About Our Fine Flavor, Single Origin Cacao Tea

Just as we handcraft our award-winning Esmeraldas chocolate, we use the same high-quality, premium flavor approach to make this Cacao Tea.  We source our Esmeraldas cacao beans from the Salazar family in Same, Ecuador.  The Salazars’ handpicked three Nacional cacao varietals to plant on their farm and also built their own fermentation and drying facility.  This exceptional level of control of the entire harvest and post-harvest process results in exceptionally flavorful beans.  At our Massachusetts farm we carefully sort, roast with a custom profile, crack and winnow our Esmeraldas cacao, yielding flavorful, nutrient-rich cacao nibs.  There are no additives or preservatives whatsoever.  Instead of turning these nibs into chocolate, we’ve carefully packaged them in biodegradable tea bags for another type of delicious enjoyment.  Just steep, sit back, sip, and enjoy!

This tea is made with cacao nibs, but what are they?  Nibs are simply the term for the bits of the cacao bean after they’re crushed during the process of removing the shells (winnowing).  The beans themselves are the seeds of the cacao fruit.

Why do we use cacao nibs instead of cacao shells/husks to make our Cacao Tea?  Because nibs are the most flavorful, nutrient-rich part of cacao fruit, and they allow for the best tasting experience.

What is the difference between Cacao Tea and our Hot Cocoa?  There are two main differences: ingredients and preparation.  Our Cacao Tea is made by steeping cacao nibs in hot water and then removing the nibs so that what remains is an infused liquid.  Hot Cocoa is made by combining our Hot Cocoa mix (freshly-ground cacao powder and organic cane sugar) with a hot liquid of choice (milk, oat milk, water, etc.) and whisking the solid powder until dissolved into the liquid.  This tea is very light, and is very similar to herbal tea in many ways.  If you’re looking for a rich, sweet, chocolatey cocoa experience, try one of our award-winning, single origin Hot Cocoas.

Our Holistic Approach

We believe in transparency, traceability and sustainability and do our best to practice these values.  In addition to direct trade with our cacao farmers and ethical sourcing, we look for environmentally-friendly solutions for our kitchen and yours.

Everything in this Cacao Tea jar is fully biodegradable, compostable or reusable.  After enjoying your tea, place the used bags and jar label into your compost bin or garden.  Then reuse the jar- it’s a great size for anything, and the lid makes it easy to shake and store.  Here are a few ideas to get you started:

-Cold brew tea                                          -Salad dressing                      -Iced coffee

-Overnight oats                                       -DIY jellies & jams               -Button collection

-Hot cocoa or chocolate milk         -Cocktails & mocktails

 

Preparation & Ingredients

Steeping Instructions:

Submerge one tea bag in 8oz of hot water and infuse for 6-8 minutes.

Ingredients:  Single Origin Cacao Beans (*caffeine is naturally present)

Soy & Gluten Free

One glass jar contains 10 biodegradable tea bags.   Net Wt. 90g

*Caffeine is naturally present in cacao.  To give some context, an 8oz cup of coffee contains 95mg of caffeine, compared to less than 20mg in an 8oz cup of our Cacao Tea (assuming one tea bag is used).

For more information about the cacao we use for this tea please visit our Esmeraldas page.