Iced Tea - 901 Reviews

What are we celebrating? Did someone get a raise? Did someone get fired? Was it Carol? I never liked her anyhow. Oh, she's still here? Oh, she actually got a raise? Oh, she's standing right behind me? Does she look mad? She does? Oh. Well. I guess I'll have to face this like a man. Hello, Carol. It's so nice to see you. Lovely day outside, isn't it? Did you get your hair done? You didn't? You actually have baby puke in your hair? I thought someone was eating cottage cheese. Congratulations on your raise. You are a hard worker and it's good to see all your hard work didn't go unnoticed, which is more than I can say for myself.

I've brought these celebratory drinks. They taste like a mimosa made with orange juice and non-alcoholic champagne sweetened with Erytritol, you know, to keep it diet. It tastes fine but that artificial sweetener is really prominent as if to scream to the world and make it as apparent as possible that you're on a diet. No, I didn't say it looked like you had to go on a diet. No I didn't say that I didn't like you. I said...I said I didn't like "shoes." I didn't like your shoes. I don't like your shoes, Carol. They're just too cool. "Too Cool Carol" is what I'm going to call you. You're making the rest of us look bad, Carol. Everyone hates you because you're too cool. Look out everyone, "Too Cool Carol" is coming through with her baby puke shirt and cool shoes and a raise. Look out! Everyone get out of the way.

Ahh. A nice, opaque tea in the morning. What better thing to start off the day? That's what I said to myself as I miraculously got my dumb son to school on time and still had time to buy this maroon treat for myself.

What is it? Well it's unsweetened black tea with an undisclosed amount of blackberry puree in it and some assorted chunks of strawberries. It's also available for a limited time so I thought, "I need to get this before it's too late!" as if I didn't get it, I would regret it for the rest of my life like the time that I wanted to see DJ Rashad in Toronto but couldn't find anyone to go with me and he died the next day. That type of regret.

She's good, though. I think there is so much puree that you can't taste any tea, though. "Problem" with that is that the puree itself is so good that you almost don't care and then hate yourself for saying such apathetic things about tea, the lifeblood of everywhere but America, who, ironically and allegedly, runs on Dunkin'. Every once in a while you're treated to a bullet to the back of your throat disguised as mushed up strawberry that is more fun than gross. If you might like tea, like fruit juice and enjoy working on your cheek muscles, this is a great summer drink for you.

I'm always interested in trying “alternative” energy drinks. I'm not really sure who dubbed them that, but at some point a person or a sentient computer decided that any beverage that was meant to give you energy, but did not contain taurine and a bunch of chemicals wasn't of the norm. I'd like to think that ingesting artificial ingredients would be out of the norm, but who am I. Naturewise tried to remove the stigma by labeling their beverages “Whole Body Vitality Drinks.” They give you a little pep, enhance focus, suppress food cravings (don't we all need that?), and reduce stress. That all sounds like a good deal to me and I will take the change in moniker to have it.

This is sweetened by erythritol, stevia and monk fruit and it has a strong fruity/bubblegum taste that always accompanies the latter of the three. The first time I ever came across monk fruit was in Vemma, and now I always relate anything with it to that weird pyramid scheme energy drink. It's a very specific taste and a strong one at that. In fact it is a contender for the prize of being the strongest flavor in this can. The magic trick that monk fruit plays is that the more you drink of a beverage the less you notice the taste and the other flavors take over.
The flavor of this is supposed to be citrus matcha, which sounds great. The thing is I don't really taste any specific citrus, nor do I get a strong green tea flavor. What I do get is something that, to me, tastes kind of like Juicy Fruit gum. It's actually kind of great, but it's not what I expected. Towards the end of the can I got a bit more tea flavor, and I think the bottom ¼ of it was the peak of the flavor.

I am always pleased when a company can make a beverage that uses zero calorie sweeteners and the don't taste like specific garbage. It's nice to be able to enjoy a beverage and not feel bad for all the calories you just ingested, and that is from someone who has never been on a diet in their life.

This is the last of the three Wicked Lekker teas that are currently available and if they are nothing they are a consistent company. They are actually more than just consistent though. They are a company that makes great tasting teas that I could sip day after day and not get sick of them.

I love peaches, but I am wary of peach flavored things because they have a tendency to taste candied and that is something I'm just not looking for. After my first taste of Wikked Lekker's black currant I was pretty sure they were going to do right by peach and I was not disappointed. It actually tastes like fruit and the use of white tea is always the wise choice. It has a softer taste that sits a little in the background and gives the rest of the drink a little time to make your acquaintance. After the rooibos tea says “what's up and stuff” to your taste buds the white peach slips in to make sure that everyone is getting along well, and trust me it's a love fest in there and my mouth wants to host that party for a long time to come.

