Caramel Apple Honeybush

Thanks to KittyLovesTea – I get to try a bit of this one out! Thanks! (Also, sipdown, woooo!! It counts no matter how big the sample was to begin with, right??)

The dry tea had very little aroma, but as soon as the water hit the leaf, quite a powerful punch of somewhat chemically apple/caramel hit my nose. So…. flavour likely not lacking, but I wasn’t sure about the chemically aroma. Luckily, it tamed a bit as it cooled, although it still smells a bit chemically. Flavourwise, it is much the same. I taste green apple and caramel, but the flavours are definitely a bit synthetic.

Not bad; I don’t think I’d purchase a pouch of this but for a honeybush it is a unique flavour and would be a nice inclusion to a caffeine-free evening rotation.

Thanks again, KittyLovesTea, for sharing your small sample of this one with me! :D

Yum, I wasn’t sure about this the first time I saw it had been brought back @ I Heart Teas, but I’m glad it was still around for my next order! Blue Moon made a “caramel apple ale” in their fall box and it is vile. Something in the aftertaste is just bleh…and it tastes nothing like caramel apple.

This however does taste like caramel apple. It reminds me of those caramel apple pops if they were a tea. This is well done for the apple flavoring too, I thought it’d be very heavy on caramel but it is most definitely not!

I don’t know why I’m in a fall mood still. At least it’s going to cool off thanks to the storm? But that doesn’t really count because it’ll probably still be really humid. I’m just legitimately tired of it being in the 90s. This tea makes it feel like that never happened today.

A friend suggested I use the rest of the beer to make a glaze for popcorn, and I almost am tempted to make it with this tea too!

Actually. When there was about an ounce or so of tea left in my mug, I poured some of the beer into it…what I thought might have been gross was actually really good. But that’s not how I’m going to drink this tea! It was just room temperature and it wasn’t as tasty as hot!

Apparently I did not log this yet…interesting, as I know I’ve drank it. When I decided to prepare it this evening as a treat I had a memory that I was disappointed last time. Luckily, this time I wasn’t! I get strong apple taste, very green and sweet, possibly even vaguely candied. As the cup cooled, the caramel came out to play and it really sticks around on the back of the sip. I used boiling water and let it steep around 5 minutes, and was initially a little disappointed but this was a tea that only improved as it cooled (I decided to do my daily exercise routine just after pouring this tea, so it cooled for about 25 minutes). Of course, now I am warm and sweaty and drinking lukewarm tea, but this really cheers me up. I’m continually on the hunt for a good apple tea, and a good caramel tea. Right now, this hits on both accounts! It’s a shame the beau likes this one too and we only have the one bag…

ps – I am seriously contemplating adding a Werthers candy in here sometime and see if that melting adds to caramel flavour. That can’t go badly, can it? :D

It would appear I am the first to log this one! I received my package of this today, and also tucked in my envelope was my HoppiTea present from AmazonV. (Thanks!)

This is quite scrumptious. I have been waiting to write full length reviews on teas from 52Teas for at least three weeks after they’ve been released because one thing I’ve come to realize in my years of tea blending is that a tea blended today will not taste quite the same as it will three weeks from today. And I’ve noticed with a few teas that I’ve been a little unsure about… if I wait a couple of weeks and return to it, it tastes much better. Could just be me… but, it works for me.

Anyways… that’s why I’m not off to write my full-length review of this one just yet. It IS delicious though, I can taste the apple and the caramel and I love the nut and honey sweetness from the honeybush in the background. A very nice autumn-like treat, and is making me hungry for caramel apples.

I first tried to order this blend when it initially came out on the 52Teas website – unfortunately that was also during the Canada Post strike and my parcel vanished into that mysterious limbo dimension where all lost mail goes. I was pretty bummed about this, so when Rachel offered it up on her website I was all over that. It was well-worth the wait in my opinion.

