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January 01, 2005
Madagascar Vanilla Red Rooibos Tea
Name: Madagascar Vanilla Red Rooibos Tea
Kathy's Rating: 7.5/10.0
Company: Celestial Seasonings Teas
Origin of tea: South Africa and Madagascar
Price: ~$3/20 tea bags (42g/1.5oz)
Tea form: Herbal rooibos with vanilla flavoring and vanilla beans.
What they say: With its magnificent fragrance and lush taste, this naturally caffeine-free red tea flavored with real Madagascar vanilla beans resonates with the wonders of Africa.
Preparation method: Boil water and pour over sachet. Steep for 4-6 minutes.
Review: Rooibos (pronounced "roy-bus") is an African shrub from which the leaves are used to make this tea. Although rooibos tea is called red tea, it is not naturally caffeinated, nor are the leaves from the traditional tea plant known as 'Camellia sinensis'. In fact, the Chinese sometimes call black tea 'red tea'. This is not to be confused with African red tea, which is more like an herbal tisane. OK, now that I have gotten some of the semantics out of the way, let's move on to the taste. Rooibos tea is pretty mild on its own. I think it needs extra flavoring to give it a stronger character. Celestial Seasonings has done just that by adding a natural vanilla flavor and vanilla beans. I didn't think the vanilla taste was going to be very strong, but it was. I like this tea because it's great to drink before bed - no caffeine. The vanilla taste is very pleasant, and I would even call this tea a 'dessert tea'. I will confess that I have purchased International Delight coffee creamer (French Vanilla flavor) in the past - and drank it straight up. This tea reminds me of the creamer, without the sugar. Very creamy and perfect for before bedtime. I'm giving it a 6.0/10.0 as opposed to a higher score because I think the tea would taste even better if the ingredients were just rooibos and vanilla beans. This would obviously bump up the price of the tea (vanilla beans are costly compared to vanilla flavoring), but I think it would give the tea a richer and more sophisticated taste.
*Revision* (1/7/05)
I have decided to raise the rating for this tea. Initially, I gave it a 6.0/10.0, but now I'm modifying the score to 7.5/10.0. The reason I'm changing the score is because I have been drinking this tea before bedtime for nearly a week now, and it seems unfair not to rate a tea that I consistently drink more highly. I can only imagine that this tea might reach a 10.0 if it was processed as I suggested in the previous comments.
Posted by Kathy at January 1, 2005 10:20 PM