Mulled Wine

I got a lovely package of French tea samplers from Dustin today! Thank you so much, Dustin! (I think I’ll do a “French Friday” until I’ve sampled through them!) This was also included, so I’m brewing it up as my nightly herbal today! Sara’s Happy Hibiscus Rescue Habitat is always ready to re-home teas like this!

Steeps a lovely deep red. Smells of spices, particularly cinnamon, with some citrus and floral tones. It’s a nice spiced hibiscus tea; thick and filling mouthfeel, tart and tangy fruity note, with a strong orange flavor filling out mid-sip, followed by some lingering warming spices at the end of the sip, most notably a sweet cinnamon note and some clove.

I think I prefer T2’s Mulled Wine Magic a bit more, likely from the anise that is in that spice blend and is lacking here, but this is perfectly servicable for this type of tea.

Thanks, Dustin!

Cold Brew Sipdown (1316)!

This was a free sample that Arthur kindly included with my last order – one of the teas from this just past holiday season. I’ll be honest, I did consider ordering this in my last order but I ultimately passed on it because it sounded very similar to a bunch of other herbal Mulled Wine type of teas that I’ve had in the past…

It’s not bad, and I did enjoy it as I was sipping through my cold brew. The hibiscus is very strong and sharp, with a very high front sip tartness. If it’s this intense as a cold brew I can’t help but shudder a little to think how bold that hibiscus note would be steeped up hot! I don’t mind hibiscus though, especially cold, and so this was refreshing! The spices are a bit “pickle-y” to me – just one of those weird things that happens when you happen to strike the right (or, uh, wrong) combination of spices just precisely enough. Lots of cinnamon and allspice – I wish more teas used allspice.

Happy to have tried it and appreciative of the sample – but wouldn’t revisit this one again. Nothing stands out about it to me, but it’s overall a good cuppa.

I am not the person to be reviewing this tea! The hib is in effect! I smells just like mulled wine, minus the alcohol. It steeps up a very deep purple red. There is a some fruit at the start of the sip, orange flavors, then there is a dive into the metallic tartness at the back of the sip and as the tartness fades the spices kick in in the finish, clove dominating. If I drink it too quickly an alkaline flavor starts to build up in the finish. I think if the hib were dialed back to half strength I’d be into it. I get why the hib is there to create a mulled wine flavor and it really does remind me of mulled wine, I just have a hard time getting into the tartness of hibiscus.
I added some sugar, one of the three ways I can deal with hib (moderation, cold steeped or sweetened) and it really changed the cup for me. The sharp edge of the tartness is gone, but the alkaline taste in the finish is stronger. It also better resembles the sweet mulled wine I’m familiar with. I think this blend is well done and would be loved by someone with an appreciation of hibiscus.