52Teas is a brand I came across when I was looking for blended teas and the brand was highly recommended online. I loved the concept of 52Teas: “…a new small batch custom blended hand-crafted tea EVERY WEEK!” The mother/daughter team took the company over from another tea vendor and used Kickstarter to raise the capital needed.
When I reached out to Anne (the mother and self-described “mad tea artist”), she was extremely helpful and guided me through their vast amount of blends. I was very flattered when she told me that she enjoyed the concept of my blog and wanted to send some tea for me to try.
Since then, I’ve become a repeat customer of 52Teas. I’ve enjoyed both the customer service (Anne is very quick and detailed with her replies) and all the unique blend of teas! Currently, I have a handful of their teas, so, I’ve sorted them into categories – either by type of tea or taste – for the multiple blog posts.
Today will be green teas! On the label, it mentioned shaking the pouches to redistribute the ingredients and to allow the liquor to cool for 5 minutes for the best flavour.
Let’s go!
52Teas: Watermelon Houjicha
Description: “The warm, toasty flavor of the Houjicha may not seem like a natural pairing with the sweet, luscious notes of watermelon but I’m enjoying the flavor combination.”
Review: The blend was very pretty with its bright pink amaranth petals contrasting against the chocolate-brown houjicha. The steeped tea had a sweet aroma and a thick mouth feel. The amber liquor smelled and tasted like candy watermelon, with a lingering roasted flavour (3/5 rating).
- Type: Green tea
- Origin: Japan
- Caffeine: Low
- Ingredients: Roasted green tea, amaranth petals, and natural flavors
- Other: Organic
- Company: 52Teas
52Teas: Rosemary Tangerine Green Tea
Description: “[T]here’s a big, bright tangerine note and the rosemary adds a really nice, earthy flavor with just a hint of pine-like and mint-like notes.”
Review: The dry blend has an intense floral/earthy aroma. After steeping, the liquor was yellow and slightly drying in the mouth. However, the flavours were very muted, with only a hint of grassiness. I was really hoping for a more floral or citrus flavours (2/5 rating).
- Type: Green tea
- Origin: Africa, China
- Caffeine: Medium
- Ingredients: Green tea, organic green tea, dried tangerine sections, organic rosemary, organic natural flavors
- Company: 52Teas
52Teas: Blueberry Mojito Green Tea
Description: “But this is even better than that Blueberry Mojito that you might order at that trendy bar – because this has tea in it too!”
Review: Since ‘blueberry’ is in the title of the blend, it isn’t surprising that the dry blend had a very strong blueberry flavour which became mintier after steeping. Maybe taking from the mojito part of the name?
The flavour was very subtle – mostly mint, with a tail end of berry notes. The yellow liquor was thin, with a fair bit of astringency. Since the blend was based on a cocktail, I imagine that this would be best served iced, which may bring out more of the flavours (3/5 rating).
- Type: Green tea
- Origin: China, Africa
- Caffeine: Medium to high
- Ingredients: Fair-trade green tea, organic green teas, organic freeze-dried blueberries, organic spearmint leaves, dried lime segments, organic lime leaves, organic natural flavors
- Company: 52Teas
Final Thoughts
I still really enjoy this brand, even if one of their teas wasn’t my favourite. Of the three, I liked the Watermelon Houjicha the best. I wish the other two were just a tiny bit more complex in their flavours. That being said, I have some interesting blends (Tomato, Basil & Black Pepper Black Tea anyone?) from 52Teas coming up, so I am excited to try those ones!
