Teavana's Defense Tea Review

Teavana has come out with a new line of wellness teas. Being a person that is constantly worried about getting sick, I wanted to buy all 7 teas but I restrained myself and only bought Defense. Defense is a white tea that is meant to boast your vitamin C levels.

White tea got its name because the part of the leaves used is covered in white hairs. White tea leaves have the least amount of treatment during production, they are rapidly steamed and dried, leaving the leaves fresh. This is what sets it apart from other types of teas. It is also thought to have a multitude of health benefits including antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer effects.

I'm not normally a big white tea fan, it has a very distinct taste and it's very delicate, the tea leaves burn easily if the water is too hot. This tea smelt so good at the store that I couldn't turn it down and I am always up for a little Vitamin C boost.

I tried this tea at my parent's house with a kettle that wasn't programmable, which makes it harder to get the proper temperature.  I used 2 teaspoons of the tea without
any sweetener added and steeped the tea for 5 minutes as per Teavana's instructions. This tea smells like citrus with hints of lime, pineapple and orange.

I could definitely taste the notes of citrus, however, it wasn't as good as other wellness teas that I have tasted. It wasn't a tea that I would go out of my way to drink but it wasn't bad. The things that I didn't like about the tea were typical white tea characteristics. With that being said, if you like white teas, you will probably like this one. 

Hit Me With Your Best Pot

Loose leaf tea is known for being higher quality tea that's fresh and flavourful. Did you know that the 4 main types of tea, white, green, black and oolong, all come from the same plant called Camellia sinensis, which is a warm- weather evergreen? These teas are different in taste based on the parts of the plant being used and the way the leaves have been processed.

Each type of tea has unique instructions for preparation. When buying loose leaf tea there will be a label on the product that states the optimal temperature of the water, amount of tea used per cup and the steeping time to ensure your tea turns out great.

An example of a tea label and an amazing Teavana tea 

I suggest you follow these guidelines if you are just starting to use loose leaf tea. Tea can turn out bitter, too weak or too strong if the instructions aren’t followed and can ruin your opinion of a wonderful tea. I can’t count how many times I have forgotten to take my tea infuser out in time and ruined my tea. Once you start to make it more often and know how strong you like certain teas, it gets easier. The Tea Association of Canada has come out with a general steeping chart for you to refer to if you are ever unsure of how to steep a type of tea.  

Steeping Instructions

Tea Type	Preparation
White	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 2-5 min)
Green	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 1-3 min)
Oolong	80°C / 185°F	(Steep 2-3 min)
Black	100°C / 212°F	(Steep 4 min)
Herbal	100°C / 212°F	(Steep 3-6 min)

For those of you without a programmable kettle, there are other ways of determining the temperature of the water. The Traditional Chinese method being the most extensive and comprehensive method. There are 5 different stages of boiled water which are: Shrimp Eyes, Crab Eyes, Fish Eyes, Rope of Pearls and Raging Torrent. Golden Moon Tea has an article with helpful pictures of each of the stages.