Rooibos Pear

I liked S&V’s pear-flavored black tea (especially the old discontinued one that was JUST pear, but the new “Pear and Ginger” is fine), so I decided to try their pear rooibos. I actually quite like it… I still really like this pear flavoring, it is quite crisp. The rooibos base is a little strong (I would not recommend it for those averse to the flavor of red rooibos), but I don’t get any medicinal notes like I do with other fruity flavorings on a red rooibos base, and the natural earthy notes and slight honey flavor of rooibos do pair with the pear flavor nicely. That said, I do think the blend would be way better on a green rooibos base, which I think would carry the pear flavoring much better.

I tend to like adding milk (in my case, I always use sweetened vanilla almond milk) to red rooibos, but I’m uncertain if that would be a terrible idea paired with pear flavoring. Part of my brain says there is no way it could work, and another part of my brain is chaotic enough to want to try anyway… perhaps that will be an experiment for tomorrow morning. For now I’m enjoying it plain, even after my hot cuppa has turned into a cold cuppa.

I don’t care for red rooibos and avoid it, but this was in the advent and I am willing to try it.

Sadly, it is not enjoyable for me. I liked the smell of the pear flavoring at first but then the steeped tea smelled mostly of red rooibos with only a hint of pear. The rooibos had the wet dog smell, too. Drank half and poured out the rest because it really didn’t grow on me.

Not one I would buy unless my tastes change radically.

I must start off by saying I am not a fan of red rooibos. This one unfortunately has that wet-dog note, but it’s not the worst I’ve tasted. The pear is rather on the artificial side. I’m afraid I am not the best reviewer for this one, as I don’t like the base tea, but I’m determined to get through all my advents/assortments in 2026, so on we march. On the upside, it does brew to an attractive brown-red colour and is not the worst red rooibos I have ever tasted.

Simpson & Vail Advent 2025 – Day #8

Now here is one I haven’t tried yet! I have considered ordering it before. But I think I went with their pear green tea instead, based on positive Steepster notes, possibly? S&V has had some of my favorite pear teas in the past. Here, both in the fragrance and the flavor, the rooibos is competing with the pear. I have had worse pear teas! The second steep, I think I left a little too long, and tastes mostly just like plain rooibos…
Steep #1 // 1 1/3 teaspoons for a full mug // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 6 minute steep

The scent here is definitely that of pear flavoring rather than authentic pear. The flavor is also rather fake and a bit chemically. The pear rooibos from Tebella was so well done, and I’m out, so I hoped this would be an adequate replacement. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. I don’t mind the fake pear flavor, but the chemical flavor that underlies it is a bit off-putting. I like it well enough to drink it, but I would not purchase this again.

The rooibos taste is stronger than the taste of the pear in this tea. It is fairly good. The savory aspect of the rooibos is strong. I wonder how good it will be iced.

I steeped this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and boiling water for 5 minutes.