I first tried this a few days before Christmas, when I wandered into a Teavana while doing some last minute shopping. I sampled it iced, blended with Blueberry Bliss (rooibos) and “about a cup of rock sugar”, according to the girl helping me.
Was it sweet? Absolutely. But I did really like the taste, and figured I’d make it at home with (much!) less sugar/sweetener. It and the Blueberry Bliss also both happened to be 30% off, so I asked for 50g of each, although I ended up with a bit more than that. Being my first time in a Teavana and not wise to their tactics, I said “sure!” when they overpoured my tea and asked if that was okay. I ended up with 58g of the Pineapple Kona Pop and 66g of Blueberry Bliss. Fine, whatever, no big deal – it was on sale at least!
Onto the tea itself – Pineapple Kona Pop is a gorgeous smelling herbal. Just opening the tin to look at it and smell it makes me happy. It is so colorful and the sweet pineapple fragrance almost makes me forget we have a gazillion inches of snow on the ground outside.
Brewed hot, it retains the pineapple taste, and is mild but very drinkable, especially with a tiny spoonful of honey. It is nice iced as well, although I think cold it really shines best when blended with other teas, such as the Blueberry Bliss (I tried these two iced on Christmas Eve and it was so nice, even without the truckload of rock sugar!). I think on its own it would be a nice light, refreshing drink for the summer – especially with some fruit thrown in.
I really do like this. Is it my favourite? Nah. But I will enjoy it as a little escape to pineapple paradise on chilly days, and as an amazing iced beverage if winter ever ends. I purchased some more during the 75% off Boxing Day sale, so I will have fun trying this out with other teas in the months to come!
