Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos & Fruit/Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Davidson’s
Product Description:
Tart cranberries, rosehips, and hibiscus with sweet orange essence.Ingredients (* organic): Rosehips*, orange peel*, hibiscus*, chamomile*, rooibos*, cranberries* & natural flavor.
Taster’s Review:
Yesterday, I published my review of Davidson’s Cranberry Orange Iced – Davidson’s tea of the month. This is the loose leaf variety of their tea of the month. They are both very similar, but two significant differences: 1. this is a loose leaf tisane; and 2. this loose leaf blend lists rooibos as one of its ingredients, whereas the bagged (both the iced and the single-serve bag) varieties do not.
Does the rooibos make a significant difference? I am not sure … but I will work that out as I write this review. What I notice about this tea, first and foremost, is the hibiscus. It seems much stronger in this blend than it did in the iced tea I made for yesterday’s review. It has a thicker consistency, not quite syrupy (I didn’t steep it long enough for that), and I can taste the hibiscus. But, it doesn’t taste like the typical tarty hibiscus taste that I’ve grown to recognize as hibiscus, if that makes sense. It is a far more tolerable hibiscus flavor – but that doesn’t mean that I’d rather it not be there.
Perhaps it is the flavors of the cranberry and orange that turn the tea around. These prominent flavors make this hibiscus-y tea much more enjoyable to drink. And now that I am about mid-way through my cup, I am noticing more of the rooibos flavor – there is a nuttiness in the background that is distinctly rooibos-like. Much like the iced version, I don’t taste a lot of the chamomile here, but I’m glad it’s there. Why? Maybe it’s my imagination, but I suspect that the chamomile, together with the rooibos, helps to thin out the consistency of this tea and give it a very satisfying texture.
Overall, this herbal tea is tart with pleasing notes of sweetness and a very faint woody/nutty tone. I really like that tangy note that comes from the orange. While I did prefer the iced version, I find this to be a very soothing tea to be sipping this evening. It is a very relaxing and yes, tasty cuppa.
