Tazo

At Starbucks with iced Zen, unsweetened, light on the ice. :) Nom nom.

I drank this several times over the weekend, iced and unsweetened from Starbucks. My favorite iced tea. :)

I didn’t like this the first time I tried it and I liked it even less the second. The vanilla tastes artificial and there’s something just off about the flavor combination.

Although extremely hot when I first tried it (not a fault of the tea, just Starbucks), once at an acceptable temperature the tea became quite enjoyable. The lemon flavors give the tea a refreshing punch that cleanses the palate without overpowering the tea. The subtle mint flavors are a nice touch as well. It is a little generic in flavor as far as green teas go, but it seems like a decent option if you’re looking for a green tea.

I made the mistake of ordering a chai and thinking it was similar to a regular tea with milk (still getting into this whole tea thing). So being that I have come to discover I’m not the biggest fan of chai, I don’t think this review will be all that helpful. However, the tea has a good creamy consistency (I assume this is characteristic of most chais) and the berry flavors come through strongly. I can’t quite pick out what the actual berries are but they are fairly tart and strong and must be darker berries given the brownish purple color of the tea. If you like chai and tart, sweet berries, this may be for you. If you don’t like the spices of chai…I would pretty much stay away from chai in general.

I can see why Tazo describes this tea as having “boldness” and being “invigorating” but I’d interpret those qualities in a negative manner. The tea is harsh and has actually left a slight burning sensation in the back of my throat. Sure its “invigorating”, but invigorating in the same way as I imagine chugging mouthwash would be invigorating and bold. I usually stick to lighter teas, so maybe I’m biased, but this isn’t quite my cup of tea. Please excuse my cheesiness.

Too bland for my taste.