For today's tea review it looks like I need to add a few things to my typical protocol. Normally caffeine level is not something I discuss for a whole host of reasons. I don't have any way to test it, no one really talks about it, etc, etc. But this tea uses their caffeine level as part of it's marketing approach. On the front of their bag they have "As much caffeine as coffee*" statement so for me that means I need to cover it.
The other addition is price. Again most tea boxes come in around the same price give or take a dollar. This tea is almost twice as much as other teas I have reviewed and will review. For this tea I paid 7.99 plus tax for 15 pyramid bags. Because of this I will add my opinion into the Final Thoughts section on value. Onto the review.
Aroma
The tea comes in a zip lock bag where you rip off the top section in order to use the zip lock feature. Once through, you will be greeted by 15 pyramids. Because this type of bag is really flexible I was able to size up about how much tea is inside. I then verified what I found by ripping one open and actually measuring it. I found about 2 grams of tea. This turns out to be a pretty standard weight because nearly every green tea I have has 2 grams as it's typical serving size. The aroma when you first open the packaging is big on citrus and very small on tea. As you take more in the tea starts to come through.
So what is in this tea that gives it the aroma it has? From the bag:
Needless to say I read the entire article and a few others but this falls way outside my engineering background so I will just say, this is one of the more unique teas I've tried ingredient wise.
Steeping Method
Directly from their bag:
Given the level of caffeine I only added a 6 minute stress test to their times.
The Results
For this section please be aware that I did not perform this review in one sitting
like most other teas. Given the level of caffeine in this tea I didn't think that was a wise move. Also I don't drink coffee but I love a good espresso so I will use that as my caffeine comparison.
At the 4 minute steep time I found a lightly colored tea with a nice citrus aroma. The flavor was more citrus and less tea leaving me wanting a more balanced Earl Grey. I was looking to see if the flavor changed at all but there were no changes during the cooling. What you started with flavor wise was what you kept which means no complexity. As for the caffeine, it felt like an average shot of espresso.
At the 5 minute steep time the color didn't really change all that much, the aroma continued to be enjoyable but the flavor was about the same. What wasn't the same was the caffeine level. This time had me feeling a bit jittery but no worse then a double shot of espresso during a ride or before a workout.
At the 6 minute steep time the color did get a bit darker, there was about the same citrus aroma and the caffeine again went to the next level. The flavor was very citrus driven, still not balanced, but better. Cooling didn't change anything and there was no complexity. I was unwilling to finish the cup in one sitting and really had to take my time with this one. Obviously this is not what Zest suggested but as you know, we always stress test so there it is.
Re-Steeping
Given how the level of caffeine is a selling point for this tea I can understand if Zest doesn't suggest it. It's not listed on their bag but that is my guess. I tried the 4 minute bag and got a very thin tea when I went 5 minutes for the second steep. I personally wouldn't do it but it is possible.
Final Thoughts
This tea clearly has it sights set on getting people who drink tea for one reason (calm, zen, etc) and coffee (energy, zing, etc) for another to reconsider that choice. With catch phrases like "The rush without the grind" and "Not your grandma's tea" they are really going after the coffee drinkers. It's funny because back in the day, before espresso, I use to drink a Celestial Seasonings tea that was highly caffeinated before my workouts. This tea reminds me of that except in Earl Grey flavoring. So what are my final thoughts? As for the caffeine it's nice having an Earl Grey flavored pre-workout option if you don't mind a thin tea. My big concern is the price. At over 8 dollars for 15 servings it's not the cheapest tea out there but it's a heck of alot better for you then one of those canned energy drinks with all their sugar and chemicals. (Whether it's cheaper then homemade espresso is unknown) So I will leave this one up to you and end by saying, if you don't want/like coffee but want the caffeine boost, I'd check it out. If nothing else I know one thing, following this review I know my workout will go longer.
The other addition is price. Again most tea boxes come in around the same price give or take a dollar. This tea is almost twice as much as other teas I have reviewed and will review. For this tea I paid 7.99 plus tax for 15 pyramid bags. Because of this I will add my opinion into the Final Thoughts section on value. Onto the review.
Aroma
So what is in this tea that gives it the aroma it has? From the bag:
Flowery orange pekoe black tea, tea extract, natural begamot flavorIf I were a betting man I would guess that the tea extract part is where the extra caffeine comes from. Which brings us to the next quote from the bag:
L-Theanine, a rare amino acid found in Zest Tea helps prolong the energy and alertness while reducing the jitters and crash associated with most caffeinated products.Again if I were a betting man I would double down on their tea extract as the source of the caffeine and the amino. Now to be fair, it's been a long time since I took my last chemistry class so I did some research:
Tea is known to be a rich source of flavonoid antioxidants. However tea also contains a unique amino acid, L-theanine that may modulate aspects of brain function in humans.source: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Needless to say I read the entire article and a few others but this falls way outside my engineering background so I will just say, this is one of the more unique teas I've tried ingredient wise.
Steeping Method
Directly from their bag:
Use boiling water and steep for 4-5 minutes
Given the level of caffeine I only added a 6 minute stress test to their times.
The Results
For this section please be aware that I did not perform this review in one sitting
At the 4 minute steep time I found a lightly colored tea with a nice citrus aroma. The flavor was more citrus and less tea leaving me wanting a more balanced Earl Grey. I was looking to see if the flavor changed at all but there were no changes during the cooling. What you started with flavor wise was what you kept which means no complexity. As for the caffeine, it felt like an average shot of espresso.
At the 5 minute steep time the color didn't really change all that much, the aroma continued to be enjoyable but the flavor was about the same. What wasn't the same was the caffeine level. This time had me feeling a bit jittery but no worse then a double shot of espresso during a ride or before a workout.
At the 6 minute steep time the color did get a bit darker, there was about the same citrus aroma and the caffeine again went to the next level. The flavor was very citrus driven, still not balanced, but better. Cooling didn't change anything and there was no complexity. I was unwilling to finish the cup in one sitting and really had to take my time with this one. Obviously this is not what Zest suggested but as you know, we always stress test so there it is.
Re-Steeping
Given how the level of caffeine is a selling point for this tea I can understand if Zest doesn't suggest it. It's not listed on their bag but that is my guess. I tried the 4 minute bag and got a very thin tea when I went 5 minutes for the second steep. I personally wouldn't do it but it is possible.
Final Thoughts
This tea clearly has it sights set on getting people who drink tea for one reason (calm, zen, etc) and coffee (energy, zing, etc) for another to reconsider that choice. With catch phrases like "The rush without the grind" and "Not your grandma's tea" they are really going after the coffee drinkers. It's funny because back in the day, before espresso, I use to drink a Celestial Seasonings tea that was highly caffeinated before my workouts. This tea reminds me of that except in Earl Grey flavoring. So what are my final thoughts? As for the caffeine it's nice having an Earl Grey flavored pre-workout option if you don't mind a thin tea. My big concern is the price. At over 8 dollars for 15 servings it's not the cheapest tea out there but it's a heck of alot better for you then one of those canned energy drinks with all their sugar and chemicals. (Whether it's cheaper then homemade espresso is unknown) So I will leave this one up to you and end by saying, if you don't want/like coffee but want the caffeine boost, I'd check it out. If nothing else I know one thing, following this review I know my workout will go longer.
