Berry Craze (Twinings Selections Mixed Berry Infusions)

Member Name: sottovoce1982

Product:	Twinings Selections Mixed Berry Infusions
Date:	11/08/07 (147 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Healthy and not expensive

Disadvantages: Not sure many people would like the taste

Twinings Selections Mixed Berry Infusions


The full list of ingredients of each of the fruit infusions is found on the box and it mainly contains other fruits, herbs and flowers, but when I first put a teabag in boiled water I realized immediately that the main herb must be hibiscus. The way the dark red colour fills your cup of boiled water quickly made me remember this herb I drank for the first time almost a year ago. This drink is different from the other healthy herbs we drink normally. It has an acidic taste, like drinking hot lemon except that it is not that sour; it can be drank without sugar (in fact I cannot imagine it with sugar) and like citrus fruits it contains vitamin C. Hibiscus is a caffeine free beverage that helps control high blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and strengthen the immune system since it is rich in vitamin C as I mentioned earlier.

The box contains four kinds of fruit infusions; five teabags of each and all individually wrapped:

1- Strawberry and Mango: contains 1% strawberry pieces and 1% mango pieces, smells nice.
2- Cranberry, Raspberry and Elderflower: contains 1% cranberry pieces, 1% raspberry pieces, and 8% elderflowers, smells fine
3- Raspberry, Strawberry and Loganberry: contains 1% strawberry pieces, 1% raspberry pieces, and 1% loganberry pieces, smells fine.
4- Blackcurrant Burst: contains 1% blackcurrants, smells yummy, you know how wonderful the smell of blackcurrants is. This is my favourite one and it is slightly more flavorful than the rest.

Why did I mention these numbers? Simply so that you know what to expect. Obviously the flavours are not that strong, but having tried many kinds of herbal tea I can assure you that these flavours are there only to make the healthy drink a little more acceptable. All the drawings of colourful fruit are there to encourage consumers to buy what would otherwise look bland and tasteless. However, I don’t think we should consider that as deception; it is just a good idea and it does work with me and with many others. I certainly prefer those fruit infusions to hibiscus alone and I will keep buying them. In fact, the good things about herbal tea and fruit infusions in general is that they are caffeine free and contain no added sugar, and drinking them will lower your intake of coffee and black tea.

The main herb in these drinks is hibiscus, which gives a dark red colour and tastes slightly acidic; that is to say it does not taste wonderful but it’s not dreadful too. I’m writing this and I know that some people would hate it. The reason why I find the taste fine is because I started drinking these healthy stuff a couple of years ago an now I’m used to the way they taste. I know, for instance, that some people hate green tea, and to tell the truth it is nothing close to black tea, yet now I drink it instead of black tea and without sugar and it is absolutely fine with me. So, it’s just a matter of habit.

Any side effects? Sometimes when nutrition specialists start telling you about the benefits of a certain herb, you think it’s miraculous and can’t harm anybody. They give you a long list of illnesses that the herb can cure, and nobody knows if this is right or wrong, and they don’t tell you if it’s good for you. The box does not give any information concerning this, yet I read about this drink that it’s not good for those who have low blood pressure, but this is not the point. What I wish to stress is that nothing is good for everybody and so if you want to start drinking herbal tea and tea infusions make sure that they suit you, apart from the benefits they give.

So, what I advise you to do if you want to start drinking a certain herb is, 1- read about it and see if it suits you 2- try it to see if you can tolerate the taste; sometimes you can get used to it and sometimes it remains disgusting for you no matter what you add to it 3- your body will tell you if you should go on drinking this herb; it might fix certain minor illnesses you have, but personally I still don’t believe that those things cure cancer, for instance; yet some of them do have immediate good results.

I bought mine from Tesco for £0.95 only, and I think it’s not hard to find this product. This is in addition to the fact that 100ml of these brewed infusions gives you 2kcal only.

In a nutshell, if you are okay with the taste of hibiscus, then this drink will be a healthier alternative of coffee and black tea for you.


<<< http://www.twinings.co.uk >>>

The contrast between the black and golden frames and the colourful packaging of the tea boxes make the site look elegant, and better still is the fact that it’s easy to navigate. However, I didn’t find this product on the website; the range of the Herbal and fruit Selections includes: Fruit, Refreshing & Revitalising, Exotic, and Gentle & Soothing. In addition to this you can check the company’s range of other products: Everyday Tea, Speciality Tea, Green Tea, Infusions, Coffee, Hot Chocolate, and Iced Tea.


Thanks for reading.

Summary: Berry... or should I say: Hibiscus Craze?