Orzo - Caramel & Honey

Uhhhh, this smells strongly of a delicious, delicious coffee drink that would upset my tummy. O.o Have to say that I was a bit apprehensive to try it, but my apprehension nearly always is outweighed by my curiosity, which is what happened this time, so I ended up with yet another sample from Sil! This seems to be a trend for tonight, haha.

Ok… this seriously tastes like a freaking cup of delicious sweetened, creamy coffee! Like a low-cal version of a latte, sweetened cappuccino….. AHHHHHHH! This is amazing!!! I wasn’t expecting the sweetness; I was expecting something more bitter, but no. This is naturally, deliciously sweet. I’m definitely not one of the coffee-haters; I actually adore the aroma and flavour of coffee (well, when it’s doctored with copious amounts of sugar/milk). My problem was that it upset my stomach, and also, that I couldn’t drink it without the high-calorie additions. So this is nearly perfect – amazing flavour (I bet a touch of milk/sugar would even improve it more!) and no tummy issues… only problem is that Lupicia doesn’t ship to Canada. A problem that i will somehow solve, haha.

Anyhow, I am thoroughly impressed with this one, and hopefully will get the chance to re-stock it someday. YUM!

ETA: Re-steeped twice in less water. Still tasty.

The only thing that really confuses me about this tea is that there are strawberries in here. Which I can see, but that’s as far as it goes. So i have to say, I’m in agreement with everyone who has mentioned that this is NOT a tea for you if you don’t like coffee. I on the other hand, am a fan of coffee type latte beverages and so this? This is wonderful!

There is a nutty, sweet, caramel taste to this that I can really get behind. I’m sure if i added some milk to this is would taste eerily similar to a latte. I wouldn’t drink this every day but I am game to keep this in my cupboard for those days when i want something a bit punchier and more reminiscent of a coffee latte. :) mmmmm thanks to Kittenna for inspiring me to get around to trying this heh.

1 tablespoon for 375 ml

Burnt aroma.
Burnt food taste. Mild caramel sweetness. Smooth.
The flavour becomes more tolerable as the tisane cools.
The lingering aftertaste is a coffee (maybe burnt coffee) flavour.

Second infusion at 5 minutes. Dilute flavour. Burnt flavour still present.
Lingering aftertaste is smoother- tastes more like coffee without being burnt.

Rating: 60

I may have to alter the infusion parameters.

Thanks to Sil for sharing!

brewed 1 tsp in 6oz boiling water for 5 min, then added about 2 oz vanilla almond milk. Mmmm tastes much like coffee to me – roasty, a bit nutty, but also with a hint more sweetness than the burnt/bitter flavor that often comes with coffee. I’m so glad to finally try this!

I snagged this tea while at Lupicia. Was nice as they had samples and it was easy to sniff each tea before buying.

DRY: Smells very roasted and sweet. The tea is in small chunks with lumps of dried strawberries. I actually was intending to get the Strawberry Orzo, but this one smelled better as it had caramel and strawberry scent!

The packaging is a “limited package” which turned out to be a bag around their typical package. Kinda wasteful and I rather not of had the extra bag around it, as I’m just gonna lose or toss it. The package also did not have english steeping instructions, so I had to look those up.

STEEPED: WHOA, this looks like coffee! Pitch black with a hint of brown. Smells dark roasted and rich.
FYI, this was a PITA to get out of my Steeper – the fine chunks of this tea clogged up the filter, pouring the tea very slowly. Next time, I’d go for a tea bag or steep in a tea pot with filter. Probably want a good filter though.
Upon closer inspection, small bits got through the Steeper filter, but one can only see it at the dregs.

TASTE: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! UUGGGG! YUCKYUCK! Bitter, strong roasted, malty barley flavor. Not actual coffee flavor, but this tea is on the same level of strong, roasted bitter flavor. Bit of sweetness at the end like honey and caramel. Aftertaste of coffee and strawberry.

With rock sugar: same bitter taste, but sweeter. Pour out!!! Maybe I went too heavy on the tea?

Doctored heavy with milk and honey: becomes a weird grey brown colour instead of a typical light brown coffee colour. Okay – this is good. Or am I saying that because this is drinkable? Hmmmm. It’s creamy, with a berry taste. Bit of roasted caramel and chocolate essence. Actually pretty good caramel flavor. Okay – this is good!

COMMENTS: WARNING! IF YOU HATE COFFEE RUN FROM THIS TEA or be willing to have something only as lattes or doctored with milk and sweetener!
Straight up, this is awful stuff, says this tea drinker. Seriously. I’ve utterly disliked only a few teas (Adagio’s “Toasted Sesame” of bitter death and DavidsTea’s “All the Raj” of vinegar) and this would be up there. I’d say like a 35 or 45 rating.
With milk and honey, actually pretty good. I’d have it again and finish the bag. I’d put that at a 80 or 85. I’m just gonna put the tea rating in the middle.

I’d love to show this tea to my coffee drinking friends. Actually, this might the tea they are looking for. No caffeine, tastes good (I’d drink this over coffee), interesting and delicious blend of flavors. This has got to be the closet coffee tea experience I’ve had.

This is one of my favorite teas! The earthy aroma of the barley mixes great with the sweetness from the caramel and honey flavouring. when brewed straight it has a similar taste to coffee but not as strong or potent. Add milk to it and it is heaven! The main thing that i love about this tea is since it is a barley tea it doesn’t have caffeine so i can drink it anytime during the day. I can also give it to my little brother and my baby cousins too. I recommend this to anyone and everyone!

Whoa, dry and brewing this smells like sweet coffee. Husband thought it smelled like pralines. Brewed it’s quite surprising—deep dark oily black, with some thin sediment rimming the cup. Made me worry it’d be harsh and burnt tasting or bitter, and there is a toasty thing going on (unsurprising as it’s barley-based), but it’s not a bad thing at all, to my relief. Sweet and caramel-y and yeah, like coffee but with much less body, a cleaner taste. There’s a light earthiness too that isn’t usually in coffee, and I like it. Thought based on the description it’d * need * milk, pleasantly surprised it doesn’t, though I can see how that’d probably add texture and richness. Great to have this at my disposal as a late night kinda-coffee-like sweet treat.

This smells amazing. I give extra points for being caffeine free, because I was looking for a night time tea that is not rooibos or chamomile. I used to drink plain chilled orzo like water when I was young (though it was slightly different being an Asian variety), but I came to like flavored versions. It reminds me of light to medium coffee, but not in a way that’s offensive to those who don’t like coffee. People have suggested that it goes well with milk too, so even better. It’s a very comforting cup.

Love love love this Orzo. I can’t do large quantities of caffeine (which means coffee = bad), so last fall, when it seemed like perfect evening latte weather, I started making this with a little Half & Half instead. The taste of roasted barley is tempered by a light sweetness. Adding a dash of cinnamon and/or nutmeg added beautifully to the atmosphere.

I have a bit of a strawberry allergy, and didn’t know this had strawberries in it until I got home. I tried it anyway, and as it turns out, the strawberry presence is so mild as to be virtually nonexistent. No itchy eyes for me!

I love this because it doesn’t leave the bitter aftertaste or acidic aftertaste that coffee does. With milk and a little bit of sugar, this has a nice full body and makes a hearty drink. I think I taste a little chocolate with the caramel and honey. I’m not sure what the purpose of the little strawberry bits is, because this doesn’t taste fruity. It seems impossible to over-brew this, so let it steep a long time. Yum! Also good with a little egg nog instead of milk.