The Ito En / Teas' Tea company doesn't mess around. They keep things simple, natural and delicious. Their iced teas actually taste like tea instead of sugar, like most companies. They know the secret that tea is delicious on its own and it does not need to be disguised by sweeteners. Sure sometimes you want a little something extra in it, but for those times you certainly do not need to go overboard and dump the equivalent of a semi's load into a single bottle. With this “Lightly Sweet” tea they added 20g of sugar, as opposed to the 30-40g range that a lot of teas fall into. To be honest I didn't even need that much sugar. I think it detracts a bit from the green tea and hibiscus. When you use quality ingredients you don't need to mask the way they taste, and there is nothing but quality in this bottle. Do I think the floral taste would have been better without any sugar? Yes, I do. Do I really mind that they added some? No. It is still delicious. I believe hibiscus is at its peak when it is paired with some spices, such as cinnamon, but I do think it has a lot to offer in solo form and this drink proves that.

I'm sorry but lemon black tea just does not excite me. First off, when it comes in an iced form it almost always tastes like it was made from a powdered mix and not brewed. It's probably a dumb memory from my junior high years when I used to make way too much iced tea with Lipton powder and of course use an excess of the mix. That was some pretty strong tea that I would completely dislike now, but when I was 13 going to hangout with my friends and skateboard it worked just fine. You would think that something that tasted of good memories would be something I would enjoy, but now I just find it boring. It doesn't help that lemon is the lowest level fruit flavoring a beverage can have (which would be the “secondly” part). There is nothing bad about this tea, but it does not hold my interest. It is the kind of drink that could be the only thing in my fridge besides water for a month and I still might not get to it. Oh, did I mention that I really enjoy drinking water though?

Germany may have Club Mate, but Canada now has Matero. Both are yerba mate sodas and both are phenomenal. I really wish I had a Club Mate here so I could do a side by side taste test. In my memory this tastes extremely similar, but I want to say that Matero may be a bit better. Mainly because I think it tastes a little less sweet. I love every sip of this. I'm well aware that this isn't for everyone. In fact, I think a majority of the population would turn their nose up at this, but those people are fools. Just because something isn't like a “normal” soda doesn't make it bad. I would definitely rather drink this over most sodas. It's just carbonated yerba mate tea with a little cane sugar in it. It packs a nice punch caffeine-wise and it's all done naturally. In my dreams this company will trickle down over the border and take over drink coolers everywhere. I may have to go across an ocean to get Club Mate, but I just need to cross a border 15 minutes away to enter Canada to get more of these.

These New England folks have done it again. They have made a tea that should have been completely average something that I truly enjoyed. When you think of a lemon tea your mind tends to wander to the mundane. Apparently the secret to success with that is to throw that black tea out the window and embrace rooibos aka red tea. It has a somewhat earthy taste with a hint of vanilla. What drink doesn't vanilla improve? I'll wait while you try to figure that out.

I am not a fan of lemon normally. I find it boring and unless it is in exceptional lemonade I tend to think most drinks would be better off with it omitted. The Meyer lemon in here is something different though. It definitely enhances the flavor by blending in with the tea in a way that normally doesn't happen. I expected so little from this tea and I was given so much in return. To quote the Pet Shop Boys, “What have I done to deserve this?”

Something is off with this. At first I thought it tasted like plastic. Then I thought that maybe it had been sitting around too long and had expired. It doesn't and it hadn't. Then I realized that it tastes like the pomegranate that they juiced for the flavoring of this tastes like it wasn't even close to ripe. When it's perfect the fruit is a bit sour, but this is just bitter. I will say that it has one of the most authentic pomegranate tastes I've ever come across in a beverage, unfortunately it's like they took the bad aspects of fruit and left all the wonderful things behind. It's not horrible; it's actually very close to being amazing. That is also its downfall. It leaves me wanting to such an extent that I can't appreciate what is there.

When I first saw this I made a joke about it being from Massachusetts, specifically Boston. Anything with the word “wicked” in the title has to be from there, right? Guess what? IT IS! I didn't really think was going to be. I mean people joke about people from that region saying everything is wicked this or wicked that, but I had no idea that the denizens of MA actually embraced the stereotype. That is better than my joke could ever be. I also just discovered from the company's website that lekker is the Afrikaans word for awesome. That's right, this companies name translates to “Wicked Awesome.” Somewhere Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are very proud.

