Red Rose

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drank Strawberry Cheesecake by Red Rose
3422 tasting notes

July Sipdown Challenge Prompt – a tea that makes you smile

Why did this tea make me smile? Because when I reached into the mailbox and saw an envelope that definitely wasn’t a bill, I knew it was a card from gmathis! This teabag was inside the card with a little piece of advice to make it half and half with black tea because it is so sweet so that’s what I did, combining it with Decaf Ceylon from Harney and Sons since it was after 3 pm.

Another reason to smile was that it was so timely. I have made a few different types of jams and preserves – fig jam, pear preserves, grape hull preserves, grape jam – but I don’t think I have ever made strawberry jam until today.

Last week the strawberries at the grocery store were on a big sale at a “3 for” price so we bought three. One container full was eaten, one was partially gone to the turtles, and the other was still full and the remaining strawberries were clearly about to be on their way out. So I made strawberry jam for the first time and the tea arrived just in time to pair it with my inaugural slice of toast with homemade strawberry jam.

And WOW was that cuppa sweet even though it was half strength! But it was also PERFECT for my afternoon treat. I saved a cup for Ashman and gave him tea and toast after supper and he glugged all the tea right down. It actually reminded me Anna’s Blend from Tin Roof Teas long ago, a tea I have sorely missed. That one as strawberry with yogurt flavor and the cream cheese flavor for the cheesecake aspect of this was close. I usually dislike stevia but it didn’t bother me in this since it was heavily diluted by the black tea.

I would totally buy this just for mixing with plain black tea. It might be great with green, too. Thank you, gmathis! You made my day!

gmathis

Our buildings and grounds guy is a tea dude and raved about this, but whooie kazooie, straight up, it makes your eyebrows sweat!

AJRimmer

Ha I was drinking this one the other day, but I forgot how sweet it is and accidentally added my regular amount of sugar. Whoops, that was tough to drink.

Kaylee

As someone who is absolutely terrible at making food as soon as I stray away from beverages, I so enjoy the loving way you talk about preparing food!

ashmanra

AJRimmer – this is soooooo sweet, I can’t imagine it with sugar or even not cut with another tea! Ha ha! I bet that really was a tough drink.

Kaylee – I do enjoy making people (including me!) happy with food! Drinking tea has really helped me expand my palate, too. Today’s kitchen adventures also included zucchini bread for a neighbor having surgery tomorrow and chicken pot pie soup for our supper. Thursday, neighbor gets black bean enchiladas if he is well enough! Tonight I gave him homegrown Cherokee Purple tomatoes and Szechuan pepper for a special tomato sandwich with his mom who is staying a few days while he recovers. We have to eat, so I like to make it happy!

Kaylee

Ok now you’re just making me hungry!

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79
drank Bananas Foster by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

I was so happy to see more Red Rose in a recent TTB! The strongest flavor is probably the stevia, which I don’t mind. I also taste a bit of a fake banana. Then I notice something like walnut – I guess that’s the roasted carob? Though the flavors are pretty fake, I enjoy the dessertiness of this one with some added milk.

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drank Strawberry Cheesecake by Red Rose
2985 tasting notes

Our facilities director is a tea guy and when he’s in the building, often drops by a bag or two of something for me to try. You’d like him.

So today’s try-it-you’ll-like it was my first flirt ever with anything but straight-up Red Rose. He did warn me: “If you sweeten your tea, don’t.” I don’t anyway, but I appreciated the heads-up…it was so candy-sweet I winced. Thank you, stevia. Once I got past that, it did remind me of the little four-inch round cheesecake dessert cups you can get at the Walmart deli, but I wasn’t enjoying it hot at all. A little ice made it more like a non-carbonated Fanta or Welch’s strawberry soda.

Not one I’ll hunt down for myself, but it might have some possibilities as one to ice down and garnish in the summer.

AJRimmer

Ha that’s me at work. Well…I offer my rejects to my coworkers and keep the good stuff to myself :P

gmathis

I make lots of offers, but most of the coworkers aren’t very adventurous.

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drank Lemon Cake Tea by Red Rose
2171 tasting notes

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20
drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
114 tasting notes

I bought this because my area of Canada has decided that Twining’s Orange Pekoe doesn’t exist and will not be available to me in any shape or form whatsoever.

This, to me, is the worst kind of tea, but when I asked friends about it, they said they all drank and enjoyed it. I think the best way to drink this tea is to dip it in boiling water, remove the tea bag and then add milk and honey. Anything else, letting it steep for a longer amount of time just makes it turn bitter, black and totally undrinkable.

I can tell that this type of tea is made with the leftover tea leaves from the drying / roasting process, which is totally fine. I am not above cheap and cheerful tea bags, but this doesn’t have any flavour other than tannins. Once it starts to cool, it becomes acrid and I end up abandoning my cup with prejudice.

I haven’t tried it with milk and honey yet, it might even be nice, but it’s not my cup of tea, y’know? Shame, as I have a box of like 50 tea bags. I’ll probably end up drinking them at a glacial pace with lemon honey any time I’m sick (and therefore can’t taste very much).

