Guanabana

I’ve wanted to try this one for a while, so when I ordered my filter bags this time around, I snagged a sample.

This is different, but decent. I thought with the name there would be a blend of banana and guava, but I don’t see either listed on the ingredients. What gives? I do taste strawberry and a tropical punch flavor (I wouldn’t call it pineapple, although that is listed as an ingredient). There’s a little bit of banana flavor, but it tastes more artificial than legit. Since I’m not a big fan of “real” banana, but love the artificial flavor, this isn’t a big deal for me. However it could be a deal-breaker for others.

I’m not sure if I would make a special “trip” to Adagio to buy this, but I would purchase it if ordering other things.

P.S. The name cracks me up. It reminds me of the “I’m a Banana” internet video that Daniel Tosh helped make famous on Tosh.0. He did a sketch called “Knife or Banana: Which would you choose?”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46SLZXH5mY4

The original (random) video is here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LH5ay10RTGY

(“I’m a banana, I’m a banana, I’m a banana, LOOK AT ME MOVE!”)

Guanabana! ♥ Again, I haven’t ordered this tea in 2 years, and it looks like another blend Adagio has stepped up a bit. Last I saw it, the Ceylon leaf was lower quality, and there were much fewer sunflower petals. Plus, I don’t remember there being actual chunks of dried guanabana in it at all. But I could be remembering that wrong.

This was one of my absolute favorite teas for a long time. I used to make it for friends all the time in the summer of 2009. Tasting it again now, I still feel very strongly about it. It’s fruity in a serious way, but it also has a sort of toasted sugar taste and scent, like someone caramelizing it in a pan. But mostly, since I’ve still never tasted real guanabana, I compare it to starfruit. It has that sort of tart floral/citrusness that really appeals to me.

Happy to have this in the cupboard again. Might go for a 4oz again once I get low.

First, thanks to MadelineAlyce for this swap! Second, thanks to Guanabana tea for reviving my faith in Adagio. Adagio was the instigator of my tea love/obsession. Somehow this of love affair has been forgotten and replaced by a variety of tea companies, but I welcome Adagio back with open arms!!!

Guanabana is a very common flavor here in Ecuador. We have it daily in juice, ice cream, and even as plain fruit. The taste of the fruit is similar to leechy, which I also really enjoy. That being said, this tea had me really curios. It could be delicious or disaster, I had my fingers crossed for delicious.

The smell of the tea was surprisingly delicate for a black tea. There was a light fruitiness to it accompanied by a timid black tea base, which is odd considering how harsh Adagio’s flavored blacks can be. The best part is that the smell actually did remind me of Guanabana!

I brewed the tea, and the brown liquor smelled joyously like Guanabana. It was exactly what I was hoping for. Wow… This tea is really accomplishing all of my expectations! Now for the final and most important challenge… taste!

First sip, unsweetened, and… Yum! Wait, this is a black fruity flavored tea from Adagio… and I like it unsweetened!?!? The second sip proved it. This tea is, so far, as perfect as a fruity flavored black tea has been for me. Delicious, smooth with a sweet aftertaste. The flavor stands out and doesn’t get in the way of the tea experience as a whole. It doesn’t need any sweetener to make itself be noticed or fully appreciated. I imagine it is just as tasty sweetened, perhaps even more. Either way, this was delicious. The aftertaste was so smooth and sweet that I could have easily compared it to an oolong. Which, mind you, are a favorite of mine.

I should have imagined this was a good idea, considering guanabana tastes so much like leechy, and leechy is a natural great flavor for tea. Way to go Guanabana! More people should consider mixing you with tea! Can’t wait until I am able to place an order from Adagio again! (Arg… living in Ecuador makes it REALLY hard to order stuff!)

Suzi logged this yesterday and reminded me that I still had some left in my sample tin. I bought it primarily because of the odd name. Never heard of this fruit before, but if I ever get to South America (doubtful, considering my fear of travelling) I’ll have to make sure to try and taste it.

It’s sweet and fruity and tastes tropical. If I knew what the fruit really tastes like ‘au naturel’ my review of it might be difference, but as it is I’m thinking it’s a fruit I might like. So this is my morning cup on this grey and dismal looking thursday. I understand the majority of you lot have a holiday today, so I’m guessing a lot of people won’t be around. Wow… bad day for me to get addicted to the live stream, but there you are. My life in a nutshell.

