This is one of the most unique tea experiences i’ve had so far! an old friend of mine that lives in Japan gave this to me on her recent visit to the states. it is only cherry blossoms, no added green or black tea. the cherry blossoms smell strongly of umeboshi plum, which is a pickled Japanese plum (actually more similar to an apricot). The smell hits you as soon as you open the package. I tasted the leaves before steeping and it tastes almost exactly like an umeboshi plum! very, very salty and tart, and sweet. a very strong flavor. The resulting tea itself smells exactly as it does before steeping. it has a very faint taste of pickled apricot, or perhaps pickled raisin. a very strange taste!! Not sure that this is something I’d want to drink all the time, but it is a fun adventure. the blossoms look beautiful while floating in the water!
for a few pictures, go here http://teahappiness.blogspot.com/2011/01/unexpected-tea-gift.html
