This was a free sample from Teavivre with my last order.
I was pleasantly surprised by this tea. I have tried the Dian Hong before and liked it. I was a little suspicious of rose because other rose teas I have had have been very perfumey.
Upon opening the package there are pretty little light pink rose buds mixed in with the Dian Hong. It smells pleasantly like natural rose buds (I have many rose bushes in my garden and I love the smelle of the blooming rose buds in the early summer!). It is not perfumey rose like the perfume my grandma used to wear.
I only brewed for one minute because I still had the fear that the rose would be too strong. It tastes delicious and delicate. I get the taste of the Dian Hong tea, it is smooth but moderately bold, slightly earthy, slightly malty. It is perfectly balanced with the slightest rose flavour, slightly floral but not too much and certainly not perfumey. The rose really lightens the black tea. This would be a perfect afternoon tea or a tea when you are just winding down. I think this one would have been just fine had I brewed for my usual 2 minutes.
I quite like this one.
The rose fragrance of this tea is come from natural rose buds, mixing the rose with Dian Hong black tea produces this pleasing Rose Black Tea.