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I wrote a tasting note last night that I deleted not for any reason but that I have a hugely different opinion this morning than I did last night. (Those vodka tonics mixed with nostalgia made me sentimental.) Anyway, I’ll rehash the story. I’m having a huge issue receiving packages at my apartment and I’m about to move. So I really shouldn’t order tea online right now until I settle into a new place.

Anyway, I’ve been hankering for a lemon tea. I grew up on Bigelow lemon tea. I want some, and I’ve been having trouble finding a great loose leaf lemon tea. I’ve been searching on Steepster for a good lemon tea, and there aren’t a lot to pick from.

So while I was in the mall replacing my broken glasses, I stopped into Teavana to try this blend. I had seen it online, and I thought it didn’t really sound like what I needed. It’s still definitely not what I want wanted, however it does have a pleasant citrus taste that almost satisfies me.

This tea is fruity, but it’s not too sweet by any means. I actually like the idea of the blend. However, the hibiscus doesn’t please me, as it covers the tea base, which is otherwise quite pleasant. There is definitely tea in this blend as well, which I really appreciate. I taste the citrus, which is mostly orange, but I do taste the lemon in this tea as well, so some of my needs were met.

There is a strange heavy aftertaste to this blend. I don’t know what this taste is, but it’s strange.

I also wish I had not started my morning with this tea. It just has an afternoon flavor profile.

I was going to rate this tea like a 65-70 rating. But then I tried to brew a second steeping. While I was stirring the sugar into the tea (I had been drinking it without sugar, but I wanted to try it both ways before I wrote a tasting note), I spilt the leaves. I was upset, because it meant I wouldn’t even be able to try to steep the leaves a third time. However, it’s not a problem, because my second pot of tea is really weak. I wouldn’t recommend brewing this tea a second time. This dropped my rating a great deal, as this is an expensive black tea (10$ for 2 ounces). I will not be buying this again, as not being able to get a second steeping is pretty much super disappointing for a tea at this price.

I’ll drink the rest of the 2 ounces I have, but I won’t be purchasing this again. It’s not bad by any means, in fact, I kind of like the taste, but the tea itself is just disappointing.

In fact, I dumped the rest of the pot. I figured life was too short to drink slightly fruit flavored water when I wanted tea. I brewed Teavana’s Golden Yunnan Pu-erh instead, and I can’t wait to have a cup of real tea.