As much as I would like to, and will, laugh about this company's name, they are right. This tea is pretty great. Due to it being a rooibos tea it is a different beast than the iced teas you are used to. It's slightly nutty and a little fruity. It's definitely a nice path to take from time to time as a respite from your normal iced teas. You can really taste the honey in here as well. Most importantly, at least to me, is that the black currant isn't overpowering. You can taste it, but it adds to the flavor rather than taking over the whole show.

Wicked Lekker, your name is ridiculous and I love it. I also love your teas. I hope the fact that I found it at a discount store means that you are just redoing your labels and not that your company is in trouble. I want to see more of you.

This very obviously has an almond milk base. In fact it appears to be more than just a base; it makes up the bulk of the taste. Got a matcha this has a very minimal green tea flavor. It really needs to be much, much stronger. It tastes like they took half a shot glass of green tea, poured it into a gallon jug and filled the rest with almond milk. Well, maybe it's not that extreme, but it's not anywhere near where I want it to be. It's nice and creamy, but without the proper green tea taste, what's the point?

I believe the Eurythmics wrote a song about this tea, or was it Heart? Billy Ocean? Taylor Swift? There are a lot of songs out there that deal with things being great in dreams and I can tell you if nothing else, this beverage is absolutely dreamy. Like most Guayaki teas the yerba mate is the main thing you taste, but this has a very faint floral, hibiscus taste to it with hints of lime. There is nothing in here that is overpowering. You know what though, dreams are never perfect though. There is always an aspect r two that seem out of place. In here I could do with a tad bit more flavoring, and just the smallest amount of sugar. When it comes to tea I almost always prefer them to be unsweetened, but mate benefits from the smallest touch of sweetener. Even in its imperfect state I could drink this forever though.

So much smoother. "Than what, Mike?" you ask? Well that the other Arnold Palmer, man. Giving me attitude like that. Come on, dude. Don't give me that.

This is a classic Arnold Palmer but with real sugar courtesy of the good folks at Arizona. I feel like it's been a long time since we've reviewed something from them. Have they become complacent with their seemingly endless array of drinks? Perhaps. Do we, these thirsty dudes, not have our ear as close to the ground as we used to? Perhaps. Is this better than the one that they used to sell? I think so. Between my brother and this dude Mike I used to and will soon work with again they probably drank hundreds of gallons of that stuff. The light (lite) stuff. This is not light. Full sugar. Real sugar. "Good" sugar.

I don't know if they'd like it. Maybe because they're a little older and a little wiser but also because maybe they're accustomed to the taste of the aspartame or the corn syrup or Splenda or whatever they used. Who knows? I suppose I could buy them a bottle but you know what? They can get one themselves. This one was lent to me so I don't have one to give.

This little guy tasted pretty much as I expected it to. It tastes like it serves a more medicinal purpose than a pleasurable one. I'm not saying that it didn't have pleasant taste, but the rest of the ingredients play more of a role in the flavor than the tea does. In fact the tea aspect of it taste more like tea water than the nice strong brew that one expects from a bottled iced tea. The ingredients that make up the chia spice blend are the ones who are running this show. It's almost all cinnamon, ginger, and licorice.

This was made to help with stomach issues and digestion, but if the tea had been stronger I could see this being an instant favorite. Even without the strong tea taste it still left a delicious residue on my lips.

This, my friends, is no joke. You see little old me had a sore tummy like the big baby that I am, but I really, really couldn't pass this up. I figured it was going to be extremely strong/sour and that it would upset my stomach even more. As it turns out it was completely perfect. For the most part this is a mate tea, where the lavender and the lemon are more just a flavoring than leading roles. You may find yourself asking, “What is the point? The flavor should be up front!” For some beverages you may be right, but for this everything sat just where it needed to be. This is nice and earthy with a sweetness that doesn't get too crazy. I love it. It is a bit strange to have a flavor that is known for its calming effect mixed with a stimulant. I will say that it does give it a nice flavor though.

I'm not exactly sure what this beverage is supposed to be. It's not really a juice, but it's also not a sports drink. The bottle says it is an “organic fruit infused beverage,” and according to the ingredients list it's kind of a mix of everything. It is composed of coconut water, 4% juice, white tea, and a whole mess of organic, zero calorie sweeteners. The result just tastes a bit generic, like some random “juice” box you'd get as a kid, expect now it tastes overly diet. This sort of tastes a modern version of Kool Aid. The orange/clementine flavor is there, but it tastes a bit powdery. I appreciate what they are trying to do with this, but the arrow is hitting just outside of the target. It's almost good, but it just doesn't mess right.

