Emperor's Choice

Healthy herbs, rooibos, honeybush, decaf tea, and yerba mate.


Apr 27th, '10, 17:57
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Emperor's Choice

by TheErk » Apr 27th, '10, 17:57

One of my favorite teas when I was growing up was Emperor's Choice from Celestial Seasonings. They have since discontinued that tea. Does anyone know of a blend that would be close to this?

Thanks,
TheErk

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Apr 28th, '10, 00:54
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Location: San Francisco

Re: Emperor's Choice

by aya_s » Apr 28th, '10, 00:54

Hey there, TheErk.

I've never had the tea you're speaking of, but the Celestial Seasonings site recommends trying their Red Safari Spice tea in its stead.

Another blog offers this up: "You might try their white pear tea, the one with the Siamese cat on the box. It's close, tasty and almost as soothing as the EC."

What was in the Emperor's Choice blend?

Some places like Whole Foods markets in the US sell herbs for steeping by weight- you might also try buying the herbs in the blend and experimenting with making your own. :)

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May 3rd, '10, 12:45
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Location: Alamosa, Colorado

Re: Emperor's Choice

by Rithmomachy » May 3rd, '10, 12:45

Was that the one they suggested as a non-caffinated coffee substitute? It had roasted chicory and other roasted-malty-earthy flavors. I think it had licorice root . . . I forget what else. Carob, maybe? Is that the one?

I liked that a lot when I was a kid. It shouldn't be too hard to find something with chicory and licorice in it. You might like rooibos, too, either straight or blended. That's probably what's in the Red Safari Spice tea.

If you don't mind some caffiene, a maté blend might be up your alley.

May 3rd, '10, 18:07
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Joined: Apr 27th, '10, 17:48

Re: Emperor's Choice

by TheErk » May 3rd, '10, 18:07

No, it was a ginseng tea. Honestly, it's been so long since I've had it, I couldn't tell you exactly how it tasted /facepalm.

Thanks aya_s! I'll check into those.

--TheErk

Oct 10th, '10, 23:37
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Joined: Oct 10th, '10, 23:19

Re: Emperor's Choice

by heffgrl » Oct 10th, '10, 23:37

Hi TheErk!
I found this site by searching for the Emperors Choice tea info and...
I actually kept the box that it came in (sad huh?). It says on the box is: Red tea (roobios), eleuthero root, cinnamon, roast chicory root, orange peel, blackberry leaves, natural orange flavor with other natural flavors, ginger root, lovage root, and Asian Ginseg
I too would love to find one that would be somewhat close to this. The Red Safari one was not it for me.

I hope this helps and of you come up with anything else....

~Heather

Mar 28th, '11, 00:10
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Joined: Mar 27th, '11, 23:03

Re: Emperor's Choice

by solarcookingman » Mar 28th, '11, 00:10

Here is my quick and easy to make recipe that is as close as I remember the wonderful taste of emperor's choice. First, you will need the Korean ginseng tea that is in single serve gold packages and a gold colored box that can be found at almost any asian grocery store. Most of the wording is in Korean, but it will say 10% ginseng extract and 90% glucose on the end of the box.
Find some Bigelow Earl Grey tea. Brew one bag of the Earl Grey tea with three packets of the instant ginseng tea and sprinkle in some ground cinnamon.
Hope it brings back great memories.

May 3rd, '11, 09:24
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Re: Emperor's Choice

by arbie5788 » May 3rd, '11, 09:24

I am so upset! I didn't know that Emperor's Choice had been discontinued. I went on line to see where I could buy it because I thought it was hard to find. I found about 8 boxes a couple of years ago in an old store and bought them all. I'm drinking it now and am almost out.

The ingredients are: Cinnamon, blackberry leaves, cleuthero ginseng root, roasted chicory root, orange peel, rosehips, ginger root, natural flavors, licorice root and panax ginseng.

Perhaps we can beg Celestial Seasoninings to bring it back!?

