I was thrilled when the folks at Celestial Seasonings sent me two boxes of their new Saphara teas to try. Tea is a blessing for dieters and those trying to lose weight. Why? Because it has no calories, of course, and is great for sipping on throughout the day. A cup of hot tea is a great way to warm up – and fill up – on a cold winter day. And, with all the caffeine free varieties, drinking tea is a great way to get your water in, too.
I’ve been a huge fan of Celestial Seasonings for years, even before I moved to Colorado near its company headquarters. My dad used to drink it back in the ’70s and ’80s since it was one of the few teas available with no caffeine. In fact, when he traveled with boxes of their tea to England on business trips, the local restaurant managers nicknamed him the “Tea Man.”
I love their teas and wondered if Celestial Seasonings could top themselves with their new tea line.
Premium tea
Saphara features full-leaf botanicals and real fruit pieces in silken pyramid bags that are specially designed to allow water to flow around and through the teas. Saphara teas are crafted and packaged using environmentally conscious manufacturing processes and packaging materials.
The cartons are 100% recycled paperboard made from at least 35% post-consumer waste material, and all packaging is completely biodegradable. Celestial Seasonings even uses vegetable-based biodegradable inks when printing the cartons.
My review
I was sent Mango Ginger Decaf Green and Tropical Rooibos to try out. The green tea was nothing special, but I loved the Tropical Rooibos even if it is caffeine free (I’m a bit of a caffeine fiend). It wasn’t bitter like most teas probably because it isn’t “tea” in the strictest sense of the word.
Rooibos is Afrikaans for “red bush,” a shrub that grows only in South Africa’s Cederberg mountains. South Africans have been making herbal tea from the foliage of this shrub for generations, and today this “red tea” is enjoyed for both its slightly nutty taste high antioxidant content. Celestial Seasonings has added coconut, lemongrass, orange, spicy ginger and pink (!) peppercorns to the tea making it even more delicious.
I was concerned at first about a product coming out of South Africa. So I checked the box to find that the rooibos is Fair Trade Certified™. In fact, all the ingredients in Saphara teas are fair trade as well as USDA organic, which probably explains why they retail for $6.99, about $3 more than their other teas.
Are the Saphara teas worth it? If you’re looking for organic, Fair Trade tea made in an earth friendly way with eco-friendly packaging, then I’d say yes. You’ve got to hand it to the folks at Celestial Seasonings. They’ve hit the luxury “green” market dead center with their delicious new Saphara line.
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Our trip to Celestial Seasonings
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Celestial Seasonings products are found in my cupboard–one of the frustrating things about living in a rural area is the shortage of selections for such items.
Last year I was hooked on Candy Cane Lane and the local grocer brought in one case and then didn’t have any more the rest of the season.
Drat!
Rooibos has become one of my favorite teas. There is another tea company that puts out a stunning product…but I’ll save the competitor name for a different post or email me and I’ll send it.
Thanks for the great review. Just to let you know, this isn’t available anywhere I looked in the Hoosier state, even at my food co-op, which has an amazing tea selection.
Lipton beat them to the punch a couple of years ago and it us a great product at a better price !