Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
I’m hoping this is a good idea and doesn’t just get me into a lot of trouble. It will probably just get me into trouble. I seem to attract it. Anyway, you might want to snap this up before we get sued.
[A brief plea to the good folks at Ben & Jerry’s: Please don’t sue us. We don’t have any money. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, you know.]
I’m not going to say anything more–no sense in giving the lawyers any more ammunition.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was very excited to try this tea. Cherry Garcia is one of my favorite teas from Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, and I love the idea of a Cherry Garcia inspired tea.
The aroma of the dry leaf is scrumptious! Cherries and chocolate and a hint of cream along with the black tea notes. My mouth began watering! I brewed this with eager anticipation and happy thoughts of yummy ice cream flavors dancing around in my head!
The dry leaf looks different from most of 52Teas black tea blends. And it is different. Instead of the usual black tea blend of Assam and Nilgiri teas that 52Teas uses in most of its black tea blends, this is a blend of the Assam and Nilgiri plus some CTC (also Nilgiri?) to add some body to the cup. When you get your pouch and open it and see the small tea bits in there, I don’t want you to be concerned that your tea got smashed in transit!
OK… now that some of the business is out of the way, let’s get on to the tea … my taste buds cannot wait!
My first sip was a bit of a disappointment. There is a strong black tea flavor, but very little chocolate and cherry flavor. Where’s my Cherry Garcia? Then I allowed the tea to cool a bit to see if this would give the flavors some time to develop.
Yes! This is a tea that definitely needs some cooling time. It doesn’t have to be cold; I would say that the cup sitting in front of me is probably about 140°F – not what I’d call lukewarm or tepid, but, not piping hot.
Now the flavors are there. I can taste the cherry and the chocolate, and there is a delicious creaminess that washes over the palate throughout the sip, like melted ice cream. YUM!
The black tea is still quite strong, too, but this IS a tea … if you want the ice cream, go to the store and get some! This is supposed to be tea so I’m glad that the tea flavor is there, and it does, indeed have a rich, satisfying body to it. The aftertaste is definitely cherry, with a sweet cherry taste with a hint of tartness that tingles in the mouth. There is some astringency, but I notice that it gets smoother with each sip.
And that’s the best part about this tea: it keeps getting better and better with each sip. I’ve consumed more than half my cup now (I have a large tea mug!) and it becomes creamier, and sweeter and more delicious with each sip. Very nicely done, 52Teas!
