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This is one of the four Target-exclusive Forager Edition herbals from Tazo, the one based on the Northeast US. So far, I have really enjoyed the Midwest “Wild Apple Sarsaparilla” and the Rockies “Juniper Mint Honey.” I figured this one would easily also be a hit for me, since I’m one of the few people I know that loves tart, tangy, hibiscus-heavy fruity teas, which is what I was expecting to get from a tea called “Elderberry Blackberry.” Sadly, it wasn’t.

I do taste a strong dark berry flavor, but it just doesn’t have that juicy/tart element I want and expect from berries like elderberry or blackberry. Instead I get this rather awful pervasive background note that tastes flowery, soapy, and baby powder-y… pretty much how chamomile tastes to me. And then I looked at the pouch and see chamomile is an ingredient. It doesn’t have that particular hay/herbaceous/apple/honey chamomile flavor, but the things about that particular flower that always taste “off” to my tongue are present. I guess it is sweetening up the berry notes, but the result is that “chalky/powdery” fruit flavor that Cameron often describes.

Honestly, I need way more hibiscus and way less chamomile for this blend to work for me. I imagine for everyone else out there, though, the choice to make this more chamomile and less hibiscus is welcome. I wish I had some of my plain hibi stash to add to my cup, but sadly I’m out…

Drunk as a plain hot cup, I just find this rather yuck. But I’m going to continue to try to brew it in other ways and see if I can’t find a way to make this work for me, at least to use up the box. I definitely would not get more of this, while I’d happily restock “Wild Apple Sarsaparilla” or “Juniper Mint Honey.”

Flavors: Berries, Chalk, Floral, Soap, Sweet

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 8 min or more 2 tsp 17 OZ / 500 ML
Martin Bednář

If you want, I will gladly share some pure hibiscus I got. It’s too much for me and honestly I never remember putting it in other tea.

Mastress Alita

That is sweet, but since I’m unable to ship internationally, I typically discourage all the trouble (and high costs) from others to ship internationally to me, too.

Todd

Wow, what a letdown. The name of this tea sounds like something tart and amazing.

gmathis

The lack of edginess may mean it’s something I like ;)

Martin Bednář

Mastress Alita: As you wish, I would nothing in return :)

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Comments

Martin Bednář

If you want, I will gladly share some pure hibiscus I got. It’s too much for me and honestly I never remember putting it in other tea.

Mastress Alita

That is sweet, but since I’m unable to ship internationally, I typically discourage all the trouble (and high costs) from others to ship internationally to me, too.

Todd

Wow, what a letdown. The name of this tea sounds like something tart and amazing.

gmathis

The lack of edginess may mean it’s something I like ;)

Martin Bednář

Mastress Alita: As you wish, I would nothing in return :)

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Profile

Bio

Hi! I’m Sara, a middle-aged librarian living in southern Idaho, USA. I’m a big ol’ sci-fi/fantasy/anime geek that loves fandom conventions, coloring books, simulation computer games, Japanese culture, and cats. Proud genderqueer asexual (she/they) and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. I’m also a chronic migraineur. As a surprise to no one, I’m a helpless tea addict with a tea collecting and hoarding problem! (It still baffles me how much tea I can cram into my little condo!) I enjoy trying all sorts of teas… for me tea is a neverending journey!

Favorite Flavors:

I love sampling a wide variety of teas! For me the variety is what makes the hobby of tea sampling so fun! While I enjoy trying all different types of teas (pure teas, blends, tisanes), these are some flavors/ingredients I enjoy:
-Dessert/chocolate/vanilla/caramel/cream/toffee/maple
-Sweet/licorice root/stevia
-Vegetal/grassy
-Floral/lavender/rose
-Spices/chais
-Fruity
-Tropical/pineapple/coconut
-Bergamot (in moderation)
-Roasted/nutty
-Tart/tangy/hibiscus/rosehip

Disliked Flavors:

There are not many flavors or ingredients that I don’t like. These include:
-Bananas/banana flavoring
-Hemp/CBD teas
-Smoke-scented teas/heavy smoke flavors (migraine trigger)
-Perfumey teas/extremely heavy floral aromas (migraine trigger)
-Gingko biloba (migraine trigger)
-Chamomile (used in blends as a background note/paired with stronger flavors is okay)
-Extremely spicy/heated teas
-Medicinal flavors/Ginseng
-Metallic flavors
-Overly strong artificial flavorings

With the exception of bananas and migraine triggers, I’ll pretty much try any tea at least once!

Steeping Parameters:

I drink tea in a variety of ways! For hot brews, I mostly drink my teas brewed in the western style without additions, and for iced tea, I drink teas mostly brewed in the cold brew style without additions. Occassionally I’ll change that up. I use the https://octea.ndim.space/#/ app for water-to-tea ratios and use steep times to my preferences.

My Rating Scale:

90-100 – Top tier tea! These teas are among my personal favorites, and typically I like to keep them stocked in my cupboards at all times, if possible!

70-89 – These are teas that I personally found very enjoyable, but I may or may not feel inclined to keep them in stock.

50-69 – Teas that fall in this range I enjoyed, but found either average, lacking in some way, or I’ve had a similar tea that “did it better.”

21-49 – Teas in this range I didn’t enjoy, for one reason or another. I may or may not finish them off, depending on their ranking, and feel no inclination to restock them.

20-1 – Blech! My Tea Hall of Shame. These are the teas that most likely saw the bottom of my garbage can, because I’d feel guilty to pass them onto someone else.

Note that I only journal a tea once, not every time I drink a cup of it. If my opinion of a tea drastically changes since my original review, I will journal the tea again with an updated opinion and change my rating. Occassionally I revisit a tea I’ve reviewed before after a year or more has passed.

Inventory:

My Cupboard on Steepster reflects teas that I have sampled and logged for review, and is not used as an inventory for teas I currently own at the present moment. An accurate and up-to-date listing of my current tea inventory can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/xjt9ptx3 . I am open to tea trades (within the United States only!) at this time. Note that I will not trade teas that I currently have in a quantity less than 50g (samplers, 1oz packages, etc.) or any teas that are currently still sealed/unopened in my cupboard.

Contact Info:

Feel free to send me a Steepster PM, or alternatively, check the website URL section below; it goes to a contact form that will reach my personal e-mail.

Location

Idaho, United States

Website

https://teatimetuesdayreviews...

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