Relaxation in a Mug, Taking Time for Yourself with Tiesta Tea {& Giveaway}

We are sure that many of you are finding yourselves stuck in a cyclone of holiday activity or wiped out at the end of a long day at work or chasing around a speedy toddler. Two Moms loves to discuss options to help you wind down after a maelstrom--whether it be mini or huge. We have always found tea as a way to relax and refocus. Plus, a good cup of tea is a way that you can treat yourself each and every day without much fuss.

We are excited to be partnering with Tiesta Tea again for another review and giveaway. Since the last time we tasted and reviewed Tiesta Tea, Tiesta has introduced some new teas as well as some holiday-inspired brews. Kat and I have spent the last few days tasting some of Tiesta's awesome offerings and are here to share them with you.

Just a little about Tiesta Tea before we begin our tea party: Tiesta is a local company that originated in Champaign, Illinois and is now based in Chicago. Their teas are categorized by their functions: slenderizers to stimulate your metabolism, relaxers to help you slow down after a long day, eternity teas filled with anti-oxidants and other ingredients that fight aging, energizers that help you pick up your step, and immunity teas geared toward helping you eliminate toxins.



Here are some of the tea that we tasted and our impressions:

Mel's take: I began my tasting with the appropriately named Flapjack Oolong. This oolong tea is blended with fresh walnuts and maple syrup. The maple syrup flavor of the tea definitely brings you the comfort of a morning at home eating pancakes drizzled with maple syrup. The oolong tea helps to rev you up, so this is a great morning tea. Next, I tried the Plum Bliss oolong tea. The currants provided an enjoyable aroma. A cup of the tea welcomed me with a wonderful fruity taste--definitely a tea that I could sip on for awhile.  I finished up my tasting experience with the Minty Winter Wonderland. The Minty Winter Wonderland is a rooibos tea blended with mint and white chocolate. I loved the white chocolate's addition to the minty aroma. When I tasted the tea, I immediately tasted the mint and got a hint of the white chocolate at the finish. I found it to be a light, refreshing tea perfect for sipping while enjoying holiday activities.

Kat's take: I enjoyed my Tiesta Tea sampling; I tried Pineapple Pizzazz, Plum Bliss and Juicy Fruits. Given the bits and blends of fruit they contained, they were as nice to smell as it was to drink! The Juicy Fruits and Pineapple Pizzazz are immunity teas; both had a nice fruity taste and their (I believe) low caffeine made them favorite nighttime treats.  The Plum Bliss - billed as a slenderizer tea - was an oolong and had medium caffeine; it was my favorite.  The blend of tea, currants, red peppercorns, rosehips and safflowers gave it some complexity.  And because I am trying to not dump sweetener in my drinks, I'm happy to report that everything I sipped can stand on its own -- excellent taste without needing sugar.

We are sure that after reading about the wonderful tea blends that we sampled, you are ready for a good cup of tea yourself. Tiesta Tea has so graciously given us an awesome gift to giveaway! We will be giving away 5 tins of tea and a Magic II Tea Maker to one lucky reader. The winner will win 5 tins of Tiesta's original and flavorful tea blends including: Kiwi Cherry Bonanza, Lean Green Machine, Passion Berry Jolt, Blueberry Wild Child, and Berry Pear-adise. The tea is all loose leaf and can be easily brewed using the Magic II Tea Maker. To enter, please follow the rafflecopter below. The giveaway will end 12/16/12 and is open to US residents 18-years-old and older. We will contact the winner by email and the winner will have 48 hours to respond or the prize will be forfeited. This is definitely a giveaway not to skip! Enter below!

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

**Disclosure: We were provided with product to sample in order to make an accurate review. We did not receive any other compensation. All opinions are 100% our own.