Just got this today with a few other teas from David’s. I got no sleep last night due to stupidity and I didn’t want to brew something fancy and expensive (for a college student) until I had a chance to really enjoy it, so I decided to try a cup of this to wake me up. I don’t drink much caffeine, so I was worried about drinking too much of this, but I’m a cup in and my hands are still pretty steady.
The dry leaf smells exactly like it promises, grassy and natural with just a bit of sweetness. I brewed it for 5 minutes in boiling-ish water, and the liquor is darker than even some pu-erhs I’ve seen. On first taste, I actually didn’t have much to say about it. It delivers what it promises, but that’s pretty much it. The smell is pleasantly sweet, and it tastes like a mowed lawn smells, but pretty faintly. I knew I wasn’t just drinking boiled water, but it was hard to say much about it. I logged in to leave a ratingless “Eh.” review when I went back to the last quarter-cup cooling in the mug.
Wow. Dramatic change. The sweetness in the smell morphs into a something akin to red rooibos, though a bit less raisiny and more fresh. The flavor is clean, sweet, and easy to drink, and no amount of sipping will turn it bitter. I wasn’t so sure this was worth buying, but I’m happy to say I was wrong. Looking forward to this in the morning when I feel like passing out.
EDIT: So, as much as this has continued to grow on me, I have one caveat. You actually CAN overbrew this. It’s hard to do, this stuff has a high tolerance for whatever tomfoolery you throw at it, but after like 15 minutes in medium heat, it gets sort of aluminum-y.
