A sample from Miss B. I was in the mood for gin this morning, but there being none to to hand I had to settle for tea with copious juniper berries instead. This one fit the bill perfectly. In actual fact, it appears to be at least 85% juniper berries. There’s a scattering of spearmint leaves, the tiniest bit of pu’erh, a few peppercorns, and only the tiniest quantities of the other ingredients (birch bark, tulsi, anise and cardamom). I used 1 tsp for my cup, and gave it 4 minutes in boiling water. I crushed most of the junipers first just because they’re better that way.
To taste, this is like a fresh, foresty chai. The main flavour is juniper, no surprises there. I love it, though, so I’ve no complaints about that. Second comes the spearmint, sweet and cooling, followed by a touch of earthiness from the pu’erh. I think that’s where the “forest” vibe is coming from – it has that characteristic wet leaf/forest floor flavour that can be so appealing in pu’erh. The spicing is more prominent than I thought it would be, running throughout the mid sip and lingering long in the aftertaste. I can clearly taste cardamom, star anise and pepper, which is surprising given how little there was of it amongst the dry leaf. I can also taste something that’s reminding me of black liquorice (and thankfully it’s not my nemesis liquorice root). Altogether, it’s a better combination than I was expecting – unusual, but very drinkable, and the flavours work super well together. I’m really pleased to have had the opportunity to try this one!
That sounds really good! Licorice is actually flavored with anise these days, so that’s probably what you were tasting. Anise has fewer health concerns than licorice root, so at some point everyone switched over.