Rose Congou

I already have a rose tea that I love, so I’m not exactly sure how this wound up in my Upton order—it was so cheap, I just couldn’t resist! One sniff of the dry leaves and I knew it was a good decision, they smell so delicious. Not really a perfumey rose smell, more earthy. I love floral teas, and rose is my favorite floral scent, so of course I knew right off the bat that I’d enjoy this immensely.

It brews up very dark, and there really wasn’t a ton of rose smell going on so I was a bit worried. And when you first sip, it’s really just a very nice strong, malty, smooth black tea. But I swallowed, my mouth was filled with wonderful rose. Earthy, floral, sweet, delicious! It gets more rose-y as it cools, and I feel like I’ll be making this iced a lot this summer. I like my other rose tea a bit more but this one is just so much more affordable that I will definitely be drinking it regularly.

Special Thanks to Alphakitty for this one!

I have tried Rose Congou from two other companies (if I recall correctly) and have found them to be pleasant…here is what I think about Upton’s version…

It’s very warming with a spec of black pepper but more importantly a Medium Strength black tea with a heavy rose flavor on top.

This is pretty good as well as uplifting.

Today is a very, very, very wonderful day, because I have finally found a black rose tea that I’m INSANE over! THANK YOU SimplyJenW for sending me this tea to try! I owe you forever!

I had an inkling that I would like a black rose tea that had a Chinese base since I loathe rose teas with milk, and am not crazy about Indian teas without milk. I am ever so happy to say that my hypothesis is correct! OH this tea is afternoon perfection! The rose is present but subtle, the tea medium bodied but the slightest bit smoky/savory. They combine in exactly the way I think a floral tea should. Not super sweet and cloying. You taste TEA first, and then some rose flavor washes over you like a sigh! Ahhhhhhhhh. You also taste a…complexity. Not vanilla bean, not wine, not fruit, but suggestions of each from the Congou. This is so, so good. This is exactly what I was looking for!!!! I am so excited!!! As soon as I have two pennies to rub together (almost literally, because this tea is very reasonably priced!) I am going to get a tin!!!!!

Thank you once again, SimplyJenW! You made my – month!

This dry tea smells fantastic. Rose and dark chocolate. From the smell, I was hoping for a cheaper version of my favorite Loashan Black. Not surprisingly, this tea is not on the same level. Not to say that this tea is not delicious, because it is. The flavor is exactly strong enough for a sweet floral rosiness that neither wimps out nor overwhelms. The tea does not taste as chocolatey as it smells, but it is still super yummy. It tasted a bit weak so I let it steep a bit longer than I normally would. I also don’t like to use boiling water so my cooler temp might have something to do with it. This tea does not get bitter or astringent. That is a sign of great quality.

I don’t have much to say about the base tea. It seems to be one of these black teas where I can’t really describe the flavors. Tastes like black tea. Leafy in an autumnal way, very smooth. :) Awesome tea. I can see myself getting more of this, but I still have to get through a bunch of black samples before I decide on which ones I want to stock up on. It can’t too much better than this though!

Big thank you to SimplyJenW for this sample!! it’s quite yummy!
Hot, the “red” tea aspect is very strong here with a background floral-honey note. It’s almost bitter but I may be mistaking that for depth.
As it cools, the honeysuckle rose comes out more, padded by a nice chocolate background and a pleasant cocoa aftertaste. however in the middle of the swallow there is a brief bitter moment that catches me by surprise each time. I don’t mind it at all though. It’s a nice contrast to the rest of the tea.
Ahhh, now this is a complex tea! just how I love’em :)

Compared to my Rose Congou from Tea Emporium, this is a bit smoother and more intense, and rounder. Overall, they are both great teas… just in different ways.
If I had to choose one, I think it’d be the Upton variety- if not for the shipping and customs charges that is. and you know me, I don’t really do online orders. Supporting the locals has become my latest thing, so I try to stick by that as much as possible! (nevermind that it’s cheaper!)
Either way, this will always be one of those teas that I come back to. My cupboard may be empty of it at times, but I think it’s still an “essential”… because I love my rose teas that much!!
Thanks again SimplyJenW!!

Thank you SimplyJenW for this tasty tea.

I figured this tea would be fragrant, but WOW-it was even more fragrant than I thought it would be! Amazing aroma of roses. I really like Congou teas, and I think this tea was perfect for the rose flavoring.

