TTTW: Exotica

Exotica

 This tea is described on their website as a 'spicy' herbal tea, and I think that's an exceptionally accurate depiction of it. It's a fun herbal tea with a nice kick to it. The main things you taste are definitely the lemongrass and peppercorn, which go surprisingly well together, and the cinnamon adds a nice after taste. It's a tea that goes very well chilled, and David’s Tea recommends it chilled as it’s in their Cocktail Collection. Great drink for lazy days in the sun, though there won't be much of that over the next few months.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Pineapple Oolong

Pineapple Oolong

I absolutely adore this tea, which says a lot coming from someone who really isn't a fan of pineapple. Its got a sweet, fruity taste, with a hint of pineapple, but not the typical overly sweetened stuff you taste in most fruit juices - a real pineapple flavor.  It's not overly strong, and doesn't need a sweetener of any kind. I'd recommend this to anyone, tea drinker or not, because it's not a strong tea taste either - one of the benefits of oolong tea.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Organic Mother's Little Helper

Organic Mother's Little Helper

For me, there's a story behind this tea. To summarize it, as a new driver, being rear ended for the first time is a little terrifying - or it was for me. So after the pure horror of having a Chevy Cruz bump into the giant mud tires on my jeep, I was a little rattled. Luckily I was just down the street from David's tea and only a few minutes away from this wonderful tea. The peppermint, though the first ingredient, wasn't over powering and the chamomile was enough to soothe my frazzled nerves. I'd recommend this tea to anyone having a stressful day or incident as a great way to let your worries disappear.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Love Tea #7

Love Tea #7

Unfortunately, this tea comes bearing a very poor review. Though the tea itself might be quite nice, I've discovered I'm not a fan of chocolate teas. Don't get me wrong, I love chocolate, but in a tea form it's got an unusual taste that's overly sweet, and mildly repulsive. If you're a fan of chocolate tea, it's a nice mix of strawberry and rose, but it's definitely a specific taste that you either love or hate.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Banana Nut Bread

Banana Nut Bread

So this is another fall tea, available from the beginning September to the end of October, and it one that tastes exactly as it sounds. It's a sweet tea, with a nutty-banana flavor. It's a great tea if you have a sweet tooth, but can definitely over powering if honey/sugar is added. The nuts add a very typical nutty flavor that is quite unusual in a drink - though multiple other nut tea reviews are on their way!

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Three Wishes

Three Wishes

This will be the first black tea I’ve posted about, which means it’s the first with caffeine. It’s a lovely tea with a strong jasmine flavor. It’s one that goes well with some sweetener, and is fairly refreshing. It’s kept me going today when I’ve had far too much to do in far too little time. This tea isn’t too overpowering with fruity flavors or anything, it’s just a nice black tea with a mild jasmine flavor.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Indian Summer

Sorry it's late, due to some liver issues I've been out for a week!

Indian Summer

Oxymoron. The first thing that comes to mind with this tea is how strange the name is in comparison to the taste. It’s a fall edition tea – only available through fall, and that’s honestly what it tastes like. It smells like apple and lemongrass, and the mixture it’s in makes you think of the leaves changing colour, comfy sweaters, and the weather getting colder; it’s all things associated with fall. I’ve tested my theory more than once, and each person I’ve asked to smell the tea agrees it smells the way fall feels. It’s fruity but not sweet, fruity as in pumpkins, without having a pumpkin flavor. Strange as it sounds it’s an amazing tea that I’ve yet to find someone who doesn’t like it.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: All the Raj

Sorry it's late, due to some liver issues I've been out for a week!

All the Raj

This tea is beautiful. It smells beautiful, it looks beautiful, and it tastes beautiful. That’s honestly the best way to describe it. I was amazed that a tea mostly composed of rose buds could be so delicious. It’s a very delicate taste, almost fruity but not quite. There really isn’t a great way to describe this tea until you’ve tried it. Once you have, it’s ‘that rose-ish taste’. It smells like a rose, and seeing as how I’ve never tasted a rose before, I’m assuming that it’s just what a rose tastes like. It’s one I’d recommend whether you drink tea or not, as the taste is so incredibly unique.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Organic Kanpe Tea

Sorry it's late, due to some liver issues I've been out for a week!

Organic Kanpe Tea

This tea is one that makes you feel good inside and out. It’s a strong tea, that despite how fruity it is, it’s still got a sour kick to it. I find it goes best with a teaspoon of honey. It’s delicious, and is a tea that goes great over ice – a similar taste to goji pop. So there’s how the tea makes you feel good on the ‘outside’, but it’s also a tea that makes you feel good about spending money on it. All profits from the Organic Kanpe Tea go to the Kanpe charity that helps rebuild villages in Haiti. So far they’ve been able to donate over 25,000$ to the Kanpe organization, and counting. To read more about the organization, and David's Tea's involvement click here: http://www.kanpe.org/home.html

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Midsummer Night's Dream

Sorry it's late, due to some liver issues I've been out for a week!

Midsummer Night's Dream

This tea is a difficult one to navigate, as it is called Midsummer Night Dream, but it’s not what I’d define as an evening tea. It’s a very fruity tea with a hint of mint that I find you can really notice in the after taste. This tea is quite refreshing, and a great one to help get you going. I find, as far as caffeine free teas go, it’s an excellent one to help keep you up when you’re doing some late night studying. Or it’s a nice one to have first thing on a cold winter's day to help wake you up. Either way, not a tea I'd recommend sipping on before bed.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Organic Cold 911

Sorry it's late, due to some liver issues I've been out for a week!

