Cherry Joy Black Tea

Thanks to CHAroma for a sample of this tea :)

So… I’m still feeling queasy from Chocolate Malt and S’mores Genmaicha, so hopefully this goes down ok. I didn’t really get any aroma from the leaves (this has been sitting in a baggie for a while), nor the brewed cup, but flavour-wise it’s definitely better. I got a nice-sized cherry in my infuser, and consequently (unless it’s flavouring I’m tasting), I’m tasting a wonderful sour cherry flavour! Really quite tasty, actually. I think I’m just getting hints of creaminess from the coconut, and the chocolate isn’t particularly noteworthy, but this is actually pretty tasty, and I imagine that when it was freshly blended, it would have been quite the treat! As is, I’m enjoying it. The black base is also fairly nondescript but enjoyable, and not astringent. Overall, this is certainly the best cherry black I’ve had (no floral – YAY!), and I kind of wish I had more of this!

Thanks, CHAroma!

ETA: Re-steep was nothing to speak of, but I stole the cherry from the infuser and it was amazing, and now I’m contemplating a custom sour cherry Butiki blend…. (maybe 2014 bday present?)

My Ovation Teas order arrived today! Yay! I wrote my review on the experience of shopping with Ovation here: http://steepster.com/places/2941-ovation-teas-online-federal-way-washington?visit=1898

This is really tasty. The black tea is a blend of Assam and Ceylon so it has a deliciously rich character. The cherry flavor is not as strong when the tea is hot, but, as the tea cools slightly the cherry flavor emerges somewhat. The coconut is the strongest note of the cup (other than that of the tea!) and the almond is subtle but distinguishable.

Yummy!

There is no cherry joy in my cherry joy….it’s a coconut joy with a bit of fruit in the background which is likely cherry but might not be :) I do like the base tea of this one, though I am not a fan of coconut. If you DO like coconut and cherry this is the tea for you, emphasis on the coconut :) still happy to have tried this one as its another tea off my list! Thank you CHAroma!

How funny that LiberTEAS and I both ordered this tea at the same time, hahaha! This wasn’t planned, I swear. I guess there was just something alluring about it we couldn’t resist. :)

The dry leaves smell exactly like the description. I can discern all three ingredients individually: cherries, coconut, and almond. The steeping instructions recommend 5 to 6 minutes, which is a little longer than I usually steep my black teas (with the exception of Chai). But I figured since this is my first experience with this tea, I’ll follow the instructions and then play around with it later.

Boy, am I glad I did too! At first, the brewed tea didn’t smell anything like the dry blend. All I could get out of the aroma was black tea…how strange. But then as I let the tea cool to a drinkable temperature, the aroma shifted back and all three flavorings made themselves known. This smells scrumptious!

First sip, it is largely coconut, as LiberTEAS mentioned. But I am getting almond next. It’s a subtle, slightly sweet almond flavor. It actually reminds me of Almond Joys!! Maybe that’s where the name came from? Cherry Joy, hmmm, that didn’t occur to me before I bought it. Anyway, the cherry is the lightest flavor of the three. You have to let the flavors sift in your mouth and then wend your way through them to get to the cherry. I do wish the cherry were a bit stronger, but this tea is still remarkably delicious! Much more dessert-like than I was anticipating.

The tail end of the sip has an inclination to go slightly bitter. Mind you, I’m very sensitive to bitterness, so this probably wouldn’t be noticeable to other people. I overcorrected by adding too much milk, and now it’s kind of squashed the other flavors. But with a pinch of Truvia, the flavors came back out. Definitely don’t be heavy handed with the cream in this tea! It really overwhelms the flavorings. By the second infusion, the coconut is worn out and the cherry becomes the most prominent flavor. The coconut is still there, but it’s more in the background and allows the cherry its turn to shine in the spotlight.

Overall, I’m really quite pleased with this tea. The more I drink it, the more I love it! It’s also going to be a great treat when I’m craving candy or sweets. Who knew this was a dessert tea? I’ll probably keep drinking it as a breakfast tea in the morning anyway. ;)

I wasn’t expecting to fall head over heels for this tea, but I am in love with this flavor combination!! Next time I’m going to go for the 4 ounces instead of 2. I might even have to keep this around all the time.