The cup color was brownish red, and I could smell the cup from several feet away. When I tasted this tea my first thought was, “Delicious!”, and I could swear I’ve had this tea before. Years ago from another vendor, yet, I couldn’t remember actually having it. I’ve had a few different Congou teas over the years, and I could definitely taste it here. I have some of Upton’s Congou Select, which is naturally sweet, lightly smokey, and has fruity overtones. I’m pretty sure they don’t use that Congou as this tea base, because this tea is not smokey, but I was definitely getting fruity notes here. I think part of that is from the Congou tea, and perhaps more is from the fermentation of the rose petals.

This tea is smooth, naturally sweet, and very aromatic. The base tea is strong enough to be noticed, and the rose petals and aromas make for a very calming cup of tea. IMHO, the rose aromas are not overpowering or cloying in their sweetness. They are strong but not overdone. The Congou and the roses compliment each other nicely! Even after a second cup steeped at 5 minutes, the cup is well balanced, smooth and sweet. The Congou was deeper in flavor and not bitter at all.

A really great Springtime tea-sweet and delicious! Nothing says Spring like roses, especially when they’re in my cup! :))

Cupped: Wednesday, March 21, 2012.

Reviewed: Thursday, March 22, 2012.

Thanks to SimplyJenW for sending some of this my way! Usually I enjoy roses in tea so I thought I would try this…

Wow, this smells so nice when it’s steeping and so does the finished cup. I am having a bad morning (already) and the aroma is very soothing. I don’t know that much about congous so it’s a bit difficult to determine what role it is playing here. The tea itself is a medium bodied black tea with a hint of sweetness and some chocolate/spice. I sipped on some of it plain but then I also added soymilk and I liked it both ways. This is going on my list of things to purchase from Upton the next time I place an order. This tea is VERY rosey so if you don’t like that I’d steer clear of it for sure. For me it’s so very nice, a small luxury in the day.

Rose happens to be one of my favorite flavors, especially when it comes to sweets. It is odd, then, that I only have ever tried one straight up rose black tea, though I often choose teas with it in other blends. Happily, JacquelineM was kind enough to send me a small sample of a couple of rose black teas (even though she got them as samples herself!), this being one of them. Thank you!

The aroma of the rose in the brewed tea is what I consider “herby” rose. While that rose sweetness is still there in part, the overall note is more savory, more… well, herby. I have to say, this is one delicious tea! The main part of the sip is really the black tea itself: warm, thick, a hint of peppery spice. The rose floats above it all and lingers in the aftertaste, but it’s not super strong. Just enough to remind you that you are, indeed, drinking a rose tea. Again, not really a sweet rose; this is not a rose flavor that brings to mind rose candies and sweets. I would have thought that this combination would result in a tea that might have not been quite right for me, but I actually really enjoy it.

Get ready to see a couple more rose teas from me in the upcoming days because I’m going to want to try them in rapid succession for comparison!

Awhile ago, the gracious Ashmanra gave me a lovely Twinings Rose blend tea.
I adored it.
So, I ordered this tea.
The first time I tried it I was both surprised and slightly disappointed.
I am assuming that the Twinings tea has some added flavoring.
This tea does not.
Which results in it not having that high rose perfume-y odor and taste.
(which tasted like drinking a rose garden on a summer afternoon)
This tea is different.
Its lightly floral with a hint of spice.
It is certainly good quality black tea, with a bit brightness.
For some reason this tea makes me think of the Dowager Countess.
I am not sure why, her name is Violet after all, not Rose.
But, the character of this tea really reminds me of her.
Always ladylike, bright, and a bit of spice and like the grand lady herself…I was not sure if I liked it at first, but it grew on me.
I think I would still like to find a more floral (perfume-y?) rose tea.
But, I will enjoy this while I have it.

I must thank LORI for sending me this delightful tea. Rose is an aroma and a flavor that I really enjoy when it is executed properly and does not seem synthetic. Upton Tea Imports, always reliable, always steady, always dependable, does a fantastic job with this blend.

If you like rose teas, I am confident that you will like this one. The aroma and taste are strong and steady and a tiny bit spicy, but the sweetness is never overbearing or cloying. I will order a full size next time I place an order with Uptons. It’s a great afternoon tea.

I don’t generally pick floral teas on my own, but I am glad that this one came to me as a gift, because - wow! I’m a black tea lover at heart and the flower-to-tea ratio is perfect. Doesn’t taste like I’m sipping perfume. The rose softens instead of interferes. Thanks, JenW!

This tea came to me courtesy of JacquelineM! Thank you!

