Berry Basil Blast! White Tea

…Y tho.

Seriously, this is kind of weird.

One of my coworkers and I tried this (hot and unsweetened first, and then with some sugar) in the store the other night (this was the same night we tried the Watermelon Mint Chiller) and thought it was vile. We discussed whether or not it might luckily be discontinued at the end of the year, and who might get a Christmas present of a pink slip for coming up with this one.

I’m trying it again at home (sweetened), and it’s not quite as bad as I remember it being. I wouldn’t buy it, but I can drink it. I need to think back to a time that I tossed together a tasty salad with juicy chunks of strawberries and bits of fresh basil…and then I go, “Oh yeeeah, okay, it tastes a bit like that, that was the flavour they were going for.”

It’s really a bit of an odd flavour for a tea though; at least, in my opinion. But some flavours that I think are really wrong for tea are flavours that others go for (maple, for example, which has a tendency to literally make me queasy when I taste it in tea), so perhaps other people will like this. It’s nowhere near the top of my list of personal recommendations, though.

I will chill the rest of this cup and update.

Chilled Update: Okay, I thought icing this tea would improve it, but I think I was wrong about that. You know how I said that the mint is more noticeable in the Watermelon Mint Chiller when it’s iced? Well, the same thing seems to happen to the basil here, but that’s not necessarily a good thing. Ever had a fruit-and-basil salad that was too heavy on the basil? Yeaaaah.

There’s something else that comes out towards the back of the sip, but I’m not sure what it is. Lemon, maybe? Okay, actually lemon and basil aren’t that bad a combination, but having them follow the berries too strongly is having that making-me-queasy effect. Nope, nope, nope.

Basil seems like a weird idea for teas, but I do like sweet/savory blends.. for example tortellini salad with pesto and chopped strawberries! Or Numi’s Basil Mint Pu-erh which really does taste strongly of basil. I got this in a swap with Novi and was excited to try it, since it seemed right up my alley!

There’s hibiscus, of course, and pineapple. Seriously, they put those two in EVERYTHING. Thankfully they went light on the hibiscus and the pineapple imparts zero flavor. But I’m also not really tasting (or seeing) much in the way of white tea, which is standard with Teavana blends I think, except for the Acai Blueberry one which had great fluffy leaves.

This is kind of mildly berry-like, maybe strawberry or blueberry? Jammy, not fresh berry. There’s kind of a generic berry flavor that Teavana uses, and that’s what this is. Not that it’s bad, I do like berry! But I am tasting zero basil. Like none, at all. Is there any in here even?! A bit disappointed, but my love for Numi’s Basil blend makes up for it.

This is surprisingly light in flavor. It’s sweet with berry and citrus flavors. There is a bit of an herbalish flavor, but it gets lost in the sweetness. It’s ok. Not really my favorite.

1st smell: Odd. Berry-ish. an undertone of something not quite appealing. Maybe it was the basil? though I do like basil, just not expecting it with a fruity tea.
1st taste: Same mostly.

The only thing distinctive about this tea is that it’s marginally better then the Watermelon Mint Chiller.

It’s iced tea season…. Yay!

I bought this in December when they had the 75% off sale.
Finally decided to try this. Flash iced this.

The smell both dry & steeped is lightly berry & herbaley.
Taste wise it’s much the same lightly flavoured, a touch sweet & herb tasting.
It’s not great, but it’s good. Definitely enjoy this one. I do get a touch of bitterness, I think my water was too hot & some metallic taste near the end of the sip.

The smell is rather…different…but I decided I’d give it a whirl anyways. Boy, the flavor is a lot better than the aroma! Deep rich red color, first time I made it was slightly tart and tangy—needed some rock sugar. But I’ve made it a few more times since and it hasn’t been that bad. Wouldn’t be my first choice, but it’s not terrible.

very sweet liquid gummy worms

It was pretty sour for me, even when sugar was added. Difficult to taste the berry flavor or any other notes, just because the sourness of the whole thing overwhelms everything.

I’ve brewed this one twice now and it’s not getting any better. A really odd taste, almost bitter. Sweetening it didn’t help, milk really didn’t help. I think the rest of this one will go in the trash.

very mild tasting, I got a lot of the berry flavor in this cup =).