Rooibos Earl Grey

I got this as a sample from my bday gift box a friend got me from Adagio. However, it was labeled rooibos caramel which I was super excited to try but on the back was listed the EG ingredients. Super yummy though I am disappointed.

Received a sample from Devon and somehow… I am not a fan (again!). I like EG, I don’t mind rooibos.

It tasted pretty much citrusy, but it was not bergamot. Rather lemon-orange. Rooibos was very, very woody, almost overpowering the citruses. Also some other notes, some say medicinal, decayed wood… and I am not sure. But it was a bit off.

Also, it does not last long as a aftertaste. I know I am somehow biased drinking EG by Birchall (which has got black tea base); but the flavour there lasts much longer. This was like a sip, wait five seconds, and it’s gone.

Very, very forgettable tea.

Not sure if it’s just me or whether this is what the combination of rooibos and Earl grey is supposed to taste like, but I just couldn’t get into this tea. The aromatics were certainly inviting. Potent aromas of cinnamon bark, lemon peel, and orange from the leaf. I steeped this in a tea bag as Rooibos isn’t easy to strain well. The brewed tea was far from enjoyable. It tasted medicinal with a strong star anise like flavor accompanied by notes of clove, root beer, and menthol. All flavors which I otherwise enjoy but here it just tasted weird. I may need to try this with a little milk and sweetener as it’s just not doing it for me on it’s own.

The first time I had this, something about it tasted a little like lunch meat to me? Probably just my imagination. I didn’t notice it on future cups. The overall flavor is quite mild. You get the bergamot a little. The rooibos isn’t overly distracting. Rooibos EG will never match regular, but this isn’t one of the better rooibos EGs I’ve had. It tasted best with milk at room temperature.

Ok, just a quickie review of this.

This is… not good. Like, really not good. I love rooibos and I love EG, but this tastes nothing like either. For starters, the rooibos base is less of that wood flavor I enjoy and more… um moss? Lichen? Whatever it is it’s not a fresh wood taste, it tastes like wood that’s been allowed to decay for a while. And the Earl Grey is drowned out by the rooibos here. If there’s any bergamot present, I can’t taste it. Basically, to make this drinkable I drowned it in sweetener. Now it just tastes like straight Splenda, so I guess I don’t have to dump it.

Just… bad. Probably the worst EG I’ve tried yet. Sorry, Adagio.

This is growing on me, still have yet to do a side by side comparison with Tea Guys (maybe I will tomorrow) but the lack of black tea with the heavy bergamot is actually quite nice. It’s got a “dry” consistency but it doesn’t leave my mouth feeling dry. I can’t taste the rooibos at all – for better or for worse.

This is one of my favorite Earl Greys. I really love the character that the rooibos tea adds to it.

Sipdown!

I’m going to miss this one. I’ll have to pick up more next time I order from Adagio. I’m not always a fan of Rooibos teas, but somehow I love the way it works with this floral bergamot. It’s a really unusual flavor, so I don’t know if many people would like it, but I really do.

Got this as a sample from Adagio! I like it a lot- I gave up black and green teas for religious reasons, and I’ve missed Earl Grey soooo much- but this is a very good herbal version of it! Very earthy, refreshing, almost a hint of mint- I really love this!

Next time though, I’ll use more tea seeing as 1 tsp was a little too weak for me- and maybe sugar cubes for this one rather than rock sugar.

—loose leaf w/ infuser
—approx. 1 tsp rock sugar

Another Herbal TTB…
The aroma of the dry leaf was heavily bergamot’ed, but the flavor was quite smooth.