Tea #11 from the traveling tea box.
I love star anise, not only is it one cool looking spice, it always makes my house smell great. Chocolate, coconut, and star anise sounded like a wonderful combination of flavors and it should have been a great tea. My problem with this tea is the same problem I have with most chocolate teas, I really dislike the artificial flavoring. It just leaves a horrible aftertaste in my mouth and masks the natural flavors that should really stand out.
I had a huge chunk of star anise in the dry leaf that I scooped out and it smelled great while steeping, but hardly came across in the final brew because it was masked by the chocolate. Not only was this surprising, since star anise is very strongly flavored, but it was disappointing. I’m also not sure that I can taste the coconut.
This isn’t something that I would order myself, but it was great to try, if only to eliminate another tea on my hunt for the perfect chocolate tea.
Soon eh? Sounds exciting!
I adore that David’s lets you buy such small amounts—I often go in and get maybe 1 1/2 ounces in total and they really don’t pressure you to buy more (unlike some stores haha). It’s great to be able to sample absolutely everything.