I have been searching for a really good, and authentic watermelon tea. Although, I would not describe this tea as authentic watermelon flavour, I would certainly say it is a really good tea.
Of the dry and brewed tea leaves, some are dark green and some are lighter green, similar to the colouring on the outer shell of a watermelon. The dry tea leaves smell like sweet, smooth vegetal green tea, with a faint candy/gum watermelon scent. There is also some kind of spicey scent to it which makes me think of a BBQ spice or rub, maybe similar to Mrs. Dash seasoning…not sure.
The brewed tea smells similar to the dry tea but without that spice scent, and a more creamy scent. The tea tastes like a sweet, smooth, vegetal green tea. There is a slight salty flavour to it. There is a watermelon taste. I would say it does not taste like the pink watermelon flesh, but like the white flesh that is close to the rind. It is not bitter though. I added a few small pieces of rock sugar and this brought out more of the watermelon taste. The watermelon taste is more to the candy side, but not overly sweet or artificial. It tastes creamy as well. The tea definitely gets better as it cools; it gets a stronger creamy taste and more watermelon flavour. Other than the slightly salty taste, there is no other spicey taste (not sure what I smelled in the dry tea). I may have brewed this a bit too long because there is an astringent aftertaste. I think this is a great green tea, and the little bit of flavouring adds something different to the tea without ruining the fine green tea base.
