Gifts and Gift Giving

Teabook Premium Tea Gift Set

THE SET
This Teabook Premium Teas set is a tea tumbler with a boxed set of pre-portioned loose tea pouches that come as four each of rare Greens, Whites, Oolongs, and Reds plus a Special Collection bonus pouch of a rare tea, in this case, a specialty Red. The sampler provides a taste of some of the loose teas available from the Teabook Premium Tea service; a discount subscription card comes with the box for 20% off.

The teas are pesticide free. The tea flavors are:

WHITE: Silver Needle white tea is a delicate tea that tastes of melon, blackberries, and a warm bread sort of aroma.

GREEN: Green Bud Green tea is mild and buttery tasting, more of a mint leaf leaning than a vegetable leaf one. This tea is an authentic green, which if one is unaccustomed to greens may seem bitter. I am a hardcore loose green tea drinker, and I like this blend. I got two brews out of the same leaves. If you are a seasoned green tea drinker, you will find this to be a pure green but not bitter, slightly sweet without any added flavorings. If you are new to green teas, you may wish to add some sweetener to the first brew, or you may prefer the less beneficial but still tasty second brew.

OOLONG: Bai Hao Oolong tea (Oriental Beauty) from China is a sweet tea with dark chocolate and raspberry overtones. To me, this Oolong has a bit of a liquor taste while still being delicate and this is my favorite of the four with a very pale golden color when brewed.

RED: Sunset Red (Hunan Hong) from China, it tastes like caramel and chocolate. I am personally not much of a fan of red teas, but this one does have a certain appeal with unexpected flavors that are tasty on a red tea base.

A concern I had about these teas, especially the White and the Oolong, is would they overbrew in the tumbler since most delicate teas should only be brewed for a minute or two? These teas do not seem too bitter to me; Teabook says this is because they chose only high-quality teas. Even when I drink the tea over the course of a few hours, it does not get bitter. I can also get a second brew off of the same pouch, not as strong as the first but still tasty.

PRESENTATION
This set could make a lovely gift although the outside of the box that the teas come in does not seem very gift-like. There are tea-related quotes and sayings inside the box itself, and it does keep the tea pouches in good condition. I, however, would be happy to get this as a gift or give it as a gift for a tea lover, and it is probably something I would not have noticed if I wasn’t for examining the item for review purposes.

This set contains a quality twelve-ounce tumbler. I like this tumbler because it has a double wall so it is heat insulated and I don’t burn my hands holding it. It is relatively easy to clean considering the infusing filter that is used to keep the loose tea away from the drinking area of the tumbler. The filter is sturdy and keeps any tea “floaters” away from the brewing area with a well-designed drinking compartment underneath the stainless steel cap. The tumbler can also be used for fruit infused waters and cold tea, but it should not be put in the microwave. It is sturdy.

I especially like how beautiful it is to watch loose teas unfurl, especially the green, as they infuse in the water like a slow motion dance! Having such a well-designed filter compartment keeps even tiny tea leaves strained away from the drinking area, and makes it easy to drink loose teas.

Recommended item because it is a well-designed tumbler that doubles as a fruit water infuser, tasty tea choices, and coupon code for discounts on future tea purchases at TeaBook.