Lemolicious Ecuadorian Guayusa

I’m the first to log this? OK…

I got this in my package that arrived on Christmas Eve (along with a few others from 52Teas that I just had to try!) and this is the last of them that I’m trying out… I have to admit I was a little scared of Guayusa. I’m not sure why, except that it is something new to me.

But this is REALLY good. I shouldn’t be surprised by now, because Frank knows his stuff. Lemon-y deliciousness, slightly sweet, not very tart at all. I am trying to pick out the guayusa “flavor” but I guess I’m at a disadvantage simply because I haven’t tried it by itself. There is a smooth, rich earthiness in the background that I would describe as a flavor that sits somewhere between pu-erh and yerba mate, but leaning more toward the yerba mate.

It is definitely worth more exploration, and I think I may have to order the plain Guayusa the next time I place an order.

This poor guy was forgotten for the past week, but I thought a nice energy boost was needed this morning. We’re in the middle of a snowfall dump (no snow right now, but treacherous looking sidewalks) and I need to convince myself to go to work.

Back to the tea.

It has a strange smell – more lemon peel than lemon juice. There is another aspect to the smell that can’t identify, I presume that is the guayusa. The liquor steeps up an ugly deep green/brown. Very much like an olive green. For those who have had it, this tea reminds me (in colour) of David’s Tea’s Swamp Water. The steeped smell is a little more friendly, but I still get a sharp tangy sort of smell.

I don’t know anything about steeping guayusa, so I went with 1.5 solid teaspoons for 2 mugs of tea. I usually under-tea a little bit as I tend to go for longer steeping times. I used water that had cooled for a minute after boiling, and I let it steep about 5 minutes. Partially because I forgot.

I’ve managed to have a few sips so far. It’s very mild, surprisingly. I taste a hint of lemon something. Not nearly what I expected. As for the guayusa, I don’t know what it tastes like, but nothing is leaping out at me. Bigger sips have the same result. Interesting mouth feel at the end of the sip, but might be the brown bread I’m having with it.

This is an interesting tea. Not bad. Not knocking my socks off. Just an interesting option among the others, I think. It seems to remind me more of medicine than any other tea I have, a little reminiscent of neo-citron, only without the terrible medicine punch.

I can’t really rate this as I don’t know what plain guayusa tastes like nor how that translates to a flavored blend of it. This was a sample from RachanaC and I enjoyed it.
It’s light and refreshing, the dark color was not distracting and let me wake from just the tea’s taste and caffeine. Quite a nice smooth start to the dark, unearthly eartly morning I sampled it on. Ironically the the second cup I had for dessert yesterday didn’t keep me awake and I think it would hold up to milk if you like that. Like I said, I can’t judge it well but this is a pleasant flavored tea. Now who would make plain guayusa? Hmm…

This is definitely lemon and definitely delicious, so it’s true to its name. I was actually surprised at how light yet very lemon-y the tea brewed up. (I expected a dark, blacker tea. Not sure why.)

For me, I smell more of the grassy, earthy side of this tea and less lemon – once it’s brewed and sitting in my cup, awaiting sippage (just invented a new word there). Open the package and you are immediately blasted with a pleasant aura of lemon, kinda like lemonade. But the actual taste is heavy on the lemon, with a sweetness to it. I credit the sweet grass earthiness.

Bottom line: I may mark that I have this in my cupboard, but honestly folks, it won’t last all that long. Delish!

Well, I finally got this. I am so glad since I was patiently and eagerly waiting to try it. I actually bought it the day it was released and then a week later won the contest on 52 Teas so I have 2 pouches now. This makes me very happy. As far as the simulating factor I can say I was sad to see there seems to be no stimulating effects on me. I feel asleep about 30 mins after drinking it. I am hoping drinking it more will help improve it’s stimulating effects. As for the taste I found it was a little earthy which for me is a good thing. I am also loving the lemon addition but I admit I was hoping the lemon would be stronger. Nevertheless, it was worth the wait. Another winner for Frank.

This is my fourth resteep and it has no less flavor! It only took another mintue as well!

2/6

My review is a lot like LiberTEAS’ in some ways. Never had Guayusa either. I have had yerba mate though and I agree w/ her that this has a lot of similar qualities. Not sure if I even prepared this currectly because there were no steeping parameters on the package. Eh. It’s ok. Waiting to rate it til I find out what Guayusa is supposed to taste like.

When my coworker came back from New York she brought a few teas from 52 teas with her and said i could try some :D After having another citrusy tea this morning, it seemed good to try another one!

Right when i opened the package the aroma of the lemon and citrus hit me. It reminded me of my grandmas homemade lemonade. I also picked up a scent i didn’t recognize and i am still assuming it is the Guayusa. Upon looking at the leaves more closely, and besides noticing the leaves look extremely dark, i was able to pick out lemon verbena, lemongrass, and lemon myrtle two of which being some of my favorite herbs.
When i began to steep it i decided i would let it do so for about 5 mins and see what happened. After checking up on it at 2 mins i nearly screamed because it was so dark and i was afraid i overbrewed it.
The taste is wonderful tho! It has all the wonderful citrus notes and the lemon verbena really ties the flavors together I think. The first cup was a little lacking in flavor only because my silly almost heart attack, but the second cup tastes amazing! Having never tried Guayusa before, I like it alot. It def compliments the herbs and enhances the flavors for a great taste and mouth feel.

Steeping for three minutes got me a dark brownish liquid with a greenish hue that made me hesitant to try this blend. Over-steeped tea and I don’t get along – in fact, I chronically under-steep most teas out of fear of drinking bitter tea. But this tea wasn’t over-steeped, it just looked a bit darker than I was used to. The flavor is slightly woodsy, but no where near as woodsy as a roobois. It has some depth to it, not as strong as a black tea but definitely not as light as a white, maybe more on the level of a green tea without the green tea taste. After it cooled a bit I started to get a hint of the lemon. Second steeping proved to be identical to the first, which was nice. Overall an interesting flavor, but not something I’d reach for on a regular basis.

Thanks to LiberTea for passing on a sample!