Tealeaves sells a large selection of both loose-leaf and bagged custom-blended teas to tea lovers around the globe. Shortly after the company was founded in 1994, the company’s teas were featured at Four Seasons Hotels, first in Vancouver, later in New York.
By 2000, the company had gone global, providing products for the German market, numerous hotel programs, and The Disney Company. Tealeaves reached yet further afield to begin operations in London, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, and Guadalajara. Their client list is impressive, making them a leading tea purveyor in the industry.
Last week, I was sent a variety of teas to sample, from a whole leaf pyramid tea sampler box to Winter Escape, a holiday blend meant to warm the senses with its rich aroma and textured taste.
[Tealeaves Winter Escape blend]
Winter Escape is a colourful, seasonal blend, available in limited quantities. I’ve been enjoying the soothing minty taste that helps boost your energy (with a high caffeine count) during the darker winter months. I detected a slight hint of chocolate as well.
Tealeaves’ loose-leaf tea tins contain an extra metal enclosure to keep moisture out. I opened up a foil package of Organic Pear Tree Green loose-leaf tea to fill the pretty little tin with.
Pear fans will love breathing in the strong aroma each time the tin is opened. The Estate China green is also well integrated into this blend, making it a great year-round tea.
[Tealeaves Organic Pear Tree Green tea]
White Blossom has a mild aroma, with rose and lavender buds and essences peeking through the white leaves. This tea has the benefit of being high in antioxidants while being low in caffeine. I enjoyed a few lemon creme cookies while sipping this one.
[Tealeaves White Blossom blend]
While I haven’t taken a long-distance flight recently, I did sample the Jetlag A.M. Therapy (Energy) tea from the sampler box. Its mint and citrus aroma creates a refreshing tea once steeped. Traces of citrus peel, cloves, and fennel can also be tasted in this blend. Its compliment is Jetlag P.M. Therapy (Relax), a light, floral herb tea with Valerian, passion flower, chamomile flowers, lavender, lemon balm, and rose petals.
Other teas we sampled were the Organic Chamomile Blossom, Organic Lavender Earl Grey, Organic Long Life Green, Monsoon Chai, Organic Breakfast, and Organic Vanilla Rooibos.
While my husband found a favourite in the Organic Lavender Earl Grey for its contrasting smooth lavender and crisp black flavours, I particularly enjoyed the Organic Vanilla Rooibos – with its creamy vanilla taste – at the end of a long day.
Each tea features information on where the tea was harvested, its aroma and palate, ingredients, and preferred steep time on the back of the packet. A tea steeping chart can also be found on Tealeaves’ website. The detailed chart also includes the best condiments to serve with each tea. Tea lovers can also check out the ritual of tea-making here.
We were sent Tealeaves teas for the purposes of sampling and of writing this article.
