Photo: Adagio Teas |
On a recent trip to Whole Foods I was in need of some refreshment so I grabbed a bottle of Adagio Anteadote. The ingredients are listed as including purified water, organic oolong tea, vitamin c (antioxidant) and baking soda (acidity regulator). It was surprisingly pale in color for a bottled oolong. I really like that they explained the purposes of the vitamin c and baking soda on the package.
While some may question the addition of the baking soda, it is a little known fact that this is a common practice in restaurants to keep the tea from becoming cloudy and bitter. This tea was light and nutty with some floral notes in the background. There was very little astringency. It wasn’t quite as good as a fresh hot cup but then very few iced teas are. I would definitely recommend this tea.
This is supposed to be a healthy drink isn't it? It's unusual to get one that doesn't have loads of sugar, so this one sounds pretty good 🙂
I have no problem with the addition of natural, safe ingredients like Vitamin C and baking soda. Vitamin C, besides being good for you, is a natural antioxidant and tends to preserve foods, as well as preserving other biological antioxidants. The same goes for Vitamin E which is often added to other foods.
I am still not a huge fan of bottled teas, as I think fresh-brewed (even from a tea bag) is better-tasting, healthier, and more sustainable. But…all that aside, I am glad that some companies are producing and marketing unsweetened bottled teas; these are at least a step or two up from the overly-sweetened bottled iced tea available in the mainstream.