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A fruity black tea that I can find no fault with? Could it be?

I received this as the “extra” in my order of 5 samples from Design a Tea. The aroma is quite lovely—rich caramel and strawberry, not cloying or artificial as these flavors can sometimes be. The caramel isn’t too strong in the brewed tea; while overall it reminds me of Lupicia’s caramel tea, I think this one is more balanced and less overwhelming.

While I only had one sachet, I divided the brew and iced half of it. The iced version is more impressive—the tea base is very good and crisp, and seems like Ceylon. Perfect for summer with just that touch of fresh strawberry (and it still feels like summer here!) The hot version is more creamy and sweet, less distinguished than the cold but still enjoyable. Too often the tea itself is not great in these types of blends, and tastes downright messy when the other ingredients are blended out of proportion. This one is an exception to the rule, and even defies my expectation that appetizing aroma is inversely proportional to taste. I hope the rest of the samples are of this quality as well!

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Bio

Science writer and a cat that learned to type.

I grew up in a tea-loving family, and tea has always been a part of daily life. I’m still astounded by the amount of tea and teaware back home every time I visit! While I’m most familiar with straight Chinese teas, I’m growing to explore and appreciate other types of tea, including blended and flavored ones. A good blend can reflect the thought and creativity that was put into making it, instead of being too sweet or busy in a way that gives the “genre” a bad rap.

Likes:
-most black teas (even lapsang)
-most oolongs, especially Fujian teas, baozhong and dancong
-houjicha
-straight white teas
-citrus
-almond/amaretto
-coconut
-vanilla

Variable (some are great, some not so):
-most green teas
-tie guan yin
-flavored white teas
-assam
-rooibos
-melon
-mint
-grape

Ratings:
90-100: definite repurchase if possible, recommended
80-90: enjoyed, possible repurchase
70-80: fair to good
60-70: fair with some shortcomings
50-60: there’s still a chance I’d take this if it were free
under 50: absolutely not

Location

Southern California

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