The naturally sweet honeybush gives the caramel flavours a nice boost and the apple flavour is easy to pick out and doesn’t taste like that fake green-apple flavouring stuff. Very tasty.

When I first opened the bag of this I was knocked off my feet! It REALLY smelled of Caramel and Appple. I think a blind man who had never tried tea could have easily identified the flavor of this one.

The taste, while not as strong as the smell (sadly) is still true. It’s one of the better honeybush I’ve had and I’m happy I can actually taste the apple in it (a few other teas claiming to be apple flavor left me wondering if they forgot the apple). Good tea all said.

Doesn’t get much better than this. It is like the essense of a real Caramel Apple. For a full review and little something funny… www.MyTeasandMore.com

Backlog from yesterday. This was such a strange tea! It smelled a bit unnatural when I put it in my cup, but the true sweet, caramel nature of this tea truly bloomed when I added boiling water. Smelled apple-like, which is good, and rather fake, which usually isn’t so good. But, this tea tasted pretty awesome…Just a little bit of sugar and this becomes an awesome dessert tea! I was having a niggling desire for candy when I brewed this, and by the time I started drinking my 12 oz. cup with just a teaspoon of sugar, I didn’t even think about sweets again, the tea was enough. So, this is an amazing alternative to have in the cupboard to tame any sweets cravings one may come across.

Not a fan of the fakeness in the scent and flavor, but the overall tea is good enough to make up for it.

Thanks to T.C. for this sample, the tea was definitely fun to play with.

Caramel? Apples? Honeybush? What’s not to like? This tea has an awesome caramel apple flavor and the honeybush is a nice base. I really like this tea. Hopefully I can save a little for actual autumn.

A longer review here: http://apurpledress.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/52-teas-a-six-part-series-6/

Thank you to oOTeaOo for sending me this tea in our christmas swap!!!

Observation 1:My first honeybush! The boyfriend prepared this tea, he steeped it at boiling for 5 minutes. This liquuor steeps a pretty amber color. Was steeped loose in the teapot.

Observation 2: Naked, this tea has sweet notes with a prominent apple taste. Beneath that I can taste what I assume is the honeybush base followed by a light aftertaste of caramel.

Observation 3: With sugar to taste, I can mainly taste caramel, the bright apple flavor seems to get thrown to the background under sugar. The honeybush base is still prominently. best preparation for me

Observation 4: With milk, the honeybush runs the show with just a few drops of milk. Apple lingers above the flavors of the base.

Observation 5: With milk and sugar the honey bush and caramel are definitely prominent. I taste nuances indicative of apple.

Overall: I enjoyed this honeybush, I don’t think it will take precedence over rooibos for me, but it is very good and drawn my attention to 52Teas. I think the balance of the flavors needs to be adjusted a bit. It tastes like caramel and tastes like apple, but not at the same time. I would add more apple and maybe something nutty. Caramel apples are often covered in nuts and I think it would have been a nice touch.

Boyfriend review: Needs sugar, but very good with it.

I can’t believe I haven’t logged this yet. I have definitely drank this herbal beverage several times though. It has a very strong scent to it. Very apple, caramel and something pungent. Steeped, it was a nice auburn color. The scent and taste wasn’t pungent at all. It was a lovely, light caramel apple. I was surprised at how accurate it tasted! It almost got me craving an caramel covered apple! Delicious!

I find this one smells great but the flavour doesn’t really follow suit. It’s pleasant and the honeybush is nice but I only get a kind of muted caramel flavour from it.

I don’t know where this came from, but the boyfriend asked if I thought it smelled like cigarettes. I didn’t, but apparently he did.

It has a fantastic scent. The flavour is a delicious balance of caramel and apple. Now I long for Autumn.

Pre Steeping
Scent- apples
After steeping
Scent: apple and cinnamon
Color: golden
Taste
Nude: apple and cinnamon, almost like a cider
With sugar: added caramel flavor and after taste of apple; eventually has a caramel apple flavor