Winter Fire

Just what I needed this morning to wake and warm me up at the same time. :-)

I’m… not sure what to think of this one. I don’t know if it’s the guayusa I don’t like or the peppers. This is the first guayusa tea I’ve ever tried, so I really have no point of reference for this. I get mostly an herbal-y kind of flavor, sort of like mate and rooibos and… rosemary?… all combined together. The peppers have QUITE a kick to them, which I’m also not too fond of (the hubby hypothesized that this might have been caused by an accidental oversteepage, which we were a little guilty of). Sweetening it only compounded this problem. We tried adding a little half and half, and initially it was a better, but it didn’t last long. I think I just don’t like it, to be quite honest. I’ve tried it all the ways I can think of, and I can’t make myself drink an entire cup. Maybe guayusa tea is just not for me… which is why I’m not going to rate this one.

I got this as a sample from Shelley_Lorraine! Thanks for sharing! I just realized that this will be my first guyusa!

The first few sips bring the word FINAALLYYYYYYYYY to my mind! This is spicey! Like really spicy, not just spicy but really only has a hint of spice to it. This has kick and I like it, but it’s not so intense I can’t drink it. I can pick out some cinnamon and the burn lingers for a minute or so. I’m getting over (I hope) being sick right now and even tho I can’t taste all the flavors, this tea is perfect! I would love to find a chocolate tea with this level of heat!

Sadly tho, I’m learning the hard way that I shouldn’t drink guyusa until I have weaned the baby. The child hasn’t slept all day and won’t go to bed. It’s going to be a long night!

You know, I read the reviews on here and I thought “yum, a spicy tea; I can take it.”

That was wrong. This is incredibly hot, and I’m afraid I can’t finish a glass of it due to the intense burning it induces in the back of my throat. I love guayusa blends and I bet this is delicious, but I just can’t get past the initial pain. Proceed with caution if your spice tolerance is low!

Sipdown 132/395

I’m slightly upping my rating from 47 because the spice isn’t overwhelming me as much this time around. It’s still spicy as hell, but not overpoweringly so. I’m not sure if it’s an age thing or maybe because I was more wary of it this time and brewed it for only 3 minutes, but it’s definitely bearable, and in this freezing cold weather maybe just what I need. I have to leave for work soon and I’m not looking forward to it. Night time shifts in winter tend to be less than fun. At least the guayasa should keep me awake!

This is the last sample I’ve got left from the EU TTB. I picked it out in late summer and put it to one side, thinking I’d save it for an appropriate day. Since I’m drinking wake up-warm up teas this week, I figured the time had finally come! I used the recommended 1.5 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it about 5 minutes in boiling water while I walked to the vending machine and back (popcorn, yo!) The dry leaf made me sneeze when I sniffed it (that’ll teach me), but I was struck by how much like Christmas it smells. I guess that’s the cinnamon, rather than me actually feeling festive, but who knows?

To taste, this is probably the perfect spicy tea. The initial sip is beautifully cinnamony and a little sweet, then the cayenne and chili step in and really take things up a level. There is a burn at the back of my throat, but it’s the best kind. It lingers a little, which is nice given my current on-off relationship with a cold, currently manifesting as a scratchy throat. It’s warming and delicious, sweet to begin with, then mostly savoury, with the earthiness of the guayusa underlying. It has a serious spicy kick, for sure, but it’s not overwhelming – what strikes me most is how drinkable this one is, and how well balanced the flavours. Will there ever be a spicy tea as perfect? Some days I really miss Butiki.

This was one of the teas Liquid Proust donated to the Herbal and Decaf TTB. Thank you!

The beginning of the sip mostly tasted like grassy Gyayusa, which I’m pretty ambivalent towards. I was almost disappointed, when suddenly the spiciness started to creep up in my mouth it built for a few seconds, then died down again. It was a nice mix of cinnamon and red pepper, not too hot (I’m sensitive to spicy things), but definitely a nice spicy kick. I would probably keep building as you drank the cup until your mouth was burning, but I just took a few sips and gave the rest to my husband, who loves spicy things. If it were still around, I would recommend this to someone who wanted a spicy tea, but I think I would actually prefer a different base for this.

Butii’s fruity guayusa was s good that I decided to try this out… interesting experience, but I prefer the sweeter tasting guayusa to this spicy version- I am sure others would really enjoy it though.

OMG. Ok, so I might have overleafed this a little (I believe the thought process was “caffeine… moar caffeine”) which in retrospect, might not have been the best idea. This is HOT. Like, hot pepper and cinnamon spicy. Mmmmm. :) I added some honey and I’m drinking it with a glass of cold water beside me, lol. I think I’m coming down with a cold and I’m not really sure whether this is helpful – it’s clearing out the sinuses, but also burning my throat a little. Either way, pleased to have this in my cupboard since it’s totally unlike any other tea I own. :)

Holy crap, that is super duper spicy – I am a fan of spicy food. That said, I am not sure I like my tea QUITE this spicy, although kudos for such a uniquely intense tea being available. I actually think I would be more likely to use this in cooking, to perhaps give some kick to anything that would normally require water. Other than that, I find it too spicy to really taste anything else. I think if it were a hair less spicy, other flavors could come through and I could really appreciate this.