Continuing on the mate learning curve, I’ve opted to try this sample from Fusion tea room. They sent me four of their flavoured mates, and I am excited to try them all. In the bag, this has a strong (though slightly artificial) mango aroma. Very ripe and sweet smelling. While steeping, the liquor is a vibrant yellow and the smell is still enticingly mango wafting through the apartment. The beau comments that it “looks like pear” and I think I also get a smell that is a bit like extremely ripe pears. Well done, beau!
For my Canadian friends, the mango smell is reminiscent of David’s Tea’s Mango Madness, which I quite enjoyed. When I get very close to the cup, I get a buttery almost coconut sort of smell. That worries me a bit, but it still smells more like mango than anything else. I’m not all that clear on what mate smells/tastes like yet as I’ve only had it flavoured, but nothing stands out that might be mate.
First sips are sweet mango. Not just ripe mango, but it tastes as if sugar has been added. There is no bitterness and nothing I can define as mate, this just really tastes like mango tea. As the cup cooled I found it seemed more and more sweet until it was a bit sweeter than I’d like, but I don’t know what contributed that. This was more mango flavoured than anything I’ve had before. Nice to have tried, but I don’t think I’ll buy more. Continued to learn that mate doesn’t give me an energy boost as I am strongly considering a nap right now. But at least I had yummy tea!
