Happy Sunday! Here in Chicago, it's been quite a warm weekend so I hope you're staying cool and comfortable wherever you are. Last week the featured giveaway was a case of 6 Sparkling Ice drinks. Sparkling Ice is a refreshing drink of naturally flavored sparkling water that has zero calories, made with natural fruit juice, sweetened with Splenda and is refreshing too! With 6 flavors (orange mango, pomegranate berry, lemon lime, pink grapefruit, blackraspberry, and kiwi strawberry), everyone will find one they'll like just as is or better yet, used in their favorite summertime cocktail. Now, here's a big Congratulations! to the winner of this past week's giveaway! Please shoot me an email at [email protected] to claim your prize...
So did you know that for every day, there's a food or drink that's celebrated with their own special day? There are even national months dedicated to various food and drink. With that said, June happens to be National Iced Tea Month. I'm not one to really take these food and drink celebration days seriously, but I will admit it does make it fun. I'm making an exception to celebrate Iced Tea Month with this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway.... Iced Tea! I learned about a local tea company here in Chicago during the recent National Restaurant Association Convention that I just had to share with readers.
Tiesta Tea was founded by Patrick Tannous and Daniel Klein, former students of University of IL - Champaign/Urbana. They studied abroad together and we came across a traditional Czech tea house in Prague. There, they realized how tea was very much part of European culture and wanted to take that aspect and use it as an opportunity here in the United States. Once back in Illinois, they utilized the school's entrepreneurial resources to create their business from the ground up. Today, they have found their niche in the tea business and has been recently awarded Best New Product of 2011 by the World Tea Expo for their innovation, colorful and fresh tea tins.
When I met Patrick and Daniel, along with their colleagues at the National Restaurant Association Convention, I really loved their energy and enthusiasm. They truly stand behind their product and it's easy to do because it really is a wonderful, unique type of tea they provide. Most teas are dried leaves, maybe even packed with herbs or flowers. Tiesta Tea is much more interesting because aside from the usual leaves, you'll find dried fruit, flower blossoms and buds, bits of herbs and spices, as well as fruit leaves. Combined with the tea leaves, you not only get an amazing tea but the aroma alone sets the tone even before you start drinking. Furthermore, these teas have a purpose with each blend...
Tiesta Tea offers five lines of loose leaf teas categorized by their effects on health and physical well-being. Each line has a wide variety of flavors specifically designed for you. Tiesta Tea specializes in green tea, black tea, white tea, herbal tea, fruit tea, Rooibos, Maté, and oolong tea. Our mission is to transform tea from an affordable luxury to a daily health necessity.
Tiesta Tea strives to develop the highest quality specialty tea blends in the world, all of which are fomulated to provide a specific health or mood result. We have created five varieties of tea to cater to your daily needs: Energizer, Slenderizer, Relaxer, Immunity, and Forever Young.
The great guys at Tiesta Tea sent me a generous sampling of their teas from each of their 5 lines:
I haven't tried all of them yet, but I did try the Banana Split and Pineapple Calypso. Both were amazing in aroma and in overall flavor as well. I tried both of these as hot teas and as cold iced teas. They were equally good in both ways but I prefer them cold. With the brightness of flavor and aroma, having them over ice was a perfect summer drink. Normally I like my tea sweetened but these teas has so much flavor and natural sweetness from the ingredients that I didn't need additional sugar.
Thanks to my new friends at Tiesta Tea, they will be sponsoring this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway by giving a lucky reader a sample of their awesome teas! Read on to find out how to get in on this week's giveaway...
Some guidelines:
Maui Mango
This soothing infusion of fruity goodness contains all of your favorite flavors. Mango, pineapple, orange, strawberry…you name it! These fruity friends have just the right amount of boldness to make your taste buds happy. This blend was awarded best iced tea of 2009 from World Tea Expo; it's incredible and we highly suggest it. Ingredients: pineapple bits, mango bits, orange slices, safflower, marigold, strawberry bits
Tropical Savannah
A refreshingly bright rooibos tea with the lingering taste of lemon grass, orange peels, apple bits, ginger roots, coconut bits, cinnamon, cardamom, currents, red peppercorn. Enough has been said, give it a shot.
