I always get my hopes up with Republic of Tea. Maybe it’s the fancy circular casing, or the endless promises of SUSTAINABLE INGREDIENTS and RICH BURSTING FLAVOR. Or even just the fact that the blood orange art on the case reminded me of a wagon wheel. I always WANT to like Republic of Tea.
Unfortunately, I just never do. While I’ve only tried a handful of their teas, they are always disappointingly bland and musty. I snagged this one 50% off after the holidays so it was less of a price gamble, but I really should have learned my lesson being disappointed by their chocolate strawberry tea last year. I just don’t think that Republic of Tea handles chocolate flavoring well.
See, this is really where the problem is. I could be satisfied with this as a slightly bland and musty blood orange rooibos. Really, I could. But for me, every sip is overpowered by that artificial, waxy flavor that might be considered chocolate in some universe. That universe would be inhabited by people with only one taste bud on their tongue, but I could buy it. For me, however, it tastes like chocolate lip smackers, and I’m going to leave THOSE in the past where they belong!
