New Variety of Celestial Seasonings

As a practicing tea addict I was quite intrigued when offered the chance to test some new varieties of Celestial Seasonings teas. I’ve long been a fan of their Sleepytime tea and was thrilled to hear that they had added a new variety to that line, along with some supposedly less bitter green teas. My love affair with Sleepytime predates my tenure as a tea snob, so I knew without question which box I would be tapping first.

Sleepytime Vanilla

The classic blend of spearmint, chammomile and lemongrass has long been a favorite of mine, even after a brief flirtation with other chain’s herbal sleep tisanes. While I can’t say that any of them are overwhelmingly soporific for me (I am a chronic insomniac) I can say that they make an excellent addition to night time ritual. Chammomile is an apple-scented soother that goes well with any number of other herbs, but the spearmint and lemongrass play remarkably against it. The addition of a vanilla note to the mix is one I haven’t tasted elsewhere, and one I wholeheartedly approve of. The creamy, smooth note added by the vanilla rounds out the flavors in the cup quite well, and makes an already pleasant bouquet heavenly. I think this one would be a nice addition to anyone’s herbal tea collection but will be even more appreciated by those existing Sleepytime fans who are looking for a little something more. I can also say that this was my cup of choice the few days this week that I was feeling under the weather. Both iced and hot, this was a very comforting cup. This would also make an excellent introduction to hot drinks for kids ready to try one due to it’s mild taste and caffeine-free nature. It was one of the very first brewed teas I was given when I was young (the other was Peppermint) and can definitely lead to an appreciation of herbal teas in general.

Green Teas: Blueberry Breeze Green Tea and Decaffeinated Green Tea

Celestial Seasonings blended their new line of green teas with Bai Mu Dan white tea, a milder and sweeter form of tea than traditional greens. I don’t usually have any issues with green teas being too tannic or bitter for me, but I have had many green tea bags that were just plain nasty presented to me in the name of a healthier drink than black because of the antioxidants present in green. After those less than stellar experiences I’ve been avoiding bagged green in favor of loose teas of higher quality. One thing that many people mess up when brewing green teas (or white, for that matter) is that they are not brewed for the same length of time or at the same temperature as black and herbal teas. Green teas call for much shorter brewing times to prevent an onslaught of the bitterness commonly complained about, and I was happy to see a shorter brew time recommended on the boxes of green than on the box of Sleepytime. I brewed a cup of both according to their directions, a cup in my automated teamaker set on green and then another round left to overbrew in too hot water, as many are likely to do in everyday situations.

First, I was quite pleased with the Blueberry Breeze. I like blueberry flavored teas, and this one had a nice balance and didn’t taste like fake blueberry plastic like many of the other blueberry bagged teas I’ve tried. It was pretty good hot, but even better iced with a pinch of sugar to make the berry flavors pop. No matter how I brewed this one it came out well, but well blended flavored teas have a bit of leeway compared to their straight counterparts.

The Decaffeinated Green was a bit of a surprise, since I don’t drink a whole lot of decaf tea, not from any caffeine prejudice but simply because most of the ones I prefer are caffeinated. I tried many cups of this one at different brews and temperatures, and the addition of the white tea into the blend is subtle but helps a lot with the tendency to overbrew since it’s nearly impossible to brew white tea to bitterness. The sweeter white tea tempers the astringency of the green just enough to take the edge off but still allow it to taste like green tea. I found I liked this one a lot iced with some sugar and will probably finish off the box that way.

Overall I’d say that while Celestial Seasonings teas aren’t ever going to win taste tests against high quality loose teas (and they aren’t meant to), they are improving the green base enough that I would consider keeping a box or two from the collection in my cupboard and enjoy them from time to time. The box art from this collection is too gorgeous not to mention, and just for that reason I’d probably keep a box sitting on my desk just to look pretty. I’ve always thought Celestial Seasonings did the best job with their herbal tea collection and this new version of Sleepytime hit it out of the park for me. It’s a new twist on an old classic that makes sense and tastes wonderful, so of the three I would definitely rank it a winner. Sleepytime is a tea that everybody should have in their pantry for whenever they need the tea equivalent of a hug, and the Vanilla Sleepytime is a welcome addition to the family.