Our featured teas for May include three pure, single-origin teas from China, Taiwan, and Japan, a nourishing turmeric blend crafted in Brooklyn, and an herbal tea that delivers the taste of coffee and the health benefits of super-herbs! Read below to learn more about what we're sipping on this month, and be sure you're logged in to your MY SIPS profile to link over to our product pages to learn more. Don't have a MY SIPS profile? Create a free profile here to access special offers if you'd like to enjoy one of these featured teas yourself!
DRAGONWELL Sips by EASTHILL TEA CO
One of the most famous Chinese green teas in the world, Dragonwell (or “Longjing” in Chinese) is cultivated in Easthill Tea Co founder Keqi's hometown, Hangzhou. According to legend, around the year 250, a monk came across a dragon hiding in a well. He told the villagers what he found, and they saw it as good luck, naming the well “Dragon’s Well”. It turned out the monk had actually only found swirling water in the well due to a storm. Later, the village near the well and the tea grown there were named Dragonwell.
Dragonwell gained its fame when the Chinese emperor, Qianlong, visited Hangzhou in the 1700s and fell in love with the tea. Since then, Dragonwell has become the most popular green tea in China. Dragonwell tea leaves are pan-fired in woks, giving them a long, flat appearance and a distinctively pleasant nutty, toasty flavor.
Based in Chicago, Illinois, Easthill Tea Co specializes in small-batch, premium loose leaf tea. Founder Keqi Meng travels directly to farms in China, Taiwan and Japan to curate his teas and believes each one is best enjoyed in its natural state, straight-up. Keqi was born and raised in Hangzhou, China. After graduating, he moved to Chicago in 2015 for an accounting position. While studying for his CPA, he searched with no avail to find a place to drink “real” tea. He thought of a childhood in China spent at his grandparents’ home on Easthill Road, the street filled with the scent of green tea during harvest season. He decided to take a risk and build a tea business! In 2017, Kate Wille joined the founding team after moving from NYC, bringing a passion for culture, branding and entrepreneurial life that matches Keqi’s passion for quality tea.
Click here to learn more about Dragonwell and access a special offer from Easthill Tea Co!
Photo credit: Easthill Tea Co
LONGEVITEA Sips by MISSTEA
This herbal infusion of super-roots turmeric and ginger has a citrusy kick! It helps boost your overall health and well-being, with ingredients rich in anti-inflammatory and immunity benefits. We love this blend for Spring, because it’s delicious and soothing hot, and refreshing iced as well.
Longevitea features turmeric, a root that has been used for thousands of years by cultures around the world for medicinal, culinary, and even skincare purposes. It’s recently been more widely recognized in the health and wellness world as one of nature’s most effective nutritional supplements, and many scientific studies have proven its benefits. It has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, is effective in treating skin conditions, may have anti-cancer benefits, could help manage blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and helps to naturally detoxify the body, among other benefits!
Founded in 2008 and based in Brooklyn, Misstea is passionate about helping people find moments of balance within their busy lives through tea. They were born and raised surrounded by nature, gardened their own herbs, and throughout their world travels, they always found their way back home with a cup of tea. Misstea goes back to their roots and shares with NYC and beyond a relaxation experience in the form of unique herbal infusions from all around the world, that comfort the body and relax the mind. Misstea is committed to creating a strong community of tea enthusiasts who also care about impacting their environment and its people in a positive way. They donate a percentage of revenue from every purchase straight back to charity! Check out their website for a lovely assortment of not only tea blends, but also beautiful teaware, incense, honey, soaps and more to create a complete relaxing tea experience.
In addition to Longevitea, some of you also may have received Serenitea or Activitea from Misstea in your Sips by box this month.
Click here to learn more about Longevitea and access a special offer from Misstea!
Photo credit: Misstea
CALMING GABA Sips by ESTEEMED TEA CO
This lovely Taiwanese oolong is perfect for de-stressing and lifting your spirits. Its leaves have undergone a unique oxidation process without the use of oxygen, resulting in high levels of GABA, an amino acid that promotes relaxation and helps with anxiety, stress, and insomnia.
The GABA tea process was invented by Japanese scientists and perfected by Taiwanese tea crafters. Esteemed Tea Co's farmers have devoted years into researching different techniques to create the fine flavor of this tea. They’ve altered the processing method to roasting and baking, which creates the excellent fruity taste now unique to this particular GABA oolong tea.
