So. I haven’t had any red rooibos, plain or flavored, in quite awhile. I loved rooibos, both red and green, when I first started drinking loose leaf teas/tisanes primarily. I had been wondering if I would still love red rooibos, or even like it anymore. I had been wondering if reading so many negative “sour wood” red rooibos tealogs, it would taste that way to me now.
I am happy to report it does not and I still love red rooibos. I think perhaps some people’s taste buds taste differently because I couldn’t get sour wood even when I was trying to find it. Perhaps that’s why some people like red rooibos and some people will only drink it if the flavor is masked.
I could find wood though.. woods, woodsy. Tongue depressor or popsicle stick in scent. In taste, like woods. A woods of birches, with a light early winter snowfall or the last snowfall of winter almost melted, in the early morning or early evening light. You know, like those photos with very little color, almost black and whites. That’s what rooibos tastes like to me. Serene and easy to drink. The orange in this one is very natural and more citrus zest than orange juice.
I remember steeping red rooibos twice when I used to drink them more often. But I’ve also read on here that rooiboses don’t resteep. Indeed, the last rooibos I had, a green one, was too weak on the resteep. I tried this one anyways, giving it a long time, since I did not think it would work. But it did. It was lighter and thinner, but not weaker and not watery at all. Still, next time I will steep the second steep even longer.
2nd steep: 10 min.
