Berry Vanilla

Another from Anlina that i tried yesterday. Funnily enough, i much prefer their secret garden tea to this one, even though the two seem like they should be similar. This one, while berry and vanilla like – has a bitterness to it and the tastes don’t blend together nearly as well as the other offering Anlina sent me to try. Given the choice, i’d go for the other tea :) Good to try though because this would have been one i’d have picked up to try!

Wow, what a hectic day. This was my first cup of the morning, at 7:30, and here it is, after 1pm and I’m just finishing it.

The dry leaf is dark and twisted and smells very tart, with berry notes.

I steeped this at 96c for 2:30, 1tsp in 8oz of water. I think with these Secret Garden black teas, I need to try steeping in cooler water, because this is on the border of tasting over steeped. It’s not particularly bitter or astringent, just starting to develop those characteristics a bit, and I feel like I could do with a lighter cup.

So, I’m not really feeling this one. The description really got the flavours and lightness of strawberry shortcake and whipped cream in my head, and I’m not really getting those qualities. There’s raspberry and strawberry flavours, and just a hint of tartness, along with some rosy floral notes, but the vanilla isn’t really making itself known, and it’s just lacking the creaminess that I was hoping for.

It’s not bad, but it doesn’t really stand out among berry teas for me. The flavour didn’t really change or develop much from hot to cold.

Thank you, Tiffany at Secret Garden for the sample.