Ouli, which is a sister brand of Dona Chai, is a line of super premium herbal teas that contain 10 calories or less with no added sweeteners. The product line presently includes three flavors: Turmeric Cherry, Cardamom Mint and Elderflower Fennel. 

When it comes to taste, all three of these products are top notch and are best compared to other super premium unsweetened teas. Each is made with real ingredients and does not contain any flavorings or, as previously mentioned, sweeteners. 

The Elderflower Fennel variety, which is also made with chamomile and orange oil, is the lightest of the bunch in both flavor and appearance.It’s very light, refreshing and well balanced, with clean notes of chamomile, fennel, elderflower and orange.  And unlike the other two SKUs, this one has zero calories and zero sugar. 

The other two flavors, which have 10 calories and contain added fruit juices, have a bit more body and depth to them. Turmeric Cherry, which is made with cherry juice, also features lemongrass, hibiscus and black pepper. The drink has subtle spiced notes from the turmeric and black pepper while the hibiscus and cherry add some tartness. Cardamom Mint, which is made with blueberry and lemon juices, is, thanks to its citrus forward flavor, the most mainstream of the offerings.

On the packaging front, Ouli comes in a cylindrical shaped 16 ounce clear glass bottle that has a pressure sensitive clear label. The label uses a a text-only design with the core elements in white, including the brand name, the word “Tisane,” and the key ingredients for each flavor. Down at the very bottom, you’ll find the words “herbal tea” in small print while the word “OULI” also runs vertically from top to bottom (in a different color for each SKU) behind the white text.

Speaking purely from an aesthetic point of view, this approach, which uses the liquid as a  backdrop, works well on two of the three flavors. However, on the Cardamom Mint flavor, which uses a greyish hue on the vertical Ouli, the letters don’t pop as strongly.

Beyond that, we wonder if the words “herbal tea” need to be closer to the top as tisane isn’t something with wide mainstream awareness at this point. We also feel as though it would be good for the products to have a more clear and succinct name. The front panel ingredients list is a good thing and a simple fix would be to make the first line of it stand out more (e.g. use bold on it). 

Honestly, these are all relatively minor points; overall, Ouli has succeeded in creating something -- both in terms of the liquid and the packaging -- that’s minimalist but refined and very high quality.