Tazo Tea and Summer Beach Pack Giveaway Winner!

Hey guys! Sorry for not concluding the giveaway post yesterday, but I had some computer issues that prevented me from doing anything. Yesterday's post was set ahead of time to publish early, so that's why it got up there.

Anyway, thanks so much to everyone entered. I really enjoyed reading what you guys are looking forward to this summer!

The first winner, chosen by Random.org, is Elle:

Elle said...

I love the blog...and I'm looking forward to the smell of sweat and sunscreen after a long run. Maybe it's a runner thing? :)
22 March, 2010 21:19

And the second winner, Esther:

esther said...

Love love Tazo tea! And I could totally use sunblock!

I look forward to iced coffee during the summer :-)
22 March, 2010 18:03

Please email me at caudagaliATyahooDOTcom by tomorrow night so I can pass your info along to Tazo. If I don't hear from you then, I'll have to pick another winner.

Thanks again to everyone who entered!

Tazo Zero Tea and Summer Beach Pack Giveaway and Review

Tazo has launched a new line of zero calorie, naturally sweetened teas and I got the opportunity, thanks to the awesome Tazoians, to test them out. They also are letting me host a giveaway for my readers!

The giveaway includes a summer wellness pack which includes a really cool Tazo insulated canvas tote bag, a freezer pack for keeping contents cool, a little tube of SPF 30 sunscreen, a mini hand-held fan, and a nifty little Tazo teabag container with three teabags of the same flavor as the Tazo Zero teas.

What I noticed with the teas is the light, refreshing flavor, and I was particularly surprised by the sweetness level, which is less than most sweetened teas available. While I feel that flavored teas benefit from the sweetener bringing out the flavors, I liked the subtle sweetness these had. There is a slight licorice aftertaste from the stevia, but I don't feel that it detracted from the tea at all.

My favorite flavor out of the three (Zen, Passion, Refresh) is the Passion, an exotic hibiscus flowers, natural flavors of mango and passion fruit, lemongrass and tart rose hips. I felt it had the most flavor of the three and I just like the tropical flavors quite a bit.

The Zen, a blend of green tea, lemongrass, and spearmint, was good and really refreshing, though after a while I though the spearmint overshadowed the green tea and lemongrass. I liked the lemony flavor, though!

The Refresh is also good, peppermint, spearmint, and tarragon, but it reminded me of a nightly cup of peppermint tea so I don't think I'd go for this flavor if I was out and wanted something cool in the middle of the day. Just a personal preference as the flavor was still on par with the others.

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Giveaway Info!

And now I can offer two of my readers the chance to try Tazo Zero and the summer wellness pack, a perfect way to start the summer off! (This offer is only available to residents in the United States)

To enter, please leave a comment on this entry, telling me what you're most looking forward to this summer!

For two additional entries

1. Blog about this giveaway, with a link back to this post, for one additional entry, and comment again telling me you did


2. Tweet this giveaway with a link back to this post, commenting again

Please comment each time you complete an additional entry.

Contest ends on 29 Monday when I'll pick the two winners! The winners have about 24 hours to reply. Good luck!

Tazo Zero Tea

Some exciting news is happening over at Tazo Tea just in time for spring. They've launched a line of sweetened iced teas sweetened with stevia in three different flavors:

• Zen
  Green tea, lemongrass, and cool spearmint


• Passion
  A blend of hibiscus flowers, mango, passion fruit, lemongrass, and tart rose hips


• Refresh
  Peppermint leaves, spearmint leaves, and a pinch of tarragon

A quick glance at the ingredient list shows minimal ingredients, but also includes erythritol, which apparently is a naturally occurring sweetener that's sweeter than granulated sugar and has almost no calories. Classified as a sugar alcohol, erythritol is found in small amounts in various fruits, vegetables, and fermented foods.

I don't know much more about it, so if you're curious I'd suggest looking it up.

Back to Tazo, they are hosting a Tazo Zero Calorie Sweepstakes. By telling them your definition of relaxation, you are entered to win all three flavors of their new tea, and possibly a $100 SpaFinder gift certificate. You can enter daily.

*Note*

I haven't had a chance to taste the teas yet, so I'm not "endorsing" the product in any way -- I generally reserve reviews for products I've had the opportunity to taste first.

Also, I'm not necessarily advocating a sugar-free lifestyle, but as an occasional alternative, I'm interested in products using stevia over typical artificial sweeteners.