Palais des Thés Advent Calendar – Day 1 (from November backlog)
Alright, so I’ve decided I should really probably at least try following the company’s steeping instructions for teas, which is something I rarely do. Generally for a green tea like this one, I would only steep it for 3 minutes. However, I’m increasing it to 4 because that’s what the sachet recommends. So here we go!
The green maté dominates the flavor here for me. Which isn’t a bad thing necessarily, as it’s a flavor I enjoy and it does come off as very “spa” or “detox” like. It has a mellow and sweet, slightly earthy herbaceous flavor with perhaps a hint of smokiness. I don’t think I taste green tea here at all. I will admit, I’m not sure I know what either acai or moringa taste like, so I couldn’t tell you if I find them in this cup. I do get passionfruit, but it’s unusual in the fact that it’s quite a soft and sweet passionfruit flavor versus a more zingy note, which is what I generally expect from it.
This is a pleasant enough blend for the afternoon. I feel like if there had been just a little more pop from the passionfruit, it would have improved this a lot. Perhaps even a hint of citrus to add some brightness, grapefruit would be lovely. Anyway, as-is it’s good but not great.
Flavors: Dry Grass, Herbaceous, Mineral, Passion Fruit, Smoke, Sweet, Tropical