Caved and got this tea a while back (before it showed up on the Select obviously, d’oh!) because I was seduced by the idea of a tea that tasted like a) ice cream, and b) a type of ice cream I love. Mmmm creamy and sweet and nutty oh my!! ::happy dance!:: Ahem, okay back to the tea…
I steeped according to the package directions, but I was a little worried I might end up with something ickily bitter because I wasn’t able to control the time as much as usual (moving (the bane of my existance), has necessitated me packing up all my beloved tea stuff, and the only strainer I have on hand is incredibly leaky resulting in a lot of the tea actually ending up in the bottom of the cup, and hence oversteeped). But no need to fret, the cup has no trace of bitterness, even from the little bits still swimming around happily in there (thankfully they settle well). The dry tea smelled lovely (say it with me: creamy and sweet and nutty oh my!) and there were big chunks of pecan amongst the leaves. The taste seems a bit muted compared to the smell. It definitely has a faint sort of maple-y sweetness, and a creamy sort of note when I swallow but the nutty pecan goodness is hiding from me.The black tea flavour is definitely present and pleasant with decent strength but little bitterness. This could be a cup I could drink sans milk or sweetner, but in the name of experimentation I added some to see if it’d round out the tea and maybe bring out those elusive nuts? A spash of milk and half a sweetner packet did make this taste creamier and sweeter, helping the ice cream comparison, but unfortunately didn’t do anything to make it taste more pecan-y.
Overall from my first cup of this I say that it is a yummy, fairly mild and easy to drink black tea with a natural sweetness, creamy notes, no bitterness, and good with or without additives. Unfortunately it seems closer to a “Vanilla ice cream” or “Maple ice cream” tea then a Butter Pecan one because I just can’t find the nuts! I’m hoping playing around with the steeping might bring it out a bit more? Does anyone have any suggestions?
UPDATE: Okay, when I stick my nose into my cup and inhale I can definitely smell pecans and when I exhale after taking a sip I can sort of smell them for a moment. Are all my ten thousand or so taste buds just broken? o_O
the name is catchy. hard to pass up!