So honestly? Guanabana tastes exactly like what it sounds like – the marriage of guava and banana. It’s a tropical, fruity black tea. It’s also rather sensitive. When I steeped the leaves for five minutes, the tea had a nice balance and pleasant flavor. When I steeped the leaves closer to ten minutes (webcomics can be so distracting) this cloying musky note that I associate with guavas overwhelmed the brew.

Trivia fact: “Guanabana” is also known by the name “soursop,” but there’s nothing sour in the flavor so I’m betting that’s why Adagio went the other route.

When steeped for the proper amount of time, I could taste the creamy banana-like notes blended with a bright pineapple – sweet and slightly tart – and a dab of that guava flavor. (Y’know what sucks? I’m trying to think of words to describe the flavor of guava but I’m coming up with nothing besides ‘sweet’ ‘tropical’ and ‘musky.’ Help?)

It’s quite lovely, but finicky, which is a problem for me. I am a very careless brewer.

Having a cup of this one this morning to mix it up a little. I’ve had a sample pack of this for awhile, but not much has been taken out so I don’t think I liked it very much. I think that with the name I was hoping for some type of banana flavor, but there’s none of that. (Should have read the ingredients, haha!) The flavor is pretty bland. I taste a little maltiness and a little fruit, but you can’t really pick out the individual strawberry or pineapple flavors. There is a light citrus finish that reminds me of the way a fresh orange tastes. This is just a very subdued tea. Adding sweetener helps to bring out more of a candy-like fruit flavor, but it’s still very light. I guess I don’t love this tea because nothing really stands out about the black tea base, and the sweetness/almost artificiality of the fruit flavor masks it. For me, this would be an ok afternoon tea; kind of a little sweet pick-me-up in the afternoon.

-Dry blend has medium black tea leaves with yellow petals.
-Dry leaves smell fruity. Tea liquor aroma is of sweet strawberries and pineapple.
-Tea liquor is a cloudy dark brown color.
-Candy fruit flavor with a light citrus finish.
-Best with milk and sweetener.
-Good tea. Lightly flavored. Sugary fruit taste.

Tea #23 from Traveling Tea Box C

The dry leaf here smells really really funky. And not in a good way. Like a rotten fruit in the sun kind of way.

But surprisingly it actually makes a pretty awesome cold steep. I was worried when I cracked open the thermos I was steeping in and got a whiff of the wet leaf again, but the tea itself doesn’t really have that same pungent aroma. I definitely get strawberry off it. And some caramelized sugar type notes. It kind of reminds me of lychee with more citrus.

I don’t think I’d like this at all as a hot cup, but I’m actually really enjoying this iced.

Tea #17 from the traveling tea box.

I had no idea going into this what a guanabana was, so google to the rescue! It is a tropical fruit that isn’t imported to the US fresh because it can’t be picked green and doesn’t travel well when ripe. You learn something new every day.

Honestly, I almost skipped this one just based on the smell, I think it smells terrible. After drinking it I was left wishing I had skipped it, it tastes just like it smells. I’m not even sure how to describe the flavor, it reminds me of fruit that has gone bad. It’s very sweet tasting, but just doesn’t taste quite right to me.

I don’t normally dump my tea out, but this one just had to go. I wonder if I would feel differently about this tea if I knew what a guanabana was suppose to taste like?

Backlogging
Thanks to KallieBoo for this tea in our mystery swap!
However, this tea is not for me, I found it very tasteless and just plain bland. Sorry tea

I got this as a sample as part of my haul. Because of yesterday’s tea cup calamity I’m drinking this from my tumbler (which I still love!); it just doesn’t cool as quickly. I should be working on my English paper! Maybe after this….
This tea smells very sweet. It seems to be the basic base of the lemon soliel blend as well. I still haven’t had one of these fruit so I’m just going off of taste alone instead of a comparison.
This is actually quite good! I was expecting something different from the smell, but this is very sweet. It has a kind of over-ripe banana undertone, but it would probably be less pronounced if served cold. Pretty surprising and nice!