Finally getting to the last tea from my NMTC order (the pu’erh doesn’t count until my gaiwan arrives!). This was an impulse buy, and when I opened them all up to smell them this one seemed the least appealing—I love the taste of fresh plums, but this seemed… artificial. On somewhat of a whim today I decided to brew this up along with some chai spices, sugar plum style!
The earthy oolong and fruity plum flavors balance well, but they’re not overly exciting by themselves, and I think the chai gave them a much-needed kick in the butt. With the spices this is a pretty tasty cup, though more holiday-themed than the current weather really calls for. The plum is a bit on the artificial side, and isn’t really… plum-tasting. It’s more of a generic, juicy fruit taste. It’s not bad, but I was hoping that it would taste like a freshly cut plum. The oolong base is innocuous enough: I like greener oolongs more than their darker counterparts, but the earthy tones definitely work better with the flavoring here. I think I am going to be using this mostly for blending, as on its own nothing really stands out or makes me think “oh, I want more of that!”
