Héritage Gourmand - Macaron

I tried. I really did. This is just not working for me. Although it starts out all Cap’n Crunch Crunchberries (yum!) there’s this weird floral thing that happens immediately after that just kills it for me. I wish I could describe it more specifically, but the best I can do is this: a perfume-y, floral taste that comes midway through the sip and insists on staying until the next Crunchberry sip overwhelms it. Then, there it is again. No apple, nothing that even resembles a macaron, other than a strange, sickening sweetness. I love, love, love macarons. Not sure how they came upon the name, but there is no connection for me. Out this sucker goes – I just hate it when a tea doesn’t work out, but that’s life, right?

I swear I have reviewed this one, but I can’t find any notes on here from me. So here we go…

This is one of the teas my daughter picked up for me when she went to Amsterdam and Bruges. She brought it to me while we were still in Ireland, and youngest and I had a ritual of having a pot of tea in the breakfast room of the house and then heading out for scones and more tea and at 9am, which is when the fresh scones came out at the Java Café. We had a pot then and I think I had it once since, and today we have had two big pots of it.

I was a little confused at first because I thought macarons were the same as macaroons, but they are completely different. This is definitely macaron. The dry leaves are beautiful, with the mix of flower petals and bits of nuts and dried apple pieces. The aroma is largely apple, almond, and pure biscuit. I still don’t know how they make tea smell and taste like biscuit, but they do.

I found it to be smooth and flavorful, very nice even without milk or sugar. The different flavors are well balanced and none overpowers the others. My hubby still has trouble drinking black tea without milk and sugar, but he drank several cups of this plain and enjoyed it very much. Big thumbs up here!

This sample came from boychik and, originally, CharlotteZero. Thanks ladies! I really enjoy macarons and almond-related things in general, so I hope this one lives up to its name! The tea itself is a mixture of small black leaves, dried apple pieces, and little white things that look like tiny popcorn but are apparently amaranth. Dry scent is kind of vaguely sweet and dessert-ish without really smelling like anything.

The steeped tea smells like apples and caramel, which is pleasant even if it’s completely unrelated to the intended flavor. Hm, for some reason this cup came out a teeny bit bitter, which is odd since I used rather conservative parameters. I can definitely taste apple, although I’m not sure how that relates to macarons. There’s also a bit of a burnt sugar kind of flavor which makes it taste somewhat desserty. Overall, it’s not bad, but it’s nowhere near a macaron… Closer to caramel apple. :P

Another old sample from Shmiracles, though the age (my fault, for hanging on to them for so long) does not dim my appreciation for getting to try these fancy French teas!

This one I can cross off my list. All of MF’s Heritage Gourmand teas sound amazing, but this one didn’t live up to its potential for me.

First, it’s bitter. BITTER. Also, I’ve had macarons in various flavours, and all of them were more delicious than this tea. Last, I didn’t realize it was appley. I dislike apple flavoured things. Who’s ever had an apple macaron anyway? Not moi.

So I’m happy to have one to cross off my list! Since they are bloody expensive teas to covet.

Thanks again to CharlotteZero for sending me samples of all of her Heritage Gourmand teas!

Wow, my taste buds must be way off, I could have sworn that there was strawberry in this tea! Am I the only person who has found that? As soon as I opened the bag, the smell of strawberry was overwhelming. There were chunks of fruit in it that looked pink so I assumed they were strawberries, but much to my surprise, they were apples!

This tea tastes mostly like strawberry to me. I am also getting the buttercream, but not much pastry. I really like it, and while I was drinking it I was thinking how great it was that they went with a flavoured macaron instead of just plain because most of the teas would have tasted too similar in this line. But boy was I wrong. Oh well, it tastes like a strawberry macaron to me and I like it!

This is the second new tea I tried tonight. I have never tasted a macaron to my knowledge, and probably never will in the future since I am vegan. I could get the crusty meringue notes, but it was overwhelmed by artificial fruitiness. Maybe if I’d experienced a macaron I’d like this one better? I’ll definitely give it another try, but this one may wind up being swapped.