I have the potential to be a big fan of flavoured black teas. Sometimes they’re a real let down, but there are a few gems like this one that are actually pretty good.
You open the tin to a strong scent of candy cane, almost as if you’d just unwrapped the real thing. Dry, you can clearly see peppermint leaves, pieces of candy cane (both large and tiny fragments), and a generous amount of black tea base. All good so far, and I’m reassured that the smell isn’t just artificial flavouring.
To taste, this tea is probably one of the most unusual I’ve tried so far. I can only describe it as vanilla-mint. The vanilla contributes a creamy sweetness, which is tempered by the slight coolness contributed by the mint. It’s almost like you made a cup of black tea, and then swirled a candy cane in it, but there’s a little more depth to the flavour than that. The scent isn’t quite as prominent as when dry, but it’s still noticable and identifiable. I drank this with a dash of milk, because that’s just my way, but I have a feeling it would be just as palatable, maybe more so, without. Maybe next time.
My only complaint would be that I’m not sure the black tea base is the best suited to this flavour. It’s ever so slightly bitter, and doesn’t quite sit as well as I hoped it would. Perhaps I’m looking for something slightly sweeter and less overpowering, to let the candy cane flavour sing, but that’s just my personal taste.
Ultimately, this is a pretty good flavoured black, and one I’ll definetly be drinking more of come the winter proper.
