Unwrapping Celestial Seasonings

Itching for a look at what goes on behind the scenes at the Celestial Seasonings tea factory? If you find ever yourself in Boulder, Colorado you could take the grand tour.

If Colorado isn't going to be on your itinerary any time soon keep an eye open for a 2003 episode of Unwrapped that's still be making the rounds. It's called Spices and it features a look at how the business of tea-making is carried out at CS. Even if the topic isn't tea, you should be watching Unwrapped. It's a fun show.

Since it's still Assam Month, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention some of the CS offerings that contain Assam tea:


English Breakfast
Devonshire English Breakfast
Marrakesh Express Vanilla Spice
Victorian Earl Grey

Shop For Celestial Seasonings Tea

tea, food, food and drink, spices, Celestial Seasonings, Unwrapped

Happy Birthday to CS

Celestial Seasonings, that is. They're 35 years old this year. Read a profile of the tea maker that recently appeared in the Jackson Hole Star-Tribune, among other places.

If you ever happen to find yourself in the Boulder, Colorado area, be sure to take the CS grand tour and check out their tea shop. More info here.

Tea Review 18 - CS Country Peach Passion

Celestial Seasonings Country Peach Passion
Celestial Seasonings Teas

Country Peach Passion sounds like it should be a good old-fashioned dose of down home herbal tea goodness - or something like that. In reality, it falls victim to a problem I've mentioned before in connection with fruity herbal teas - Overly Tangy Syndrome.

"Natural peach and passionfruit flavor with other natural flavors" is seventh on the list of nine ingredients, followed only by peaches and citric acid. This is about par for the course with herbal teas, as are the first six ingredients - rosehips and hibiscus (surprise, surprise), orange peel, roasted chicory, chamomile and blackberry leaves.

Perhaps a more cultured palate could pick out each one of these individual flavors, but for me it was all just a big mishmash of stuff - and did I mention that it was too tart? And no, I didn't oversteep it, thanks very much.

Anyway, it's Celestial Seasonings, so it's all natural and recycled and environmentally friendly and made from free range herbs and not tested on cute little fuzzy bunnies and no baby seals were clubbed in the making of this tea and whatnot, so you can feel really good about yourself and the world while you're drinking it.

Kind of on the so-so side as a standalone tea, but not so bad in a blend with something else that will tend to cut the tanginess. Provisionally recommended.

Contents: 20 bags per box
I paid: $1.99

Tea Review 9 - Celestial Peach Apricot Honeybush

Peach Apricot Honeybush
Celestial Seasonings

Celestial Seasonings is the second largest tea seller in the United States, after Lipton. They are probably best known for their line of herbal "teas," but over the years they have branched out into traditional varieties as well. Based in Boulder, Colorado and now a part of the Hain Celestial Group, the company has been doing their thing since 1968.

You can probably find Celestial Seasonings in just about any grocery store in the nation, though you may not necessarily run across Peach Apricot Honeybush. Honeybush, for the unitiated, is derived from a plant of the Cyclopea species. Like rooibos, also know as red bush, it is only grown in one specific region of South Africa, where its leaves, stems and yellow flowers are harvested to make tea.

Peach Apricot Honeybush contains honeybush - of course - peach and apricot flavor, with other natural flavors, dried honey, linden and vanilla bean. It contains no artificial colors or preservatives and is packaged in 100% recycled boxes.

Recommended preparation time is 4-6 minutes in boiling water. I steeped a bag closer to the high end of that range, but with water that wasn't quite boiling. The end result was a clear reddish-brown brew with a very pleasing look.

As for the taste, I have to admit that I didn't pick up much of the peach flavor, or the apricot or vanilla, for that matter. I caught a bit of the honey early on, but there was no hint of sweetness in the after taste. Ultimately, I felt like I was drinking a straight rooibos, with perhaps just the faintest touch of peach or apricot - not that that's a bad thing.

I also used this one to make iced tea. It works great, mixed with three parts to one part of lemon ginger or wild raspberry.

Contents: 20 tea bags per box.
I paid: $3.29

Tea News - New From Choice and Celestial Seasonings

Choice Organic Teas is rolling out a new variety. Dragon Well Green Tea is scheduled to be released in mid March as part of the Choice Organic Teas Fair Trade Certified® line. Choice also announced, earlier this year, that all of their Rooibos offerings will be certified organic and Fair Trade Certified™ as of August 2005.

Also on the new release front, according to a blip in the Rocky Mountain News, Celestial Seasonings is releasing three new ones - Sweet Apple Chamomile Herb Tea, African Orange Mango Rooibos Tea and Blueberry Ice Cool Brew Iced Tea.