot in fact turn something distasteful into something delicious simply by drowning it with sweetener. Doubly so if your sweetener is stevia, which really does leave a weird, lingering taste in the mouth, sort of like aspartame on steroids. I was trying to place the uncomfortably familiar oral sensation I got from drinking “Bedtime” when I read Auggy’s review comparing it to vomiting and realized that she is absolutely right. (Though, I suppose if you’re used to stevia it may not faze you…in which case, disregard everything I wrote.)

As an added onus, “Bedtime” contains St. John’s Wort. For the uninformed (like me, until after I drank it!), this herb apparently interacts with many medications, including SSRIs, and can potentially cause some fun-sounding problems like “diaphoresis”, “mydriasis”, and “coma”. So do yourself a favor and check www.drugs.com before you even buy this tea.

…I’m relieved about the drug interactions, actually…it means I don’t have to feel guilty about not drinking any more of this!

*A quick note: It seems that “Yogi Tea” has recently rebranded itself as simply “Yogi” (probably because it manufactures cereal as well), so I’ve recategorized “Bedtime” appropriately. (You can see by comparison that they’ve redone their logo and box design, too!) There are still some older reviews of blends from “Yogi Teas”, but I’d suspect that newer reviewers will be commenting on teas from “Yogi”.

I actually really like this tea! I seem to be in the minority, though. It did take me a cup or two for it to really grow on me – I can’t really taste the mint, but can taste the licorice and a vague herbal sweetness. I don’t find it medicinal tasting at all. It’s already fairly sweet with the stevia, but I add a bit of honey because I have a ridiculous sweet tooth. Very relaxing and it definitely helps me fall asleep.

However, I did stop drinking it because it contains St. John’s Wort, which can apparently play havoc with hormonal birth control. Ladies, be warned! I miss having a bedtime tea, so I’m going to try the Kava Stress Relief by Yogi as a replacement.

I really dislike the Stevia in this tea- it leaves a weird aftertaste. Too flowery and sweet for me.

I don’t get why this tea gets so much hate. I personally like it. While it is room temperature, it can taste very bitter and the mint doesn’t make it any better, but otherwise I like the taste while it is freshly warm. I find it to have a very relaxing and calm aroma and very “natural” sort of taste although the honey-ish flavor at times can be overpowering.

This is one of those ‘take it like medicine’ teas for me. Yogi always uses so much licorice in their darn blends! They could make licorice-free versions and make me very happy. What keeps me coming back to Yogi (besides how effective the teas are) are the little messages printed on the tags. Good Earth Teas used to do that, but now they have plain white tags. Tonight’s tea fortune is “Real happiness lies in that which never comes nor goes, but simply is.”

A little philosophy with your tea, I like it.

The tea smells good but the taste is pure licorice. Oh snap, stevia? I knew this tasted sweet. Yuck. Like I said, take it like medicine! Hopefully good night soon.

This tea is great as a sleep or anxiety aid, however, the taste is really undesirable. I think it’d be alright sans the stevia, which leaves a nasty coating in your mouth and an overly sweet aftertaste. I’d even go as taking the cinnamon and raspberry out. It seems that all the flavors together are an overkill. I don’t know if it was a means to cover up the taste of some of the herbs, but it would have been better a bit simpler. Overall, a few bucks for the medicinal qualities of this tea is well worth it, but don’t expect to enjoy the flavor.

My bf and I have a nightly ritual where we brew this tea, take it to bed and read our “yogi tea inspirations” on the tea bag string. It’s a nice light tea, going down almost like water but with a light aftertaste of chamomile and spearmint. It’s a great way to wind down after a hectic day.

I was digging through the cabinet for something soothing. I’m already pretty weary this evening, so I’m hoping for a solid night sleep. I think I’ve been mixed up since DST.
This one reminds me of Traditional Medicinal Throat Coat but not as good. The licorice seems to hit me first and then the spearmint and cinnamon. It’s a rather sweet tea (Hi there, Stevia) and I don’t think adding anything more would improve it.