Corn Brulee Bar

Of all the teas in this box, this is the one I was most intrigued by. It’s just such a unique idea and I pictured it being really buttery, maybe a little roasty and just deliciously starchy and corn flavoured.

Sadly, I think this is the most disappointed I’ve been by any of the Almost Blends. It was very, very strange as a tea and not in the way that gives me that pleasant kind of “buzzing” feeling of obsessive curiosity and intrigue in the back of my head.

Firstly, the flavour was very weak and watery. Though it did build and accumulate on the palate over the coarse of a full mug I just thought it was quite lacking overall. The corn note was better in aroma; kind of like a slightly toasted corn vibe. Steeped it was like a mix between some type of corn based cereal and fresh, uncooked sweet corn. There was also a flavouring that I’m assuming was either white chocolate or meant to convey the feeling of white chocolate, and because the corn note that was present was so “raw” and vegetal tasting there was an unpleasant disconnect by this sugary cream flavour it was coupled with. Like someone drizzling white chocolate syrup over a can of corn niblets, but watery.

Yeah… I appreciate the swing with the flavour innovation, but it’s a no from me.

This tea is from the February ‘23 subscription. My feelings about this subscription are starting to be colored by having not gotten the January teas. Customer service didn’t help me with looking up if it had been sent or not, just referred me to tracking notification emails I never got. It makes me wonder if customer service has been farmed out to a third party who doesn’t have access to account info, just generic canned answers.

Anyways… it looks like this months teas are based off a chocolatier’s creations. The tea smelled lightly of caramel and strongly of sugary cereal, the kind that coats the roof of your mouth with a waxy substance. I’m glad to see it’s a green rooibos base. These subscriptions seem to be heavy on the rooibos. There is a light oil sheen on the surface of my tea. There wasn’t much there on the first sip. It was mostly in the finish that I got any caramel corn cereal hints. Sipping further gives me hints of banana, something I’ve never associated with corn before! The flavors are light and puzzling, but I feel like the whole thing is well balanced for being light and puzzling. It is very corn cereal like, which is strange for a tea. If I start sipping with more frequency there is almost a soapy taste to this cup on the sides of my tongue. I’m still unsure how to feel about this cup, but this is for sure a tea I would not order.