This is one of my favorite chai blends! Which is surprising, because it has two tart flavors in it: grapefruit and hibiscus. Normally, I recoil from hibiscus like a vampire from sunlight, and I’m picky about tartness in general (I like citrus, for example, but not certain berries). But in this tea, it’s delicious! Not sour or hard to drink at all, just bright and a little lip-puckering, the way a tart blend should be. It might be because the hibiscus here is a flavored black tea, so the strength of the tea helps to balance out the tartness. But I also think the Rooibos Vanilla Chai was a good choice here. The vanilla adds a creamy note that sweetens the whole blend, and helps to bring out the spices.
I do have to remember to shake the bag before I use it, or I miss all the rooibos bits that have settled at the bottom. Also, like most chai blends, I need to use a lot of tea per cup to taste all the flavors (at least 2 teaspoons per 8 oz, in my experience). I actually forgot to use enough tea this time, so my cup is weaker than I’d like. Still yummy, though!
I’m a little shy about rating teas, but I’m going to go ahead and do it here, because this blend deserves a good score. Definitely my favorite MLP-inspired tea by Natasha N, and one of my favorite custom blends at Adagio Teas in general. (And I’m almost out of it, sadly, so I’m planning to restock soon!) By the way, the three teas used in this custom blend are Hibiscus, Grapefruit Oolong, and Rooibos Vanilla Chai.