Flavors: Dirt, Malt, Musty, Tannic

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 4 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 10 OZ / 300 ML
ashmanra

Sounds like a good tea for “foot tea.” Very few teas have become foot tea in this house but it has happened. Basically, make a tub full of tea and soak your feet in it! Supposed to be good for them.

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65
drank Sugar Cookie by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

Thanks to getanzt for sharing this one! Unfortunately, I don’t like it as much as the other Red Rose blends she shared. This one somehow just tastes like celery and sometimes almost peppery. As it cools, it does taste better, but not amazing.

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86
drank Strawberry Cheesecake by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

Thanks to getanzt for this one! I’m drinking it cold, and I understand why the other reviewers had problems with this one, but I really like it. It’s a super sweet candy strawberry flavor that just works for me. It’s fake tasting, but I don’t mind. These Red Rose herbal dessert teas really work for me!

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92
drank Lemon Cake Tea by Red Rose
1987 tasting notes

Probably it was Shae who sent me a few tea bags of this tea; but I just put them into my stash in the place which I don’t check often and how surprised I have been to see so many teas there, so neglected!
So, this was in closed zip-lock bag, so I took it out and brought to work. Because only flavoured black tea I have there is Earl Grey (from Czech company), which isn’t very good in fact; and I don’t want to have huge stash in the office as I am not sure how long I will stay there (I may work in different office, not company — at least for now). I just looked and see this is caffeine-free blend. It’s not flavoured black tea? :O

I digressed greatly from the tea I haven’t even started writing about…
Well, honestly it surprised me how sweet it is. Not in a bad way, however I thought it is definitely more sour.
But it’s fine and definitely easy drinkable, in easy preparation method so I don’t have to take care too much, which is definitely a virtue for me in those stressful work days from early hours.

Not tasting much of the cake either recently; the pastry flavour is a little bit missing, but yes, I will finish my small stash of this fast.

Shae and others who joined me in the TTB last time I took part, thank you. And also thank you Devon that I actually could try that and I was really sure I need it to have with me. Now I have… and maybe I am not that much impressed anymore, but still, I like it. No tossing out.

Preparation
17 OZ / 500 ML
gmathis

A work friend gave me a sample of a Red Rose dessert tea, strawberry cheesecake, maybe? that was so sweet it was nasty.

Martin Bednář

But still better having cake flavoured tea than cake itself. At least for our body weight :D

gmathis

Indeed!

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92
drank Lemon Cake Tea by Red Rose
1987 tasting notes

Okay, this tea seems to be a winner from Devon Bartholomew’s advent calendar!

Yes, there is stevia and probably quite a lots of it — so take that as a warning for those who can’t stand it at all.

I actually don’t mind it and honestly… I think it is making cake flavour here? It is juicy lemony, cake flavour is there, very desserty! But it is actually quite genuine, and I actually think it is because the stevia? Does it make any sense?

Wow, what a surprise in the bag today! AJRimmer, if you get a box, can you get one for me as well? Pretty please?

Flavors: Cake, Lemon, Pleasantly Sour, Sweet

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec 10 OZ / 300 ML
gmathis

That sounds great! I have never seen anything other than straight-up Red Rose black tea in my part of the US.

AJRimmer

I’ve been stalking their website lately, and once I have a bit less tea in my cupboard, I’m totally going to have to buy one each of all their herbal dessert flavors.

Martin Bednář

I would order this one in no time, but sadly, they do not have international shipping :(

Shae

If you’re after me in the TTB, Martin, I can put in a box of this one for you if you’d like.

Martin Bednář

So far it looks I will be last. I would be glad to get a box of it, so we can make it up somehow :)

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99
drank Lemon Cake Tea by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

Thanks to getanzt for this tea! Dare I say that I might like it even more than Tazo’s glazed lemon loaf? The lemon cake flavor comes through so clearly. It’s sweet from the stevia, and it tastes so desserty and genuinely cakey. It’s wild how realistic this is! I’ll have to order a box to see if my next impression is as great as my first.

gmathis

Ooooooh!

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80
drank Caramel Apple Pie by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

Thanks to getanzt for sharing this one! It tastes really fake and sweet, but I still like it. I taste a lot of apple and something like pie crust or the sweet spices used in pie. I’d totally drink this again.

Skysamurai

Do you think it would work as a latte?

AJRimmer

Probably! It does have tons of stevia though, so I know many people wouldn’t prefer this one due to that alone.

Kelmishka

Sometimes “fake and sweet” is enjoyable in its own right!

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50
drank Original Blend by Red Rose
20 tasting notes

This one always turns out bitter for me. Not a fan but will drink if necessary.

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drank Blueberry Muffin by Red Rose
448 tasting notes

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drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
2985 tasting notes

I think boxes and labels must be different in the U.S…my box from Walmart is blue and dubbed “Original Blend” and that’s what pops up when I search for orange pekoe on the Red Rose website. Minor detail.