Organic Cold 911

This tea has got to be one of my absolute favourite. I keep a can of it at home at all times. With its mix of juniper berries, eucalyptus oil, orange oil and of course, peppermint, it is an amazing cure for the common cold. Its strong scent is enough to clear any congested sinuses, and the eucalyptus is enough to calm any raging sore throat. It’s a recommended go-to tea for the days you wake up feeling prepared to do nothing but cuddle up with a good movie/book, and eat chicken noodle soup.

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Bamboozled

Bamboozled

Now, sadly to say, this tea is one I'm not a fan of. It's relatively fruity, and has a rather interesting flavour. Or, the first few sips are interesting. After that, it becomes a dry, almost flat taste. I'm making the assumption it is the bamboo, which gave it a grainy flavour, similar to the dry feeling one gets after being out and around a farm for a day. The peach and pineapple were there in a small hint, but were very overpowered by the bamboo. Personally, I'm not a fan of the arid flavour; it was almost as though the tea had gone stale. If you're a fan of bamboo teas, I'm sure this would be lovely, but as I've discovered, I personally don't enjoy them very much. 

Namaste,
Saige

TTTW: Goji Pop

Goji Pop:

Prior to tasting this, I had never heard of a goji berry. I still don't have a very good concept of what it is, and there isn't another berry to compare it to. It's a berry flavour though, while remaining sweet and mild. It's a deep pink, and looks quite nice in a glass/clear mug. The flavor is almost something similar to a fruit punch. Slightly more tangy, and certainly not as strong, but the same mixed fruit taste that still remains very berry centred. Of the teas I’ve previously tried, I think this flavor is the hardest to pin point or compare. Several herbal teas aren't overly 'tea' flavored, especially this one. I'm a big fan of this tea, and highly recommend it to any of you who aren't big tea drinkers.

Namaste,

Saige



Health

There seems to be a trend in history for people from the ages of 14 to 25, a trend of self-loathing, a trend of self destruction. I realize people do that during their entire lives, but I find it especially prominent in what people are from the ages of 15 to 27. It's probably partially because around those ages we are considered to be in the best shape we’ll ever be. We're young, and beautiful, so full of life and desire. But due to media, we're only full of beauty and are desired if we look a certain way, and we’re only full of live if we exhaust ourselves trying to keep up with everything. We live in a continuously moving and improving society, and have to run and work our hardest to keep up. If we keep ourselves looking good on the outside, and keep up with the rate the world is spinning at, we're deemed healthy and attractive. We have lost sight of a balance, of what keeping your body healthy really means. Yes, I am all for going to the gym, and eating well to keep your body healthy. But we have no down time anymore. Sundays used to be days of rest, days to see family, sleep for a while, do whatever relaxing thing we choose. Work on Sundays used to be an appalling idea. Now we're so go, go, go all the time we miss out on our families, miss out on sleep, and miss all relief we have from out ever busy lives. Marathon runners, considered exceptionally healthy, are dying at unusually young ages. Why? They’ve stressed their body passed its limit. Taking some time to appreciate yourself, your life, and your very existence can do a lot to improve not only your physical state, but your mental one too.  One day a week, try to slow down. ‘Stop and smell the roses’. As cliché as it sounds, there’s a good reason it’s been around so long.

Namaste,
Saige

Tea Through the Week

Welcome to the world of David's Tea! They off dozens of options of herbal, black, rooibus, green, white, mate, pu'erh, and oolong tea, each type with a totally different flavor. I've grown to be a big fan of the herbal teas, but I plan to try each and every one of said teas, and post a little review on them each day. Starting on Monday October 15th, I will try a new tea Monday to Friday until I have sampled and reviewed them all for your reading pleasure!
Namaste,
Saige

Autumn Awakening

Alarm clock sounds,

Hit snooze twice, 

Teeth,

Hair,

Clothes,

Food,

Car,

And voila, you've started your day, probably still half asleep.

Mornings are so overwhelmingly busy, doing all the last minute things we procrastinated until now, and are now kicking ourselves over. Trying to decide how much effort you're willing to put into the outfit for the day, or your hair and make-up, or even your breakfast. We set ourselves up for great difficulties as our day is started while we are in such a dazed state. I offer you my quick fix for a better morning, and hopefully a better day - five minutes of peace. Set the alarm clock five minutes earlier, or spend less time on your hair for the day and take five minutes to do two simple poses to awake your body from the toes to the tips of the fingers. 

I came across these poses after my yoga class a little while back, when it was brought to attention, to my instructor's horror, that for some of the people in the class, this was their sole repose time during the week due to how busy everything becomes this time of year. So here's one of my morning retreats from the hustle and bustle of Autumn life:

Start with a comfortable space. No need to set up a mat and burn incense or anything, just find a space that isn't surround by rushing movement and noise. Stand with your legs shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent and your arms out to either side, palm up. Slowly bring your hands up above your head, interlock your thumbs and stretch your arms, lengthening your spine. Take a moment to enjoy the stretch before tilting your arms back to stretch through your chest. Only bring them as far back as you feel comfortable, and without bringing your hips forward. Spend a minute or two here, then release and bend over, leaning your chest against your still bent thighs. Rest your hands on the floor, palms up and allow your head to hang completely loosely and dangle between your arms. Again take a minute or two in that position before standing up. Take enough time as you stand up to feel your spine slowly align, vertebrae by vertebrae, not lifting your head until the rest of your back is vertical again. 

Yes, it's basically an over exaggerated stretch up and down, but taking the few minutes to do it and stretch your hands up, back, and down again gives you that little bit more. That little bit that might help turn an okay morning, into a great one.
Namaste,
Saige