Lupicia’s Hawaii Sampler

It’s Tea Time Tuesday! You may be aware that I LOVE TEA. I love the way it looks in the jar, I love the smell of tea as it brews, I love selecting the perfect tea based on my mood, I love starting with a tea and creating a menu, or starting with a special treat and selecting the perfect accompanying tea. I like black, green and herbal tea. I especially like rooibas (African red bush). I don’t particularly like oolong. I like to smell it when I take off the lid, I like to listen to the water boiling stage by stage, I like scooping the leaves into the pot, I like swirling the leaves gently in the hot water. I like tea iced, I like it steaming, I like it with milk, I like it straight. I like reading about tea. I LOVE TEA!

My favorite tea company is Lupicia. A group of military spouses journeyed to the flagship Jiyugaoka location for tea classes and lunch when we lived in Japan, and many train stations had little Lupicia stalls if I needed a bag of this or that.

When I found out that Lupicia had a sampler of special edition Hawaiian teas, I could barely contain my excitement. You cannot buy this tea online. Only a pilgrimage to the Hawaii Lupicia would get this tea in my hands. So the day—the very day—my car arrived on island, Chris dropped me and the kids off, I picked my car up, and we beelined straight—STRAIGHT—to Ala Moana to celebrate this grand Hawaii adventure’s true commencement.

And now, it is your lucky day. Here is Lupicia’s overview of the different teas so that when you visit you’ll know exactly which ones you’d like to try (just kidding, you’ll want to try all of them).

Lupicia’s Hawaiian Sampler 

Kuuipo–An alluring sweet-tart guava flavored black tea with red flower petals.

Hua’ki–A tropical fruits flavored black tea is luxuriously blended with mango.

Anela–A sweetly aromatic strawberry and lychee flavored black tea. Perfect for iced tea.

Lanikai–A peach, orange and mango flavored black tea. Its sweet and fruity flavor goes well with milk.

Palekaiko–A sweet-tart fruit flavored black tea is accented with spicy ginger.

Hoku–A refreshing and aromatic Taiwanese oolong tea with guava, coconuts and pineapple.

Not included in the sampler is Mahina, a rooibos tea scented with banana.

Anela was an early favorite with its vibrant lychee flavor. I find lychee compliments the flavor of tea nicely in general. I finished off the large 50g tin of Mahina before the smaller sampler tins, because I like to brew a liter at night, sip some hot, then refrigerate the remainder for the next day. I do not like banana flavoring in general, but this tea was mellow and enjoyable, not overpoweringly BANANA. Of the sampler, I gravitate toward the Lanikai tea, of course, because Lanikai is here in Kailua and is where Eloise and I walk with friends several times a week.

Most recently, I served Lanikai tea with milk alongside King Cake for last Tea Time Tuesday’s Mardi Gras celebration!

Thank you for joining me on Tea Time Tuesday, where we revisited the beginning of my Hawaii tea journey. Next time we will discuss Teaorganization… like reorganization… but with tea!

Which Hawaii sampler tea would you most like to try??