Ingredients: Rooibos, lemon grass, orange peel, apple, ginger root, coconut fruit, cinnamon, cardamom, currants, red peppercorn
Ingredients: Rooibos, lemon grass, orange peel, apple, ginger root, coconut fruit, cinnamon, cardamom, currants, red peppercorn
Lean Green Machine
This blend of green teas is specifically formulated to make a great iced green tea! This tea will keep you lean as a machine for years to come! Ingredients: green teas, lemon peels, lemon grass, citrus flavoring
White chocolate and peppermint unite to give this rooibos a flashback from a white winter wonderland. Who can resist this brightly refreshing blend? Ingredients: rooibos tea, peppermint, white chocolate
Banana Split
This strawberry and banana infused maté blend will be sure to keep you up with an invigorating blend of banana slices and strawberry bits with a sweet rooibos and maté base! Ingredients: green maté, rooibos tea, banana slices, strawberry bits
I haven't tried all of them yet, but I did try the Banana Split and Pineapple Calypso. Both were amazing in aroma and in overall flavor as well. I tried both of these as hot teas and as cold iced teas. They were equally good in both ways but I prefer them cold. With the brightness of flavor and aroma, having them over ice was a perfect summer drink. Normally I like my tea sweetened but these teas has so much flavor and natural sweetness from the ingredients that I didn't need additional sugar.
Thanks to my new friends at Tiesta Tea, they will be sponsoring this week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway by giving a lucky reader a sample of their awesome teas! Read on to find out how to get in on this week's giveaway...
- Giveaway is only for those who live in the United States - my apologies to my non-United States readers!
- You must check back in a week when winners are announced and email me to claim your prize if you win.
To enter the giveaway, leave a comment answering:
How do you like or prefer your tea?
Deadline: Saturday, June 18, 2011 at 12 midnight CST.
One winner will be randomly chosen by Random.Org's Interger Generator based on the number of your comment and will be announced on Sunday, June 19, 2011, within next week's Sunday Fun Day Giveaway. Good luck!
Full Disclosure: The giveaways are sponsored by the same company that provided me with the food related product to review. Products I review and offer as a giveaway are ones I personally recommend and would use/enjoy myself and opinions reflected are mine alone.
Second to iced, I like the fruity flavored tea, usually without sugar.
ReplyDeleteljyoung85 at gmail.com
I love their Chocolate tea that they have. It is nice because it is healthy but also offers me a chance to cure my sweet tooth.
ReplyDeleteI like my tea sweet and hot.
ReplyDeleteTea is a major beverage in my house. year round I drink it hot, without anything added to it but in the summer, I have grown to love southern sweet tea
ReplyDeleteI heart iced tea, it's the perfect drink to cool you down in the summer.
ReplyDeleteI like a hot tea in the morning with just a little splenda!
ReplyDeleteIn the mornings I like my tea hot with nothing added, except for maybe some lemon. In the summer months, I love serving it chilled over ice.
ReplyDeleteLove iced tea in the summer and hot tea in the winter.
ReplyDeletecaryn9802 at yahoo dot com
Ice cold in the summer- and piping hot in the winter. Is there any other way? :)
ReplyDeleteIn the summer I drink unsweetened iced tea with 1 Sweet N Low and a lemon. In the winter I like black tea with honey and lemon.
ReplyDeleteI prefer it iced. I'll generally throw a few bags in a big jar and do a cold brewed batch. These teas look amazing!
ReplyDeleteI love flavored iced teas and iced tea with lemon! Perfect for Southern summers. :)
ReplyDeleteI prefer sun iced tea! calvad at aol dot com
ReplyDeleteI keep it simple... just a little sugar!
ReplyDeleteiced tea in the summer and green tea in the winter!
ReplyDeleteI use hot decaf green tea with half of a splenda to curb any late night cravings, but I love iced tea with just a bit of sugar or simple syrup!
ReplyDeleteI like my tea hot, with honey!
ReplyDelete[email protected]
Easy :) Hot. Green. And in a clear glass. 3 times a day. Heh.
ReplyDeletePlease feel free to contact me at - sales4545 at gmail dot com
I just put sugar for an extra quick energy kick:)
ReplyDeleteWhite tea with ginger, warmed!
ReplyDelete[email protected]
i like fruity teas.my favorite is green and white tea.
ReplyDeletei usually make a pot and drink it at all temperatures.if i have any left over i put it in the fridge.
thanks!!
cyclona66 at aol dot com
I like my tea with ice and lemon with a pinch of sugar
ReplyDelete[email protected]
I like my tea with a little sweetner and lemon or honey
ReplyDeleteemmaspeel(at)gmail.com
In the summer I love my tea cold with a lot of ice and in the winter it's wonderful hot with a drop of honey!
ReplyDeletediane Baum
[email protected]
i like fruity teas [email protected]
ReplyDeleteI like my tea unsweetened because I usually choose flavors that are fruity to begin with. Email: yona(at)pricelesswriters.com
ReplyDeleteIt really depends on the weather. If my toes are frozen, I'm gonna love my tea hot. If it's an over ova heyah, I'm lovin' the iced tea. I'm mostly lovin' the iced tea.
ReplyDeleteheatherpooh (hotmail)
How do you like or prefer your tea?
ReplyDeleteI like iced tea (esp raspberry)and some hot teas -- Tiesta Tea is my new favorite loose tea! I have had the Pineapple Calpyso and it is great!
I love Tiesta Tea!
ReplyDeletedayni22 at yahoo dot com