May 3rd, '11, 09:39
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Joined: May 3rd, '11, 09:17

Re: Emperor's Choice

by arbie5788 » May 3rd, '11, 09:39

I just saw that another post with slightly different ingredients was listed. If this allows images to be uploaded, I could scan the box to make sure we are talking about the same one.
Info on the top of the box is :
Celestial Seasonings, Naturally caffeine free 'with ginseng', Herb tea, 20 tea bags, Net wt. 1.7 oz (47g)
A regal blend of chinese ginseng, real cinnamon, and hearty herbs
Emperor's Choice
Bottom of Box
Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting.
The soul that rises with us, our life's star,
Hath had elsewhere its wetting.
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing cluds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home.
-- William Wordsworth
I won't write the rest but a poem by Anne Bradstree is on the back
'About the tea' on one end
And 'For hot tea:' and 'For Iced Tea:' and 'ingredients' on the other end.

Forgive my ramblings, I'm still so disappointed ... I will be savoring each cup. I looked at the date and it's 1986 ... still good!

May 31st, '11, 19:15
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Re: Emperor's Choice Clone

by snouty » May 31st, '11, 19:15

As a long time fan of Emperor's Choice I feel I should weigh in on this subject. :D I've studied the ingredient list above and done a few experiments and this is the recipe I think has the closest taste. Your mileage may vary.

Emperor's Choice is basically a spiced chai with ginseng it seems...

To bring it back from the dead just use an Earl Grey tea bag, best quality you can find, add to that in the cup a 1/2 tsp of instant chicory, 1/4 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground ginger and a gold sachet of instant ginseng tea. Add sugar/sweetener and milk if you usually have them.

This is pretty close to my beloved and sorely missed brew.

May 31st, '11, 19:16
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Re: Emperor's Choice

by snouty » May 31st, '11, 19:16

and while we are on the subject has anyone got a good scan of the box...?

Jul 23rd, '11, 23:42
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Re: Emperor's Choice

by strevor » Jul 23rd, '11, 23:42

Has anyone successfully reproduced a tea using those ingredients? Any idea of proportions?

Feb 24th, '15, 17:17
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Re: Emperor's Choice

by hbrector » Feb 24th, '15, 17:17

I really loved this tea. I drank it for the Ginseng and the flavor too. Sad when it was discontinued. For what it's worth I have found a close substitute:

One packet Korean Ginseng Tea (instant) try Amazon
1/4 chunk of Knorr's Vegetable Boullion
8-10oz hot water

I know, but it is very close to the same taste, and, I am getting my ginseng!

Sep 27th, '17, 19:05
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Re: Emperor's Choice

by Theladymcdougal » Sep 27th, '17, 19:05

They have started selling it again. Just bought 20 boxes. Online only.

Sep 27th, '17, 23:30
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Location: Cambridge, USA

Re: Emperor's Choice

by steanze » Sep 27th, '17, 23:30

That's amazing that all the posters in this topic never posted for years and all started posting today :shock:
Also somehow I'm not surprised that the product discussed is suddenly available again :lol:

Sep 25th, '18, 12:37
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Joined: Oct 7th, '10, 11:22

Re: Emperor's Choice

by beforewisdom » Sep 25th, '18, 12:37

TheErk wrote: One of my favorite teas when I was growing up was Emperor's Choice from Celestial Seasonings. They have since discontinued that tea. Does anyone know of a blend that would be close to this?
I visited the Celestial Seasonings factory this past weekend in Boulder Colorado.

I was told by a clerk in the gift shop that Celestial Seasonings has brought back blends before when they have gotten strong feedback, so fans of that tea should make that suggestion with the contact form at:

celestialseasonings.com

I was also told you can still order some of the remaining boxes of Emperor's Choice here:

http://www.celestialseasonings.com/prod ... herbal-tea

Lastly, these are the ingredients of the mix according to that URL

Cinnamon, Blackberry Leaves, Eleuthero, Orange Peel, Roasted Chicory, Rosehips, Ginger, Licorice Root and Ginseng

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