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Second tea sampled from TTB-C

Meh. This has slightly more flavor than the Black Current tea I tried first and its lacking the cardboard flavor too, which is a plus, but it still isn’t what I am looking for in a fruity black tea.

First tea sampled from TTB-C.

I usually sample new teas in small 4oz cups, but I was about to sit down to watch a show with my husband and I wanted a full cup of tea. I thought Harney & Sons would be a safe choice. Unfortunately, not this time. The tea base and the flavor were extremely weak. Not only weak, but also somewhat cardboard-ish (I used two ‘perfect’ teaspoons for a 12oz mug). At least I baked brownies before the show too, as a back up, lol.

Gee, I must’ve really jinxed this one in my last note. I liked it alright then, but this time it has a very flat flavor. I didn’t even finish the cup. I didn’t do anything different with the brewing, so I don’t know how to explain it, but It didn’t agree with me at all.

hmm, this tastes different than last time. Not so much honey/floral anymore. Now it’s more muscatel. I’m not keen on muscatel flavor, but it’s not too bad here. Apparently, Darjeelings are supposed to be muscatel, so I may not turn into a darjeeling fan, but we’ll see. Stranger flavors have grown on me.

The only thing I did different was water temperature. I was making a different tea for my husband and left the remaining water in an open pot (cooking pot, not a tea pot) for a couple minutes before using it for my own tea.

ETA: what I meant about muscatel flavor is that I am not keen on what I think is this flavor. What I tasted now is the same flavor I have detected in other teas that other reviewers noted as muscatel. To me it has been something more like musky mushroom than fruity. I tried to figure out what muscatel is supposed to taste like (I’m not much of a wine drinker, so that doesn’t help), and from what I have read it seems that the first cup I had was more like what it should be than the second. Seems I have so much more learning to do. . . sigh

I purchased this tea for my husband since he likes fennel. I didn’t pay much attention to what other ingredients were in it, but wow, that pepper is something else. My husband likes it ok and says that, for him, the fennel comes through stronger than the pepper.

I didn’t pick up on the apple, but it may have been there. I was too focused on the pepper. I kept saying “this is a really weird tea” and my husband asked if that was how I was going to log it. Well, yeah, basically. Pepper in tea is weird for me. It’s tolerable, but it doesn’t feel like I’m drinking tea. I didn’t hate it, but I don’t know if I’ll ever go out of my way for another cup because when I want tea, I want tea.

Anyone know what are the health benefits of the peppercorns?

So I’m getting back around to this one without having had spicy mac and cheese beforehand (as I mentioned in my tasting note for Classic Apple Pie) so that I can properly assess it. I already didn’t think I liked it much, and now I can say that it was better with the extra spice already lingering in my mouth the first time around :)

It’s not so bad. I get the caramel apple flavors that it boasts, but in an unfortunately cheap and artificial way. I’d like if the spice was more pronounced.

This tea is very artificially fruit-flavored, somewhere between cough syrup and hard candies. Possibly a good substitute for Kool-Aid.

Thank you Little Red Cup for a free sample of this tea. :)

I had such high hopes for it, but it isn’t quite to my liking. It has a smokiness about it that distracts me from noticing any other characteristics. I’m sure this will make it popular with others, but not for me. I’ll have to pass the rest of sample on to someone else.

Of the three apple flavored teas that I purchased from Della Terra recently, I think that this is my favorite. I haven’t logged the Spiced Caramel Apple yet because when I had it, I had just finished eating mac and cheese sprinkled with cajun seasoning, so my mouth was still feeling the burn and I couldn’t tell what part of the spice was from the tea. :p I don’t know when/if I will get around to trying that one again as Caramel in tea hasn’t been a favorite yet, but anyhow. . .back to the tea of this post:

Can’t go wrong with “classics” Smells and tastes like apple, not excessively artificial and no detectable flavored-tea aftertaste. Odd enough, I don’t actually like Apple pie. In fact, I don’t like any fruit pies. The texture of soggy extra-sweetened fruits covered in sticky fruit residue always grosses me out. I have a huuuuge texture issue with foods. I love the smell of apple pies baking and as far as slimy fruit goes, apples are more tolerable than berries. Well, so, my point is, this tea is a rare case of liking the tea better than the food it imitates. In fact, I think this would have to be the first case. As much as I love the attempt of teas imitating desserts, they never compare to the real thing in any way other than for health benefits :)

Have I told you yet that I love this tea? My favorite Dong Ding atm and I’ll need to order more real soon!