Rhubarb & Custard

I’ve never had the pleasure of trying actual rhubarb + custard together, but I know it’s a thing because when I lived in Ireland I used to eat these Nakd bars all the freaking time and they had a Rhubarb & Custard flavor. This tastes exactly like those! The scent is kind of like cough syrup, but the taste comes through very true to that familiar flavor. I can taste the slight sourness of the rhubarb, with a toasty cream note. My first Bluebird/Bird & Blend tea! I’m a fan.

Another tea I rediscovered in my cupboard! And another one incorporating rhubarb in a yummy way.
A wonderful blend with rooibos, where rooibos is far from imposing its “wooden” character (maybe because it´s a finer texture?), and strange but through the custard mainly comes through in nose and the rhubarb dominates in taste. Perfectly “guilt free” ;-)

Waited for several cups to review this one. I kept hoping it would make a stronger impression on me. It’s pleasant— I can taste the rhubarb and a subtle creaminess. I expected stronger flavors based on the reviews, but I am thinking that it might be my taster since I have some sinus symptoms going on.

I have just finished dinner and was in search of something sweet and savory. This little guy was the winner! The word custard, when used along with tea, automatically intrigued me. I brewed this western. The aroma of silky rich creme emitted from my brew basket. I inhaled the scent of a rhubarb cream pie. I sipped this down rather quickly. Surprisingly, the taste of rhubarb dominated this brew. It had a finish of cream and vanilla. This brew had both of these flavors swirled around with a dusky earth taste. I actually really enjoyed this tea. The taste was not overwhelming. I think a flavored tea is beginning to grow on me.

Backlog:

Having never actually eaten rhubarb, I often feel like I’m at a disadvantage when I review a rhubarb tea because I’m not exactly sure what a rhubarb should taste like because I don’t have that experience tasting actual rhubarb.

For this tisane, I taste the rooibos. The honeyed, nutty flavor seems to work well with the custardy notes and the notes of rhubarb.

In my full-length review, I mused a bit about the stevia in this blend: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/10/26/rhubarb-custard-rooibos-blend-from-bluebird-tea-co/

Overall, this is a tasty tisane. I enjoyed it.

There is a definite rhubarb and custard flavor to this tea however unfortunately the stevia is ruining it for me… note to self, you don’t like stevia so stop buying teas that contain stevia!! The addition of milk brings out the custard and creamy notes. The remainder of this tea is going into the swap pile for the Herbal TTB.

Today’s cold brew!

I never really realized how much Rhubarb and Custard was a British thing/flavour pairing until Laura, Sharla and I went to Churchill’s (the British food store in Saskatoon) yesterday. I saw so many variation of that pairing in the store: like three different kinds of hard candy, a taffy with the same flavour combo, and a chocolate bar with a rhubarb and custard filling! I then thought of this tea, and remembered it IS in fact from a UK based tea company. I feel like I’ve made some sort of worldly/cultural discovery.

It does taste AMAZING though as a pairing, so I definitely get it. The rhubarb is sweet and the custard is creamy and tempers some of the tartness that rhubarb often has. It’s really satisfying and the right balance between natural sweet and pastry sort of sweet.

Now I can’t help but ponder what other flavour pairings are cultural that I’m not aware of. At the same time, what are the Canadian flavour pairings that I just know and think of as normal that aren’t in other areas of the world?

Food, or tea, for thought…

There are only a couple more Bluebird teas from my order that I haven’t tried yet! I really should be better about trying teas more or less in order, just so they don’t get forgotten about and lose flavor. This was the only rooibos from my order, which is a shame since I’m liking it so much lately. My sample doesn’t have as many flower petals as the picture, it’s mostly red rooibos with a few petals and pieces of dried rhubarb. Dry scent is quite lovely – a nice mix of tart fruitiness and luscious vanilla custard.

Happily, the steeped tea smells similar but with less potency and the addition of rooibos. Ugh, I’ve been so spoiled by drinking so many green teas today, having to wait for this tea to cool feels like an eternity… Hm… This is pretty good, but I’m honestly a little disappointed. There’s not really any of that bright tartness from the aroma, the rhubarb is far more subdued and mild, though it’s still there. The custard flavor is mild as well, though it comes out more near the end. I can’t really taste any sweetness from the stevia, but it does add a bit of an artificial taste. I really wish tea companies would stop trying to pre-sweeten their teas! If we want sweetener, we’re perfectly capable of adding it ourselves…

Another new try from last night. When I tidied ny cupboard last week, I brought the last few untried Bluebirds down to a more reachable level, so that I’d be more inclined to start them. It worked! I brewed this one up for my last cup before bed, and gave 1 tsp of leaf 4 minutes in boiling water.

Brewing, it certainly smells of custard. It’s actually quite surprising, given that this is tea. The leaf is so pretty, too, with the red-brown rooibos, the yellow petals, and the pink/white rhubarb pieces.

Unfortunately, my first couple of sips are almost entirely rooibos. I was disappointed, but then very slowly, the taste of rhubarb and custard sweets developed at the back of my mouth. It’s very sweet and candy like, with the creamy custard developing first, and then a slightly tart, tangy-sharp rhubarb flavour coming through after that. Successive sips develop the flavour further, and bring it more into the foreground. Disappointment turned to delight!

I would like the flavour to be more prominent from the off, so I might try a longer brew, or even a little piece of sugar, for my next cup. Maybe some milk, to enhance the custard flavour? I’m pretty sure my experience of this one can be improved, but I’m pleased that I managed to find both flavours in my first cup. The only slight issue I have with this one is the pre-added stevia. It leaves an artificial sweetness at the back of my mouth that I don’t really care for. On the whole, though, a pleasing first cup.

Yes, rhubarb good. The past two days I’ve been off work (because apparently “we can give you full-time hours” actually means “we’ll text you at 4:30 in the afternoon to let you know whether or not to bother coming in the next day, and then wait another day to tell you if you’re coming in at all this week”) and MAN have I apparently needed mountains of rest. Left bed proper at, umm, 3 today? The good news is I can sort of lift my right arm but my ankles are a bit wobbly. Doesn’t bode well, nope.

But rhubarb and custard is always a welcome treat. I pretty much love rhubarb anything, and since this tastes joyously of sweet, cooked rhubarb, it comforts my beleaguered soul quite well indeed.