Tuesday, August 25, 2009

African Sunrise Vanilla Tea Latte | Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf


Name: African Sunrise Vanilla Tea Latte
Complete Name: *blend of African Honeybush and Orange Peel with French de luxe Vanilla
Where: The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf

The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf is definitely a break from the other coffee shop that people go to just to be seen and be seen. I find that pathetic really, though you couldn't really blame them for doing so. My favorite CBTL branch is the one in Greenbelt 3. The people there are friendly and you could really chill and have a quite time, at least most of the time.

The African Sunrise Vanilla Tea Latte is best savored warm or hot so you could really smell a very light sweet aroma, as if you are smelling the scent of the warm African soil. When you take your first few sips you could hardly recognize that it is tea, probably because it is a type of  milk tea. More sips however would seemingly bring you to the African safari since it has a very light and creamy taste (due to the milk, though the consistency is not heavy). The orange peel blend gives it a zing that is very mild almost sweet, which is a break from the usual citrus blends which are limited to lime or lemon zests. The beauty of this drink lies in the fact that the vanilla used isn't in any way overpowering (the French de luxe vanilla is a registered trademark!). It is just enough to give it a creamy texture and a light sweetness. The Honeybush that was added is not really honey but is a flower which gives off a scent and taste that resembles honey and grows in a few areas only in South Africa! The Honeybush successfully adds that subtle sweetness. You have to think and sip it deeply to taste it.

Despite coming from Africa, the tea almost never gives a hint that it comes from a region where millions are dying because of HIV-AIDS, genocide and poverty. The tea however gives you this
sensation of a warm african sunset, though I haven't seen one. All in all, the tea has an energetic vibe to it, seemingly reminding us of the struggles that Africa has to face every day. Sad and sweet.

Rating: A must try for the tired and weary souls. If you want to get energized, this isn't really recommended since it puts you in soulful mode. If you want to help out Africa you should definitely drink gallons of this stuff! 9 points out of 10.

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