Christmas in June! I don’t really want this particular tea on this bright, summery day, but it’s in my cupboard and I just want to get it rated and either in a tin if I like it, or in the swap pile if I don’t. When I compared the ingredients on my sample pack to what’s listed online it varied slightly, so I think they must’ve changed the recipe since I had ordered it. The dry leaves smell very strongly of spicy cinnamon with a hint of cloves. There is also a sickly sweet smell about the dry leaves that I just can’t place – like an artificial sweet aroma. The tea itself has a more ‘Christmasy’ aroma of sweet oranges and spices. The flavor is very strong and spicy. The aftertaste is horrid – very bitter with an artificial flavor to it. I was hoping to get more of a clove flavor out of this cup, but the only hint of cloves that I notice is a light mouth-numbing quality. I added quite a bit of milk and sweetener just to make this drinkable, and it sort of dulled all of the other flavors so that it’s pretty bland. I can still detect something just off about this tea – there is just too much artificialness to it, and it stands out too strongly in this tea. I’m pouring this cup out and making something else!
-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves with pieces of spices.
-Dry leaves smell strongly of spicy cinnamon with a hint of cloves. Tea liquor aroma is of sweet oranges and spices.
-Tea liquor is a cloudy very dark brown color.
-Strong spicy flavor and finish. Very bitter and artificial aftertaste. Lightly mouth numbing.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Poor tea. Bitter flavor with a heavy artificial taste.