I had this today in a side by side tasting with Harney’s Rose Scented. The results were unexpected for me as I thought I would prefer one over the other. I didn’t anticipate the bases of these teas being so different.

First, the rose scent and flavor is lighter in this one, though it isn’t overly heavy in the Harney offering. The tea base is a bit stronger, and I think that made this one take milk and sugar better than the Harney one, which I liked best plain. I expect that the Tuesday tea party attendees, who always add both milk and sugar to their tea, will like this one best, and the Wednesday guest who never ever adds sugar and only very rarely milk will like the Harney one best! As the Upton cup cools I can taste the rose a little more and it seems to get sweeter. Very good tea!

So among the tea orders that I made during my self-imposed 52teas hiatus, was a small order from Upton Teas. I grabbed a big thing of my favorite Earl Grey (from a batch of samples that I ordered….holy shit almost a year ago), which is the Earl Grey Blue Flower, and a couple of samples of stuff that had caught my attention when others had reviewed it, including this. I generally like rose flavored stuff and thought I would like a rose flavored tea to sip when I am feeling hoity toity.

I realize now, of course, that the rose-flavored tea void in my life was meant to be filled by Teas, etc.‘s Rosy Earl Grey. It was definitely not meant to be filled by this tea, although anyone reading this should definitely bear in mind that my reasons for not being too enamored with the tea could easily be someone else’s reasons for liking it. In other words, this isn’t a bad tea, it’s just not a tea that I personally need/want and that has everything to do with my preferences and nothing to do with the tea.

Basically, everything about this tea is subtle. Inasmuch as anything rose flavored can be subtle, so, you definitely know the rose is there but it’s not as obnoxiously fragrant as a rose tea can be. The black tea base is similarly light and blends really well with the rose flavoring, creating a lovely light flavor that is easy to drink absentmindedly. This is not a tea that demands attention; it is content to sit and wait for you to drink it at your leisure. Which is, of course, why I am not overfond of it. I don’t really do subtle (although there is a line of inyourfaceness that I don’t want my teas to cross), and I drink far too much black tea as it is so if I’m gonna be drinking something unassuming and easy to overlook, I may as well give my body a break from the caffeine and just have some water. Not everyone’s philosophy, I am well aware! But that’s how I look at it, which is why I put this firmly in ‘eh’ territory.

On the plus side, this tea is well nigh impossible to oversteep.

Very light rose flavor but not overwhelming…it even had a subtle vanilla flavor. I would definitely recommend this tea

I love rose anything and this is a fantastic rose tea. It’s flavoured nicely and it’s so well-rounded. Stands a resteep really well without losing any of its flavour and punch – I think that comes from the quality base. I’m astonished at the price, what a steal! Thank you Jackie for this sample, I’ll definitely purchase some more to keep in my stash. I prefer this after lunch but I’ve had a mug in the morning and it sets the tone for the day. Lovely stuff.

Yummy. The rose scent was gently present as I poured the cup of tea. I made a fairly light pot, only steeping for three minutes, but it was enough. The flavor is balanced, with just enough rose. Its a keeper.

Although the scent of this tea is overwhelmingly rose, I am finding this tea to be a smooth black with a nice rosy sweetness So glad I purchased 125g!

This is my first tasting of a rose scented tea. I enjoy it. It’s uplifting. As I stated in my profile, I do not particularly care for scented teas. I love the aroma. It’s so different and a welcome change of pace. This was another sample from Upton that I will defintely buy. Thanks JM for the suggestion. PS, the price is right….

I ordered a sample of this because it was quite a bit lower in price than the China Rose Petal I had been buying at another vendor. Normally, I am not too concerned about a little cost difference here and there, but this time we are talking half the cost. Since samples were available, I figured it would be a fun experiment. The chemist in me took over, and I prepared them identically, using the same kettle boil, and duplicate infuser baskets (man, am I thankful for my tendency to overbuy on having two of the same infuser!) The dry leaves are very similar in appearance, down to the color of the petals in the tea. The smells are also comparable. In side by side tastings, they seem incredibly similar. I say seem, because I am not an expert tea taster having only been really into tea since last September.

All in all, I think I have found myself a new source for my rose scented tea. Price often is an indicator of quality, but not always. I am determined to find the exception where I can!

First time tasting it: The tea base is a little more robust than other rose teas I have tried, and there is also a faint hint of a smokey taste to it for me. The second time I made it, it seemed more mellow, and I did not get any smokey notes. Everything is pretty well balanced on taste and smell. I really like rose mixes for iced teas when the weather is hot, and this is a good option for that.