Sleigh Ride

A bit of pleasant cranberry-tartness (likely from the hibiscus) with somewhat of a dull overall flavour. There’s a bit of a trailing hibicus aftertaste that is overpowering. I am detecting some nutty-savoury tones mixed with creamy apple and cinnamon that reminds me of Forever Nuts from DAVIDsTEA. This tisane is blended well but has too much hibiscus to it. I am also discouraged by how much “dry leaf” is required to achieve a decent flavour. I’m getting more of a cider flavour as it cools- the apple is coming more to the forefront and balancing out the tartness of the hibiscus.

I opened this and thought “Oh no!” It looked and smelled just like Gingerbread House by Distinctly Tea and at 3 times the price. Thankfully though, once brewed the flavour is different enough that I don’t completely regret the purchase. Plus I did get the pretty collector’s tin. The flavours are similar, with cinnamon and apples being the dominant flavours, I can actually taste the popcorn in this one, though the coconut isn’t as evident. I would probably stick with Gingerbread House in the future due to the price difference but both are good.

Just like juice. I feel like they either made this tea for people who like juice but don’t want the calories and the sugar or they made this for people who are more into summer iced teas and DT doesn’t want to loose those customers in the winter. Someone suggested in his review to eat it instead. I must say it made a very good oatmeal topping… except when I had the hibiscus bits.

Now I’m not one to shy away from hibiscus, but this one has over done it for me. It probably doesn’t help that I prefer tart in cold drinks. Getting past the hibiscus this one is pretty good. Strong apple and cinnamon flavour that makes it feel like Forever Nuts, which I do enjoy, but I feel like this one’s trying a bit too hard. Plus all that hibiscus…

I made some of this the other day as a cold steep, easy these days to just add tea to a travel mug, add water, and put by a draughty window.

The taste of this straight up is no longer appealing to me, but half Sleigh Ride and half hibiscus leaf straight is really good: tart with a hint of cinnamon and sweetness from the coconut and pineapple.

Is there pineapple in this? Well, whether it is there or not, it tastes as if there could be some.

Guzzled this today after having come home from Chinatown where I had had a truly fantastic spicy meal. By the time I got home, I needed something seriously thirst quenching and this was it.

So this is the way I am going to get through this leaf from now on. Cold steep. Half and half with hibiscus. The flavours of the tea differ quite remarkably between hot and cold steeps. The cold steep is far gentler and more natural tasting (because this is one of those in which DTs had a sweetener party).

Not a fan. I guess this may be a tea that you either love or hate, based on a vast number of the reviews here that either give it a 90-100 score or a below 50. There doesn’t seem to be much in the middle. I am thinking it is the almonds that make this tea undrinkable for me. I just don’t like the flavour that the almonds give off in steeped tea. I feel the same way about Forever Nuts. Definitely not my cup of tea.

Herbal and Decaf TTB.

There was just enough of this left for a slightly overleafed cup. It has an interesting flavor – it reminds me of a hibiscus/vanilla bean blend I’ve had before, except a bit more artificial tasting. The tart earthiness is unusual, and I rather like the combination, but the artificial taste is bothering me. Not a keeper.

Don’t like this one. Whenever i steep, all i can taste and smell is beets. Dry, it smells quite nice. Glad i only got 30g of this on a whim..

I didn’t know if I was going to like this or not, but the tea itself is rather pretty with large pieces of cinnamon and nuts. I’m not a big fan of fruit tea, but this smelled nice dry, and after letting it steep for a while, it brewed to a nice red color. I was worried that it would be sour like a strong hibiscus tea, but this is more like a spiced cider. A rather weak cider, but it is enjoyable. I sweetened it with splenda. Since I let it steep for so long, I didn’t think I could steep it a second time.

Anyway, this tea came in Tracey’s traveling tea box. There were a lot of great choices, but this was one I wanted to try first. This is my second sample David’s Tea, I think. I like it, though I doubt I would drink it without splenda.

Overboard TTB #8

This was the rare cup of tea that I ended up dumping out after just a few sips. Cinnamon and hibiscus fighting each other in my mouth is not my idea of a cheery holiday sleigh ride!