Strawberry Cream

I didn’t see much actual tea in this blend…just a lot of little fruit chunks. It smelled rather like the Strawberry & Cream gummy candies, so I decided to give it a shot (and I’m rather glad I did).

Once brewed it came out to a richly purplish brew – I’m guessing there’s hyacinth in there somewhere – that still has an intense (and slightly fake) candied smell noted earlier. I love sticking my whole face in the cup to revel in the sugary sweetness of it all…

But it’s definitely a lot less palatable than the aroma implies. Even with such a short steep it came out very hyacinth-sour and not all that strawberry at all, which was a bit disappointing.

Had it not smelled like sweetness and candy I would’ve been totally content with the sour fruitiness of this blend, but as it stands I really feel as though I’ve been the victim of a bait and switch, flavour-wise.

It’s not going to be painful to finish the cup, but I’m not likely to make another one.

really good tea! love the flavour

Another tea that I picked up on sale 50% off yesterday. It smelled delicious in store, and when I got it home last night and brewed a cup, I remembered that I had received this in a gift set last Christmas, though I think it was just a herbal blend, while this claims to be a white tea, nevertheless, they tasted exactly the same. I’ve decided that I simply can’t stand hibiscus unsweetened. Sweetened, I can handle it. Though I think I added a bit too much honey, it was still enjoyable.

On first taste, this tea clearly tastes of hibiscus, not strawberries. Hibiscus is the first ingredient and white tea is the third; I find that this is a somewhat tart cup for it to be called “Strawberry Cream.” It IS a decent hibiscus tea, but there is the lingering “cream” aftertaste that just tastes artificial. At first I liked this tea, but as I’ve consumed my 2 ounce envelope, I just don’t think I’ll order it again. I found that an organic lemon wedge helps the flavor; yes it makes it more sour, but I think it also makes it better.

I see a common theme in reviews of Teas from Teavana; too much fruit, way too much hibiscus, not nearly enough tea. I agree. I am becoming much pickier in the teas I drink and I am really noticing the lack of tea leaves.

I just can’t seem to get it right with this tea. It’s probably the hibiscus. So overpowering that even the strawberries are having trouble with it. It still tastes good but just not as good as I had hoped it would. I’m going to experiment with different steep times and then update this.

Too heavy on the taste…overwhelms the back of my tongue.

When the gent at Teavana opened the tin of this and wafted it at me, I instantly fell in love.
This was the first loose leaf tea I ever tried to make on my own, though, and most of the 50 grams I bought were wasted on experimenting and steeping mistakes.
When I finally thought I had gotten it right, it still tasted a lot more tart than I expected it to. I was steeping it with a 1:1 tea to rock sugar ratio but the vanilla in the blend was still much more muted than I expected. Perhaps in the future I will try blending it with a sweeter tea.
Most often we drank this one iced, except for the few times we were too anxious to wait. On one occasion, my room mate suggested it might be good hot with milk, but upon trying that, the milk curdled in the tea…either because of the temperature difference or because of the acidity of the strawberry.
I would still like to try it as a latte if I can find a Teavana in the area with the apparatus, as not all locations have them. The creaminess of the vanilla begs to be emphasized.

I have always been disappointed with most of the strawberry-flavored teas that I’ve tried. However, this one is fantastic! It has a very natural (as opposed to artificial) strawberry taste, with a very slight tangy note. I wouldn’t say it is particularly creamy, but the vanilla adds a wonderful and subtle sweetness to the tea. It’s fantastic.

I am completely in love with this tea. It is sweet and has a very nice taste.