Le Thé Merveilleux

Back to the Palais des Thes with some dread. Today it’s Le The Merveilleux, which boldly promises to be “green tea with sweet notes of caramelized almonds and pistachio bursting with flavours and emotions.”

Who’s bursting with emotions? The green tea? The pistachios? Or me for having to endure another cup of this watery doom?

First off, it smells quite nice, like those dried fruit/nut shops you can find in the city. A lot of aromas going on at once, but the dominant one is almond. Not “caramelized,” just marzipan-type sweet almond.

Like most of the other teas from this brand, it’s watery. It tastes like a third steep every time. Today, I brewed it with 100ml of water for an extra minute beyond recommendations and I’m still getting very little flavour. It tastes like a generic tisane with some hints of marzipan and cinnamon. I get no hint of the green tea nor pistachio whatsoever.

For a similar flavour profile that actually tastes of something, try Roasted Almond by Clipper Ship. It’s caffeine free but is exceedingly more pleasant than this flavourless mess at less than half the price.

The English name on this is “Tea of Wonder.” I Wonder how this Tea company is still in business. Perhaps their market is people who really don’t like tea, rather like Starbucks is for people who really don’t like coffee.

Another vacation cuppa.

This one hit the spot more than I expected it to. Medium bodied with a brightness to the cup, but also a mix of wonderfully sweet and rich flavours. Candied almonds, nougat, and a hint of cinnamon. definitely had a slight wintery feel to it from those flavours, but not so much that I felt out of place enjoying my mug of it in the middle of the sweltering hot Saskatchewan heat wave.

Palais Des Thes Advent Calendar Day 21:
This one sounded really good pistachio and almond yum. The dry sachet however smelled very strong like almond extract or something.
Brewed up it’s a very pale colored tea and tastes quite light unlike the dry sachets smell. It’s sweet and tastes like marzipan. A quite subtle tea overall. I think it could be a little stronger in flavoring and I can’t taste the green tea at all. Pleasant to sip on though and I wouldn’t mind drinking this again. I don’t think it’s one I’d buy considering the price and how it fell a bit thin.

Palais des Thés Advent Calendar – Day 21 (from November backlog)

The Marvelous Tea! Sorry, the name of this just cracks me up… It also claims to be “bursting with flavours and emotions” which is equally hilarious. Dry scent is strong marzipan and nuts with cinnamon.

The flavor is very cinnamon-forward, which is surprising given the wrapper doesn’t mention cinnamon at all. Strong, sweet cinnamon and marzipan are the predominant notes here. I think there’s a hint of apple as well? It’s reminding me very much of amaretti cookies, which isn’t a bad thing. I don’t taste the base at all, in fact if you told me this was a black tea I would probably believe you (aside from the color).

It’s not unpleasant, but I’ve had my fill over the years of marzipan or almond extract-flavored teas. The cinnamon does add a bit of interest, but it’s still too sweet and too marzipan-y for me to consider having in my cupboard. But very festive, I suppose! :)