The dry leaves smell like berries – I’m reminded a bit of the aroma I get from the dry leaf of Republic of Tea’s Black Raspberry Green. I really enjoy the Black Raspberry Green, so I consider this a promising sign. Once the tea is brewed, it still smells fruity. I’d say the aroma is more reminiscent of currants than of berries at this point. That’s still good – I like both berries and currants.
The flavor of the tea, though, is not particularly strong on either currant or berry. Bergamot definitely seems to be the dominant flavor. The base is quite smooth, and it does come through reasonably well. I don’t taste much in the way of berries, but I am getting a mildly fruity aftertaste – more on this later. I’m not getting any vanilla whatsoever, nor do I notice anything that particularly strikes me as caramel. There is that sweet, fruity aftertaste that I don’t entirely care for – I almost feel like I’m left with a sticky coating in my mouth, as if I’ve just eaten something sugary. Maybe that’s meant to be the caramel? I don’t think I’ve ever had a tea with caramel flavoring before, so it could be that my expectations are a bit off. I’m not usually a huge fan of teas with more dessert-y flavors, anyway.
I really want to like this one, but this particular mix of flavors just isn’t doing it for me. I definitely prefer plain Earl Greys for those times when I need a bergamot fix, but I’m happy to have been able to try this tea as it’s one I’ve been curious about for some time. Thanks to ToiToi for the sample!
