Those who follow me may or may not have noticed that I tend to do a new tasting note for each time I try a tea, even if I already have notes on it. Mostly this just helps me keep up to date as well as visually seeing what teas I tend to use alot. Usually the only reason I won’t do a tasting note is because of time, or just having nothing to say.
Anyways- Today I tried this one as an iced tea. It’s hot in California today! And I tend to like having drinks at hand while I’m driving. I put two teaspoons in my IngenuiTEA (3min@ 195F) and released that over half a 24oz cold cup of ice. Whoops, even diluted I think I maybe overleafed too much. Usually I double the leaf for iced tea, but this probably would have worked out fine with the usual amount.
I second steeped the leaves again into a hot thermos with half a tsp of sugar. I can definitely tell this is overleafed (for me), even though it was a shorter brew time (~1.5min@195F).
Even as potent as it was, this is still a very nice tea. The subtleties of the tea are lost quite a bit however as the black base plays in the forefront. You get the chocolate aroma still, but don’t taste it nearly as much. It may be a tad more floral, but not overwhelming. I like that it’s still quite nice iced, yet without sugar. I didn’t care too much more the second steep with the sugar, but it was nice to have the option around during the car ride.