Based in Los Angeles, California, Esteemed Tea Collective offers single origin Taiwanese teas. They introduce real tea to the modern consumer through a fresh approach, grounded in radical transparency, innovative packaging, and relentless seasonality. They’ve built relationships with four top heritage tea plantations in Taiwan to produce their single origin oolongs. Known for their rare and exclusive teas, these tea farmers have become ETC’s close partners in introducing the world to exquisite oolong tea. ETC believes in ethical practices that support growers while respecting the environment, and much of the profit goes directly to tea farmers and professionals, as well as to promoting tea culture and tea education.
Other Esteemed Tea Collective teas included in May Sips by boxes are Fire Roasted Oolong, Four Seasons Oolong, and Honey Black Oolong (click on their names to learn more about each one!). With any of these teas, you can steep the same leaves multiple times to draw out unique layers of flavor with each subsequent cup. They are packaged in beautifully-wrapped pyramid sachets, which allow the leaves to expand as they brew. You may also choose to break open the pyramid sachets, to brew the loose leaves as you wish!
Click here to learn more about Calming GABA and access a special offer from Esteemed Tea Collective!
Photo credit: Esteemed Tea Co
DANDELION DARK ROAST Sips by TEECCINO
Coffee lovers, this one’s for you! This caffeine-free blend contains dandelion root and other healthy herbs that provide antioxidants, minerals, and benefits to the liver, with the deep, full-bodied flavor of dark coffee.
Teeccino Organic Dandelion Dark Roast satisfies the person who loves a French roast coffee without any other complexities beyond that pure flavor of dark coffee. It brings the health benefits of roasted dandelion root to your cup including inulin, a prebiotic soluble fiber that feeds your probiotics, along with antioxidants, minerals, and its bitter stimulating effects on liver function. With more dandelion root per serving than any other brand puts in their tea bags, Teeccino Dandelion French Roast produces a cup where the deep, full body of coffee meets the health benefits of nature’s healing herbs.
Created by Caroline MacDougall, an award-winning herbal beverage designer, Teeccino satisfies the needs of coffee drinkers who want to enjoy the flavor of fresh-brewed coffee without caffeine or acidity! Their products are brimming with the health benefits and nutrients of various super herbs, and can either be brewed like coffee or steeped like tea. Their innovative herbal blends range from classic coffee flavors like Dark Roast and Mocha to fun boutique flavors like Pumpkin Spice and Caramel Nut - great for coffee and tea lovers alike.
Teeccino helps people live healthier lifestyles by cutting down on coffee and sugar, and adding nourishing herbs into their diets, without sacrificing flavor. Plus, you can drink them any time of day! Their Dandelion Mocha Mint and Dandelion Red Chai blends have also been included in some of your May Sips by boxes.
Click here to learn more about Dandelion Dark Roast and access a special offer from Teeccino!
Photo credit: Teeccino
ORGANIC OOLONG NAKA Sips by YANNOKO TEA
Japanese oolong is a rare find - especially one that is such high quality and grown organically in balance with nature! This oolong is produced in Wazuka, Ujitawara-cho, Japan by an 8th generation tea-crafting family - the Nakai family - that has abandoned the use of all chemical fertilizers and pesticides, letting nature take care of itself.
This is a tea that will seduce you with subtlety and a deeply satisfying balance of earthiness, chocolate/malty sweetness and just enough tannin to induce salivation. We love its clean, pure taste - it’s unlike any other oolong we’ve tasted!
Yannoko Tea is based in Gabriola, British Columbia and was founded by Iain Scott, who is on a mission to bring some of the best Japanese teas, as well as Chinese and Taiwanese teas, to a wider audience. The inspiration behind the name is simple - Yann is Iain’s name, and “oko” means water in some languages. He drinks a lot of tea - it’s his water! Iain started Yannoko Tea out of a desire to further his own tea journey, and also to entice others to join this journey of discovery, to provide the finest variety of small production teas at fair prices. Yannoko Tea not only offers incredible teas, but also beautiful artisan teaware, such as Japanese teapots, matcha bowls and tea tools.
In addition to Organic Oolong Naka, some of you also may have received Everyday Sencha, the most popular type of green tea in Japan, or Organic Genmaicha, also known as "brown rice tea," from Yannoko Tea in your Sips by box this month.
Click here to learn more about Organic Oolong Naka and access a special offer from Yannoko Tea!
Photo credit: Yannoko Tea
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