Winter Salo Send Message

Turkish Apple is a refreshing tang drink, sweet whilst still giving off a crisp tartness, it makes a truly delicious iced tea in the heat of summer as the tang satisfies even the most hard earned thirst. Warm it is sweetly tart and very nice.

It is really best used as an accompanier to other teas or tissanes – T2’s Just Rose rose buds heighten the tartness and make the flavours really stand out from the sweetness – very very nice iced. When added to strawberries and cream it balances out the sweetness to give a refreshingly crisp after-taste.

Truly an ‘essential’ tissane to any collection.

For me this is Strawberries & Cream stoic cousin, it’s far less sweet than Strawberries & Cream and to me tastes less of strawberries and more of a generic berry. It is a lovely brew both hot and iced but it isn’t that sweet and certainly isn’t overpowering, I found it a little disappointing and wouldn’t buy again but if you like the taste of berries and want something light and more tart than sweet than this is for you.

Have tried the tea bag version of this and to me it is a very bitter tasting tea – it isn’t anything special just straight up English Breakfast and is quite strong. If you like straight up traditional black tea than this is for you, if however if you want a little tweak or something weaker than I would avoid this one.

This tea is divine and makes such a beautiful afternoon tea and is perfectly paired with gingerbread for a sugar and spice combination. To get the full taste of vanilla and caramel I recommend letting infuse only as long as it takes for the water to turn caramel that way you avoid any bitterness. Be careful on this front as it is quite easy for the bitterness of this tea to completely overpower the beautiful sweetness.

I have it without milk and it tastes quite light allowing for enjoyment of an accompanying afternoon treat.

The caffeine component seems quite strong and I wouldn’t recommend having this late at night or even after dinner if you’re affected by caffeine. Sometimes I pine for this heavenly brew that I forget and have it after dinner as a treat and then I have a lot of difficulty getting to sleep, in the afternoon though seems the perfect time.

On the T2 vanilla front I would say this is sweeter than Melbourne Breakfast and also sweeter than Toasty Nougat (the delightful fruit tissane that is a nice substitute for this after dinner time), but only when infused for a very short period of time to avoid any bitterness.

I tasted this in store and bought a big tin because I having tasted T2’s Turkish Apple and Strawberries & Cream in store and using the small orange boxes up almost instantly I thought best to buy big and enjoy and not have to go back for more – such a mistake. Loved it in store and absolutely cannot stand it at home – I made it as per the store’s directions which are usually spot on but it came out like thick citrus flavored syrup – I tried watering it down but even with a drop in the cup and covered in water and ice it still was completely overpowering and the tang rather than being refreshing is sickly sweet (and I have a sweet tooth!). I went back to the store and tried to see if I followed the directions wrong – I hadn’t but they suggested using less and infusing for a shorter period – unfortunately same result.

The other day I was in T2 and they had an ice tea of this mixed with Turkish Cherry to try which I did and it was more palatable. I think the cherry somehow balanced out the tartness as opposed to Turkish Apple which I tried with it and that seemed to highlight the ‘tang’ quality.

I would only recommend this to people who really, really, really love citrus flavours and want a tissane that is full flavoured and sweet on its own. I personally love orange and lemon in most things but find this tea is just too overpowering for me. I have tried it hot and again did not like it although it did seem less intense hot, iced seems to highlight the ‘tang’ of the tea. Would definitely recommend adding Turkish Cherry if you’re making this iced.

Looking for vanilla & caffeine but don’t want a sweet drink for breakfast, look no further, Melbourne Breakfast manages to smell and taste like vanilla without being overpowering or too sweet. It really is the perfect breakfast tea because you can have savoury (say Vegemite toast) or sweet (cranberry toast) or anything in between – eggs and bacon, cornflakes, everything goes with this tea. I find it’s best when left to infuse for about a minute. I don’t like anything added to it because as is makes for a satisfyingly decadent light drop.

I tried this after loving T2’s Crème Brulee – Melbourne Breakfast is far less sweet than this and therefore more suited to first thing in the morning, it’s also not as strong a black tea and is able to be infused for longer without turning bitter.

It really does feel like having a sip of Melbourne – it’s decadent, refined and perfect as is. (Perhaps I’m a little bias being from Melbourne :) ).

Strawberries and Cream is a sweet tasting fruit tissane. It tastes of strawberry (there really is no cream taste to it) and by itself is not overpowering or sickly sweet, instead it has a light almost refreshing taste. It is closer to a soda drink than a herbal tea as it has no lingering after taste.

It makes a desert in itself if had warm, but is really best enjoyed icey-cold – it is satisfying, healthy and deliciously refreshing. If making as an ice-tea you should leave to infuse for a minimum of 30 minutes preferably overnight in fridge. It is well complemented by T2 Turkish Apple (dissolve in boiling water) with strawberries and cream to infuse, this is a really lovely ice-tea.