Raw Food Blog: Vanilla Jasmine Tea - Popular flavored brew

Friday, October 17, 2008

Vanilla Jasmine Tea - Popular flavored brew

By: ginfop9

If you have been looking for a new type of tea to try as iced tea for your summertime drinking, look no further than one of the quality varieties of Vanilla Jasmine that are available. Vanilla Jasmine has become a drinker's delight in recent years. Not only is this tea wonderfully fragrant and absolutely delicious when iced, but also available in your favorite tea. You can find Vanilla Jasmine in green, black, white, or oolong varieties. This assortment of varieties could be why Jasmine tea is the most popular flavored brew in the world.

By itself, Jasmine tea is quite mild, and very slightly sweet, perfect for serving over ice. When vanilla is added as a flavoring, it makes the drink that much more flavorful, and the coldness of the brew seems to bring out some of the flavor. Vanilla Jasmine is a very natural tea as well. So many of the ready to serve iced teas that you see in stores are flavored, but when you take the time to read the labels - something that very few people think to do, by the way - you see that many of these flavors are not natural in the least!

Vanilla Jasmine is made by carefully hand-picking Jasmine blossoms just at the right moment, which is when they are just starting to bloom. These blooms are then added to tea leaves. But first, the leaves must be properly prepared. Green leaves are dried and steamed, as are the white leaves. Oolong leaves are partially fermented, and then dried. Black leaves are fully ermented. Then, and only then, are the leaves of each variety mixed with the Jasmine blossoms and vanilla beans, plus vanilla extract.

You have four different types of Vanilla Jasmine to choose from, and each one of the different types will have a different taste. You should try each of them before settling on the one that will be your favorite. When it is made from green leaves, it will taste more natural than the other three varieties. The taste will be a bit on the grassy side, a little bit sweet, and very vanilla. The drink will have a lovely jasmine scent that is not at all muted when the tea is served as iced tea.

When you first try Vanilla Jasmine that is made out of white leaves, you might be a bit surprised at the color of the drink. It is very light, almost like slightly colored water, but the taste is nothing like water! You will taste the vanilla and a tiny bit of jasmine flower, and the tea will of course have that distinctive fragrance of jasmine. Oolong Vanilla Jasmine is quite lovely with a subtle taste of flowery jasmine and the rich sweetness of vanilla, plus the scent of the jasmine blossoms.

And, when Vanilla Jasmine tea is made from black tea leaves, it can be a little hard to predict exactly what the tea will taste like. There are quite a few different types of black tea, plus it has a stronger flavor than the other three types of tea. Because of this, the jasmine scent and flavor along with the vanilla will be a bit less noticeable. Black tea seems to make the best Vanilla Jasmine iced tea of all.

You want to make sure that you purchase your Vanilla Jasmine from a vendor that sells quality teas. Otherwise, you will have iced tea that tastes pretty much like plain green, white, black, or oolong tea! The reason for this is that some vendors will attempt to cut corners and use jasmine flower petals instead of blossoms, and artificial vanilla flavoring instead of real vanilla beans and vanilla extract. You want the real thing, especially with iced tea, as when the ice melts just a bit in the warm tea it can weaken the brew somewhat.

Is it any wonder that Vanilla Jasmine tea is so popular? There probably is no other tea on the market that can boast of having so many varieties. And, when you make sure to buy a quality Vanilla Jasmine tea, you can reuse the leaves and infuse them several more times and still get a wonderful tasting drink. That makes this tea quite a good value for the tea lover.

To prepare Vanilla Jasmine as delicious iced tea for the summertime pleasure of yourself and your guests is not at all difficult! Decide how many glasses that you want to serve, as this will determine how much tea you will use. Generally, for one glass of iced tea, you will want to use around 2 teaspoons of loose leaves, remembering that the ice will dilute the brew somewhat. You will brew the tea just like you do when you are making hot tea. Began by bringing some fresh water to a boil in your kettle, and warm up your pot with some hot purified water.

Once the water is hot enough, pour out the hot water from your teapot, and add the loose leaves. Depending on the type of tea you are using, you will need a certain temperature of water and different brewing times as well. Black Vanilla Jasmine needs the hottest water. It should be boiling, and you should steep the brew anywhere from 4 to 5 minutes. Green Vanilla jasmine should not be brewed with boiling water, as it can make the brew a bit bitter. White and Oolong Vanilla jasmine teas can stand for the water to be a bit hotter than that for the green tea, but not boiling hot! Let white steep for around 6 to 8 minutes, and oolong for 2 to 3 minutes.

When the brew has finished steeping, remove the infuser. Pour the tea into a pitcher, and sweeten if desired. Pour over ice cubes or crushed ice, and get ready to experience a wonderful summertime treat! There is nothing else quite like iced Vanilla Jasmine tea!

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