Tiesta Tea has a model that matches karma to tea type by individual presence. The idea is to focus on health and well-being, while addressing the drinker's palate preference. It's a nifty idea, really. However, with a blend called Crème au Chocolat, it's hard to categorize in terms of "health". This blend falls squarely in their "Energizer" category. And what a potential guilt bomb it is. Black tea is blended with chocolate chips and cocoa kernels (nibs?).

The black tea base looked to be either Assam or low-borne Ceylon - black, twisty, small-to-medium-sized leaves. Chocolate chips and cocoa pieces were as plain as day. The aroma also took away any mystery this might've had. It had all the subtlety of an ice cream truck. Not that that's a bad thing. Who wants mystery with chocolate? I sure don't.

There were no brewing instructions on the site to speak of. My usual approach with a black tea blend was boiled water and a three-minute steep. With the chocolate double-dose here, I chose to chance an extra minute - 1 heaping teaspoon-worth in 8oz of water. Might as well go in loud.

Par for course, the liquor infused to a dark red-brown with only a foggy transparency. The aroma consisted of dried chocolate (obviously), caramel, something cookie-ish, and a dirt-like earthiness. Like someone dropped cookie dough in hot water then rolled it around in the mud. Luckily, that analogy didn't translate to taste, which was all unsweetened chocolate with a floral and slight citrus lean; possibly from the black tea base. The citrus-cocoa kick made me think the base was an Assam, and that would make perfect sense given the chocolate "botanicals" at play here.

I haven't said this about any tea in a very long time, but this one almost requires sweetener to get the full crème effect. With a dash of stevia (don't knock it!), this had the taste of a French pastry. I don't know my French pastries, so pick one that has chocolate in it. It was probably something like that. I'm almost certain this would work as a latte as well. Not sure if I felt "energized", but I did feel sweetly sated. Too bad that wasn't a karma category to choose from.

— To purchase Tiesta Tea Creme au Chocolat, or for more specific information on ingredients or the story behind this particular tea, click here to go directly to the manufacturer's web site.

Geoff Teaviews.com Reviewer » Read more about this reviewer on Geoff's profile page. » Find a list of recent posts by Geoff.

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