I found a tin of African Autumn sachets in the back of my tea cabinet and lifted the lid for a whiff. It’s been four years since my last tasting of this tisane. Wow, the aroma of GREEN COCKTAIL OLIVE BRINE is overwhelming! Now this is supposed to contain orange and cranberry and hibiscus as well as rooibos, but the aroma was just so wrong to my sensibilities that it was a struggle to brew it up. But since I do like hibiscus and orange peel and cranberry—and green olives too (in food and martinis)—I pushed forward and steeped a cup according to Harney’s directions.
After the 5 min. steeping, the olive aroma had declined considerably. I was able to taste notes of orange and cranberry, and a touch of hibiscus in the lingering finish, so I’m raising my rating by fourteen points, for it having some redeeming qualities, but am still greatly disliking the flavor combination to the point of nearly being nauseated by it. And yes, there is taste of green olive in the finish, too. I have no idea what straight rooibos offers in the way of flavor, but it can’t be anything I like because this stuff is wretched. Your impressions may differ, of course, and I wish you luck if you try it.
Flavors: Cranberry, Hibiscus, Olives, Orange Zest, Rooibos
