Pommier

I think this tea was very recently blended, because when I opened the pouch, I could smell the alcohol. The alcohol is so strong that I thought that it might have been a rum flavored tisane until after I tasted it, and could taste no alcohol essence. Just tasting apple, maple, rooibos and honeybush!

I really like this combination. I prefer honeybush/rooibos blends to strictly rooibos blends because I like the way the two work together. I can taste the honey-esque tones of the honeybush without tasting that funky sweetness from the rooibos. There is also a slight nut/wood like note but not overwhelming.

The apple and maple also work well together… very autumn-ish! Yum!

So I finally cracked into my HUGE Lupicia sampler. I needed to sleep after night float and decided to open a yellow-orange packet. Pommier it was. It smells… very strong. Almost like celery (and I absolutely hate celery). Some liquor-esque smell going on too.

Anyhow, I brewed up this rooibos. It is stinky! I decided to look up the tasting notes before I took a sip. Maple syrup, apple, honeybush, and rooibos? Strange combination. I would have expected it to have a different flavor and scent. I could detect apple in the aftertaste, but that was it. Not my favorite for sure.

First impression as I inhale the dry leaves: kimyou. This is going to be weird.

I think I can smell the maple in the dry blend. But once brewed, phew! This tea is stinky! :P

I’m pretty sure I’m not going to enjoy this one. I have to make myself try it and not just immediately dump it out. But I’m not holding out hope.

The verdict: it doesn’t taste quite as bad as it smells. I definitely taste apple as soon as it hits my tongue. But the aftertaste is strong, just like the aroma. It’s a very heavy, spice-laden tea.

Overall, it’s gross red rooibos & I’m not a fan. Time to brew something else!

Turns out the shop has put the wrong labels on my teas hence have to update this note. I had the real Pommier tea today and it was delicious. There is a subtle rooibus undertone and the apple part is very strong and fragrant. Good with milk or without. Makes a perfect night time tea since rooibus has no caffeine.

I enjoyed this one! Lately, I’ve been steeping rooibos and honeybush teas for shorter times (about three minutes or so), and it seems to help make them less medicinal. There’s still some wood-y taste here from the rooibos, but it’s pretty mild. I can smell a sugary note of maple in the aroma, and the apple comes through when I sip. It seems like Lupicia does well with their rooibos/honeybush blends, compared to some others I’ve tried… I still enjoy their flavored green and black teas more, but I’d say the rooibos and honeybush ones are worth trying, for caffeine-free options. (They probably won’t convert anyone who doesn’t like rooibos, though! I still have to be in the right mood to drink them.)

I feel a little eh about this one. It is very apple tasting and there is a little something else that I’m guessing is the maple, but I am really disliking the rooibos flavor. It has that drying effect in the aftertaste. I think it is a little better sweetened, but it’s not something that I’m getting excited about.

Pommier was an interesting tea. I feel very similar about it as I did Lupicia’s muscat. Ponies is a very red tea, courtesy of the vibrant rooibos base and apple additives. It brews a reddish brown and smells a lot like apples. I won’t go so far as to say it was a bad tea, but rather it didn’t suit my personal tastes. I struggle with rooibos teas and this was no game-changer for me.

I was very pleasantly surprised by this tea! I’ve previously tried a different rooibos tea that I didn’t like before, and I thought maybe I just didn’t like that type of tea until I tried this one. The apple is actually very prominent in taste and fragrance—delicious! I liked drinking this cold after steeping it in boiling water; it’s very refreshing and nice to have on a hot summer night.