Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
I assure you, I am not dead.
I’ve been down with the flu early this week and then I got so busy with our Kickstarter rewards that I nearly forgot to post the tea of the week! Shame on me. And it’s a yummy one too. Soft, sweet shou mei blended with cranberries and grapes. Yummmmm.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
As soon as I opened the pouch of this Cran-Grape Shou Mei from 52Teas, I could smell the grape. Or perhaps, I should say, I could smell grape candy, because that’s what it smells like. It smells like the grape <insert favorite grape flavored candy here>. Yeah, that’s what this smells like. The grape scent was so strong that I couldn’t really detect any cranberry notes, or any white tea notes for that matter.
Once brewed, the fragrance mellows out a little bit. Now, I still smell grape, but it actually smells like grape … and not so much like grape candy. There are still hints of candy-like sweetness, but, the aroma becomes a little more complex after the tea is brewed. I even smell a wine-like note in there. And I can smell hints of white tea too. Much more promising than the dry leaf scent.
The grape flavor is the strongest note that I taste, and the sweetness of the candy-like grape taste is curbed with the tartness of the cranberry. This combination keeps the grape from tasting too cloying. But, I have to say that this isn’t my favorite fruit combination. I’ve never made any big secret of my dislike for grape flavored things. But the cranberry does improve the flavor considerably.
The white tea is a little obscured by the strength of the fruit flavors. I notice the white tea notes a little more when I slurp the sip, and then I taste the earthy qualities of the Shou Mei, and a slight “hay-ish” taste that offers a palate-pleasing contrast to the fruit notes.
This tastes alright. It’s not my favorite 52Teas blend. (I have much higher hopes for the next blend that I’ll be tasting: Rum Raisin! YUM!) I like this much better as an iced tea than when it’s served hot.
Cran-Strawberry Young Hyson Green Tea from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
Thinking about Thanksgiving this week and cranberry sauce and decided to make this delicious blend of sweet young hyson green tea with dried cranberries, freeze-dried strawberries and organic flavors.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
When 52Teas announced this Cran-Strawberry Young Hyson Green Tea as their tea of the week for the week of November 25th, I was pretty sure I’d enjoy it. I like cranberry, I love strawberry and I enjoy green tea. But I like this a lot more than I expected to! This tea offers a really appealing balance of sweet and tart, along with the smooth, lush flavors of a Young Hyson green tea. It’s really delightful.
I like that the cranberry and strawberry flavors are well-paired here, one doesn’t overpower the other and they aren’t competing with one another. As I said above, it’s a really good balance between sweet and tart. The tart cuts through the sweet enough so that it’s not too sweet, and the tart isn’t making me pucker. Very nice.
The Young Hyson tea tastes vibrant and it has a nice texture to it. When the tea is served hot, it has a soothing, broth-like comfort to it. When it’s iced, it tastes refreshing and smooth.
Really nice.