Everybody needs at least one extremely cheap, bog standard (yep, there’s that wonderful descriptor again!) bagged black tea, 80 to a box, that you can can swig at will without much attention to time or temperature. I’m on my last few precious bags of Murphy’s Irish Breakfast, so I’m going to need an office replacement. This is in the running, although it is stronger on the sharp tenor notes instead of the malty bass that I prefer.

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100
drank Lemon Cake Tea by Red Rose
13 tasting notes

I picked this tea up on a lark at the incomparable Hopey and Company grocery store in Black Mountain, NC, where truly unique products go to be deeply discounted. For $1/box (see, deeply discounted), I felt it was a sufficient risk to take. I have had poor results with supposed “sweet” tea flavors from Celestial Seasonings so at best I expected a cup of hot water that tasted of being heated in the next room over from a lemon. Instead, I got the full and entire flavor of a slice of lemon cake!!! It was amazing!!!

My only regret is that I did not buy more boxes and as I don’t live in Black Mountain, I now have to pay full price for my next load of this tea.

If you are someone who likes herbal concoctions that claim to have the flavors of sweet dessert treats, this tea will actually deliver on its claims.

PS: For anyone that sees my preparation notes, the box tells me 2g is one tea bag. So it is just 1 bag. No need to get out the scale.

Flavors: Lemon, Sweet, Vanilla

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 2 g 12 OZ / 354 ML

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49
drank Strawberry Cheesecake by Red Rose
2171 tasting notes

My “something borrowed” for a A June Wedding, sent to me from Devon Bartholomew in a recent swap.

I only smell hibiscus when I open the tea bag and now I’m disappointed. I knew hibiscus would be involved, but I’d hoped for something more. But then, as the hot water hits, I smell strawberries! Fresh strawberries, strawberry candy, strawberry jam – a mix of all of it! I’m starting to get excited.

Then I taste it.

The illusion is over. All that’s left is the artificial sweetness of the stevia and the dusty, dry hibiscus. Together they are the stuff of nightmares. I managed to finish half the cup before abandoning all hope and tossing the rest down the gullet of the greedy kitchen sink. Good riddance.

Flavors: Artificial, Candy, Drying, Dust, Hibiscus, Jam, Strawberry

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 8 OZ / 236 ML

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85
drank Blueberry Muffin by Red Rose
2504 tasting notes

From the tea box. This one really smells like a blueberry muffin! Oh boy, it comes pre-sweetened so I definitely regret the sugar I added to the cup. Otherwise, the flavor is great. The blueberry flavor is like the blueberries in muffins, and there’s a little something in there that tastes like cake too. I’m not sure how they do it, but it tastes really good! I added milk, which really helps it taste nice and desserty. This one might not be for everyone due to the stevia, but I like it a lot.

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36

Yup, I still don’t like this one – I had it this morning with my eggs – I don’t like the sweetener they use, if they took out the stevia, is it, maybe? I feel like I would like it a whole lot better. Maybe it’s sucralose? Whatever it is, I’m definitely not a fan, it has an aftertaste that lingers. Bummer. I love Red Rose black teas, though – not a diss against the whole line! Don’t get me wrong!

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 9 OZ / 266 ML
EstrafaDC

Thanks for the review! And I just looked it up. According to their website they use Stevia (Reb A). For the life of me I don’t understand why they use Reb A verses the less bitter Reb M or Reb D extracts from Stevia. It’s a bit more expensive but why they’d introduce a bitter agent to a tea is beyond me. Or just leave it unsweetened and give us the option to sweeeten it on our own.

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36

This was one of the few teas I have tried that I was not a fan of. There is an aftertaste that I did not like – I found out why, after I read the box – it contains stevia, which I do not like. The flavor sounded so promising! It would have been so much more pleasant if they didnt add stevia.

Flavors: Cheesecake, Strawberry

Cameron B.

I don’t mind stevia specifically but I hate it when teas are pre-sweetened! :P

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70
drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
4 tasting notes

This is solid orange pekoe tea. It does hold a special place in my heart, it’s what my grandmother drinks and what we usually steep a pot of after dinner.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
1403 tasting notes

Still at the workshop and they are usually serving this at breakfast. Had it again with cream and honey, and again, it was divine. I don’t know whether this is taking me back to deeply embedded memories of comfort and blissed out safety—perhaps it is. It must be. No other explanation for this deliciousness.

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drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
1403 tasting notes

Started a workshop today and decided to walk there in the early morning—about 45 minutes given the snow and required heavy boots—in gazillion below zero weather. I was dressed for a winter walk, but I was lugging a big bag and a yoga mat which was awkward in my big winter coat.

When I finally got there, there was a big pot of this with I don’t know how many teabags steeping for I don’t know how long. Nevermind, even though I was carrying a few travel canisters of my own tea, I poured myself a big mug, added a big glug of almond milk, and it was the best thing ever. Like, ever.

I may just give up on being a tea snob.

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72
drank Original Blend by Red Rose
11 tasting notes

Just added sugar for a simple sweet cup of black tea.

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec

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12
drank Orange Pekoe by Red Rose
11 tasting notes

I’m not sure why so many restaurants carry this tea. It’s generally a dry, sub par tea.

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