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sigh… I really, really wanted to LOVE this one. But try as I might, I’m just not getting the awesomeness that so many of you seem to be enjoying.

After playing with the parameters a bit, I can now say that I like it much more than I did on my first brew, but it still isn’t outstanding. I need to add milk to get any sort of ‘baked good’ flavor, but when I do, I lose the blueberry almost entirely.

With milk, I get a nice bakery-flavor tea with a very, very subtle hint/suggestion of berry occasionally wafting through the swallow. And I’m not sure if it’s my imagination, but I think I can actually detect a little sour cream cheese taste to it – and that part is awesome.

I think that after many cups, I’m finally ready to rate this one. However, I have to take points off because it really needs milk for me to enjoy it.

Ok, so I know it says ‘Honeydew,’ but the dry leaf smells exactly like Bubblicious Watermelon bubble gum! (I mean, I haven’t had that stuff since middle school, but the second I opened the sample packet, it was pure nostalgia.)

Steeped, that Bubblicious scent is still there, but it’s now coupled with more of a fresh honeydew scent. And it tastes like a juicy honeydew melon. Seriously, this tea is actually juicy. I dig it. And that’s saying a lot because I don’t usually like mate. But I do like green rooibos, so maybe that’s helping to balance out the mate taste for me. I suspect this one would be delicious iced, but I didn’t have enough to try it.

Broke my rule about having caffeinated tea after lunch on this one. I had to get the taste of a failed tisane experiment out of my mouth, and I knew that the heavier, malty taste of Love Tea #7 would do the trick.

When I first tasted this tea, I was in the midst of a chocolate tea phase. In comparison to some of the others I was enjoying at the time (Chocolate Orange, Red Velvet Cake, Read my Lips…) this one didn’t really stand out as super desserty. But now that I seem to be on a bit more of a light, fruity flavored kick, I can appreciate the richness that this blend has to offer.

Still think that a stronger strawberry flavor would be an improvement, though, so I’m leaving my rating as is. It’s just interesting how you notice different flavors at different times.

Tried mixing it with Adagio’s Dewy Cherry, but unfortunately the honeybush wasn’t strong enough to carry its own and was almost completely overpowered by the hibiscus and cherry flavors. This mix was a failure.

This is my first unflavored honeybush, and I think I like it! Bear with me as I do my best to describe this taste that I’ve never had before.

Piping hot, it isn’t overly sweet, and the sweetness that is there tastes more like raw honey than than the “Eww! Straight-up sugar water” taste of a recently-tried flavored honeybush.

As it cools a tiny bit (but certainly still hot), the flavor seems a bit more complex. I get that slight “woodiness” that others have written about, with a tiny touch of sweetness at the back of my throat. Post-sip, it leaves a sort of juicy flavor that I really can’t describe.

But my favorite thing about this cup is the way it smells. I didn’t notice much fragrance in the dry leaves, but now that it’s steeped, my mug smells sweet & sour and like just ever-so-lightly rained-on shaved wood bedding/chips… but in a very good way! It’s a pretty awesome and comforting scent.

As soon as this cup is empty, I’m going try mixing some with Dewy Cherry to see if I can get a sweet, tart, and mild woodsy brew. WIll post tasting notes on how it turns out!

This is a tasty herbal tea that works wonders to settle the stomach. The ginger flavor is a little more mild than I’m used to, but it’s quite good for a bagged tisane.

A very sad sipdown. Why is it that the last cup is always the tastiest one of the bunch? I do so love this deliciously savory tea…

See previous notes for review

Oh yum, that’s good… It took me a couple tries to get the steeping parameters just right, but now that I did, this is one tasty cup of tea.

It’s roasty and buttery with a touch of caramel-like sweetness. The black base is very smooth, and it presents no bitterness when steeped for a short time. Following another Steepster’s advice (thanks, LiberTEAS!) I added a pinch of sea salt to the second half of the cup. Yup, there’s the popcorn!

Steeping:
tea amount: 1.25 tsp
water volume: 8 oz
temp: 208 (F)
time: 2.5 min

ETA: Re-steep (at 3min) with almond milk tasted super buttery and dessert-like.

Okay, had another cup of this today, and managed to get more lemon bits in there. This time it was great without any additions! It was a much more well-balanced cup.

I have found that it tastes best when hot – after it cools down, the Early Grey (read: bergamont) becomes almost overpowering,

Cold brewed a good amount of this in an extra large mason jar this morning, and I’m just drinking it now. This is delicious! It’s absolutely fruity, in a very “tropical” way. And the green rooibos makes it a very light and refreshing brew. It’s sweet enough to serve cold without any additives. I might have to pick up some more of this once summer rolls around.