Caribe

I am somewhat ambivalent about green-black tea blends, probably in part because they are somewhat difficult to brew. But I also find them a bit confusing tastewise. This one, Harney & Sons Caribe cuts through the confusion by including a fairly hefty dose of fruit flavoring, so that the blend seems to be much more about fruit than about either green or black tea.

I brewed this sachet at a temperature lower than I would normally for a black tea, and higher than I would normally for a green tea. It tasted fairly good and I have a feeling that this would make an excellent iced beverage in summertime. I find the strawberry to be much more marked than the guava. I cannot tell which kind of black or green teas are used in this blend. Let’s see…

I received a little sample sachet of this in my recent Harney order, and as it is a dreary and somewhat chilly night I thought now would be the perfect time to have a little cup of something tropical. When I opened the packet I was overwhelmed by the fruity (mostly guava) smell. I was excited about this blend having coconut in it, but no coconut is detectable in the aroma, or in the flavor. The flavors that I do notice are mostly strawberry and guava. This is a read good, warming tea!

-Silken sachet.
-Sachet smells fruity, like guava, with a musky undertone. Tea liquor aroma is like strawberry jam.
-Tea liquor is a medium brown color.
-Malty fruit flavor with a light guava finish.
-Best with sweetener.
-Refreshing, heavier tropical tea with malty undertones. Lingering fruity flavor.

This has a strong pineapple and coconut fragrance and taste. It’s really sweet and fruity and very easy to drink. While H&S Bangkok tends more towards the coconut side, this one leans heavily towards the pineapple and guava. It’s listed as a black and green blend but I’ve found that it tastes better if you treat it like a green tea and use a mild temperature and shorter steeping time.

Forgot this was a green/black blend, but Harney’s instructions were for 212F anyway.
Picked this up from a little tea/beer place at the beach, they measured all the tea into little plastic bags and this one in particular was leaking smell all over the place. I’d get a whiff every time I walked by the table where it was sitting. It smells very fruity, which I think is mainly the guava. Definitely tropical.

It has a very light feeling which I think is due to the green tea component. I taste the guava followed by a general “tropical fruit” flavor. I think this would be great iced and maybe I’ll play around with brewing temps. I have enough of a sample to play around so we’ll see! I think I’ll rate after I try it a few more times.

I can’t believe I’ve consumed nearly a whole tin of this without writing a tasting note! Well, after today’s cup, I will have finished it off, quite glad it accidentally (ahem, not really) came into my life after a tea buying moratorium (I’m rarely successful at a buying moratorium, it turns out).

Dry, Caribe smells wonderful. Intensely fruity, tropical, its like someone distilled the essence of a thousand fruity cocktails into a four ounce tin of tea. The brewed tea smells less intensely fruity, with the scent of the black tea coming out more. The taste, the taste is what always gets me, and Caribe is no exception. It tastes like black tea—a hint of fruit, not a strong wallop, like the aroma of the dry brew promises. I think the charms of flavored teas are lost on me—while the nose works well, the taster? Not so much. While it sort of sounds like a bust of a tea, reading back, it really wasn’t. The aroma of the dry mix alone was worth the cost. Damn, it smelled wonderful.

Almost the last of this sample. I’ve now tried it two ways; the first was at a lower temp because of the green tea in the blend (175), steeped for a longer period of time. This time, because I’m having it in the morning, I kicked the temp up to 205 and steeped for a shorter period of time.

Really, I can’t seem to recall any distinct differences between the two methods, though I will grant you that I had this tea at the lower temp more than a week ago, so my memory is broken across the rocky, beer-foamed snarls of a raucous convention weekend. The cup I’m drinking is alright, though. The most intense flavor — after the tea, and insofar as order of noticeability, rather than what I would consider literally intense — is the guava by a wide margin. It makes identifying the strawberry independently difficult to do, but you catch some trace of it toward the end, along with a tang. I assume this is the hibiscus, but I’ve had hibiscus in blends before, and it by no means screams HELLO at your palate…in fact you expect that mild tang to be there, because the guava scent and flavor are enhanced by it, and predict it.

This tea is just fine hot, but let’s face it — it’s practically destined to be iced tea. Sweetened with a little bit of honey and slapped into a pitcher, this blend would be a perfect porchside companion.

Mmmmm, coconutty guava deliciousness! There are several coconut shreds in the tin which combine with the guava to create a wonderful scent. I could smell this tea all day, though my officemates might give me some strange looks.

This is a green/black mix, but to me it just tastes like an awesomely flavored black tea. I usually prepare it as a green tea. I’ve noticed that the flavors aren’t as prominent if steeped at boiling, though it’s still drinkable. Once steeped, I can mostly taste the guava and coconut, but the strawberry finally makes an appearance too. It has a natural sweetness to it that I just adore. It really doesn’t need any added sweeteners, though a touch of honey really brings out the guava.

Caribe is fantastic as an iced tea. The fruity flavors really pop when it gets cold. I generally steep it hot at double strength, add a squeeze of honey, and either pour it over ice or just add water and let it cool in the fridge. The results are quite refreshing. This will definitely become a staple for me this summer.

ETA: Just noticed that this was my 50th tasting note. Hooray!

I have a sore throat, so last night I had the brilliant idea of steeping a pitcher of this to have iced today. This worked wonderfully, especially since I remembered to add a couple spoonfuls of honey while it was still hot.

This is cheating, really, as far as assessing the tea is concerned – I oversteeped it by far, and added enough honey to compensate. That said – it’s really really good! Fruity and flowery and sweet, and I haven’t gotten tired of it after drinking all day (I made about 24 oz). I definitely prefer this iced to hot. I can taste the green and black tea both, I think, but it’s pretty heavy on the guava/strawberry flavor too.

1 heaping tsp for the first 8oz, added 1/4 tsp for each subsequent 8oz, freshly boiled water, irregular steeping times

Working my Saturday away so I needed the combination punch of green and black to stay on track. This is my third Harney and Sons tea. I am impressed with the refined, sculpted and artful feel all their teas convey. Every flavor and characteristic is there for a reason.
This tea has tropical island written all over it, (da plane boss, da plane!) but the aftertaste turns to strawberry for me. I sweetened it a little and drank it hot. I think I will try it iced later, just for kicks.

Thanks again to Quilt Guppy for another tea adventure!

I’m revising my rating for this one. The guava is omnipresent. I don’t taste any of the other flavors but maybe I’m just not sophisticated enough in palate to detect them. It still smells like pineapple to me before brewing. It has a sweetness without adding anything. I like this better when cold. It still won’t be anything I order again, but better than my previous taste.