I'm going to change an old adage and instead of “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link” I'm going to start saying “An Arnold Palmer is only as strong as its weak lemonade.” This could have been the world's best iced tea (it's not it pretty average), but since the lemonade aspect of it is fairly unremarkable the whole thing just kind of falls apart. I don't understand what the problem is. Everything in here is organic and they use real lemon juice, but that part of this concoction tastes weak and fake. Actually, it tastes more like someone brewed a bag of black tea, mixed in a squirt of lemon and then put it in the fridge. It tastes like the tea my grandma used to drink, but cold. It's more of a lemon tea than a 50/50.
It's not horrible, but I just had higher hopes for this and it ended up being average. Sure, it's better than Lipton garbage, but I feel it could have been out of this world good.

This is an old favorite from my pre-Thirsty Dudes days. Man those were different times. I drank so much sugar back then and never thought twice about it. How was I not gigantic? I would easily drink at least three Arizona tall boys a day, not counting the other garbage I consumed. This wasn't a constant back then, but that was only because it didn't come in a 99 cent can and I only splurged on the extra half dollar when I was feeling special. It was a treat that I gave myself.

Most of my favorite drinks from that time period don't really hold up for me anymore, because my body has changed and so much sugar makes me feel like garbage. Taking one sip of this brought me right back though. It was the early 2000s. All I did was play music and hang out with my friends. I was in my 20's it was allowed. Hell, it's still kind of what I do now. I had terribly dyed black hair and for some reason I tucked my t-shirts in. I was a catch I tell ya. I also existed on seemingly nothing but pizza and tacos, yet I never gained a pound. I wouldn't say it was a better time, but it was a different time and I had my fun. I drank my teas and didn't think twice about it. It's no longer the cost that makes this a treat, but the amount of sugar (45g/bottle). It tastes sweet, but not to an extent that it hurts my teeth. It has that classic Arizona green tea flavor, that isn't quite what other green tea tastes like, but it's wonderful. On top of that the Asia plum adds just the right amount of flavor. I've had other Asian beverages that said they were plum and they tasted like moldy meat. This is the opposite of that. Wait, would that be fresh veggies? It's not that, but it is delicious. I hope this flavor makes a comeback because you don't see it much these days.

Cold brew coffee is everywhere these days, so why not cold brew some tea? Oh, you don't have an extra 12 hours to steep your tea, so you take the quicker hot brew method? Don't be such a chump, Titan will do all the work for you and all you have to do is walk into a store grab one from the cooler, and hand over your money to the cashier and you are out the door in 5 minutes or less. That is a comparable amount of time as it would take you to hot steep some tea. I don't even really know the difference. I guess cold brewed coffee is supposed to be smoother or something, maybe the same goes for tea.

Something about this doesn't taste like I expected. It tastes like a good raspberry black tea, but there's something else floating around mucking up the flavor. It might be the lemon, or it may be the electrolytes. Whatever it is, it distracts from both the taste of the tea as well as the raspberry. It's still an enjoyable beverage, but with a little tweaking I would enjoy it a whole bunch more. Maybe spend less time steeping and more time tinkering with the taste.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I think I am finally getting old. I get creaks. I get aches. I fall asleep on the couch while watching movies at night. All of the telltale signs are there. On top of all that I have mentioned it seems to happen with increasing regularity that I need some sort of boost to get me moving in the morning at work. I always assumed that when people talked about needing their morning coffee it was due to their bodies getting used to ingesting caffeine. Now I am realizing that sometimes you just need the push, even if your body is not used to it. I try to not make it a regular thing, but at least once a week I find myself drinking something caffeinated in the morning (usually tea). This is a great alternative though. It's a mixture of guayusa tea and fruit juice that tastes amazing even without added sugar.

In this beverage the fruit juice sits pretty evenly with the tea flavor and that is exactly where I want it to be. It's not sweet, but it's also not bitter. Everything about this falls right in the middle. All of the energy in it comes from the caffeine derived from the guayusa leaf, so it doesn't leave you feeling insane. It's just a gentle push to help you get through the morning. It's just a bonus that it won't leave you with gross coffee breath or unwanted calories from sugar. It's simple, it's delicious and it's just what I want in the morning.