Lipton Pure Green Tea in my experience has a notably bitter flavor, particularly if you leave it steep for too long. It’s quite sensitive to long steeping.
But if you follow its brewing instructions precisely, this green tea tastes as green tea should.
As died-in-the-wool green tea fans for a few decades now, we’re always watching for the cheapest yet great-tasting green teas. And, as green teas go, Lipton green tea is among the cheapest we’ve sampled, and for the price, it tastes quite good. While Lipton’s pale green color is naturally pleasing, this version of the beverage tends to be cloudy, like dirty dish water. But it sweetens nicely with agave nectar, stevia, or honey. It’s unique aroma shouts, “green tea,” aloud, but says little else. This brew smells precisely as a green tea should.
Lipton Pure Green Tea Benefits, Features, Advantages, and Pros
Long shelf life. This green tea keeps for years without much change in flavor, as long as you store it in a dry, dark, and cool place. Shelves in many basements that are at least several feet off the floor work well for this purpose.
Robust flavor. For those who like a strong and slightly bitter-tasting green tea, this drink is for you. Lipton is a typical bitter green tea. Though it can be bitter if left to steep for longer than recommended times, we’ve found no other green tea that tastes like Lipton. It tastes great when brewed properly.
Pure green tea product. This is a 100% natural green tea; without chemical additives. No preservatives, colors, or artificial flavors. This beverage is about as purely natural as one can get.
Health promoting ingredients. It contains natural tea flavonoids.
Rigorously enforced quality standards. This product is rainforest alliance certified. Its teas are sourced from tea farms that meet stringent quality standards. These criteria protect the land and treat the workers, their families, and their communities with concern and respect.
This is among the cheapest green teas I’ve found to date, costing $1.98 for twenty tea bags (servings).
Individually wrapped tea bags. The teabags are individually wrapped in paper for freshness, and as a second step to preserve the delicate flavor, they wrap each box in cellophane. The one we bought smelled quite fresh once the fresh lock wrap was removed, though it had no aroma while still wrapped.
Requires little sweetener. For our tastes, this pure tea sweetens well with stevia, nectar, syrup, monk fruit, or Truvia. Stevia sweetens this tea without destroying the so-easily-masked green tea flavor.
Low caffeine concentration. Lipton green tea has caffeine, yes, that is naturally occurring and not added. The levels seem similar to other brands tasted, at 35 milligrams per serving. So this green tea triggers the same mood-lifting effects observed in the Salada, Great Value, Stash, Tazo, and Bigelow brands.
Easy to find. Available at most any grocery or discount store big or small, locating Lipton Green Tea is a simple task.
Lipton Green Tea Disadvantages, Problems, Limitations, and Cons
Teabags not wrapped airtight. Note that though Lipton green tea bags are individually wrapped, keep in mind that unlike Bigelow teas, these wrappings are not completely air-tight, as the aroma young tea leaves greets you as soon as you peel off the cellophane. So this tea may not stay fresh for as long as the Bigelow green teas, which do include a sealed surrounding bag for each tea bag.
Easy to over brew. If you leave the teabags in the hot water for more than roughly five minutes, a bitter tasting tea emerges.
Can stain teeth. Any green tea including Lipton can stain the teeth. Indeed dental hygienists know when you’re drinking green tea, no matter the brand really, just from the discoloration they finds on front teeth. Yet the health benefits of green tea are worth the additional pain of slightly harder to clean mollers. Besides, we’ve not found that any one brand of green tea stains teeth any more than another.
Caffeine Withdrawal symptoms. Can trigger a caffeine withdrawal headache if you drink this tea product regularly, and then stop suddenly.
Too much tea may exacerbate nausea. Particularly when I’ve not taken Lipton green tea for some days, I can feel dizzy when I pick it up again; especially when riding in a car after drinking it. Green tea of any brand including Lipton can make me feel intensely nauseous in the car when I’m out of practice drinking it. It may actually promote car sickness in some people. Lipton green tea is no different. We avoid this by drinking this tea only with some food in the stomach.
Honey covers the tea flavor quickly. Honey, for sweetening Lipton green tea can completely mask Lipton’s signature bitter green tea flavor if you do not add just enough for adequate sweetness. The tea flavor is easily destroyed by non-neutral, flavored sweeteners. But I don’t mind getting rid of the bitterness if possible.
Not organic.
Ingredients
100% natural green tea.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving size: 1 tea bag (1.8 grams). Makes 8 fluid ounces prepared.
- Servings per container: 20.
- Calories: 0.
- Calories from fat: 0.
- Total fat: 0 grams, 0% DV.
- Sodium: 0 milligrams, 0% DV.
- Total carbohydrate: 0 grams, 0% DV.
- Protein: 0 grams.
Our Rating
So to close, I’d say that while in terms of flavor, the Lipton Green Tea is by no means top-notch, it is however, one of the better-value green teas I’ve found thus far, at just under a dime per serving. You can do much better on the price with other brands. But then again, you can do much worse also.
On the whole, I would not recommend Lipton green tea unless you enjoy some bitterness. Many do it appears as Lipton has continued to market this product for several years at least without significant changes in taste. I however, do not. I’d rate this product therefore at 85 out of 100.
Where To Buy Lipton Pure Green Tea
Look for Lipton 100% Natural Premium Green Tea in the green and yellow box with the dark green lettering at most any grocery store.
References
Revision History
- 2915-01-16: Added a few tid bits about caffeine as it relates to this product.
- 2014-12-23: Revised and extended content.
- 2014-11-20: Adjusted ad placement, fixed typos, and extended the content.
- 2012-03-31: Originally published.