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“Didn’t know what I wanted on this grump-tastic day. This came in the mail so I figured, sure, why the heck not. 1.8g in this tea bag. ROT’s bag size doesn’t thrilled me. But whatever. It smells...” Read full tasting note
“I have to be honest, I went in to the tasting of this tea with a bad attitude. I am not a big fan of RoT. Generally speaking, I find the bag size is too small and the price tag is too high. Also...” Read full tasting note
“Last two bags!! Yay for decupboarding! And on a side note: there was no tea at conference (yet, I’m hopeful about the morning). And my first cup of this today did not last.” Read full tasting note
“This went down the drain. The rooibos was just too strong (and kind of medicinal) in this cup. There was a hint of strawberry but it took a lot of searching to find it. Into the swap box with this...” Read full tasting note
Seductive chocolate married with a hint of strawberry in this amply amorous cup. Rooibos, or red tea, provides the base in which these two flavors mingle.
Rooibos is also known for its super antioxidant powers – sipping this delicious dessert tea together may inspire a long and loving life for you and your sweetheart.
Rooibos, carob, cocoa kernels, natural chocolate flavor, natural strawberry flavor, sweet blackberry leaves, and bourbon vanilla beans
The Republic of Tea is a progressive and socially conscious business recognized for being the leading purveyor of more than 200 premium teas and herbs, ready-to-drink iced teas and more. Founded in 1992, The Republic of Tea sparked a tea revolution in America with the purpose of enriching people’s lives through the experience of premium teas and a Sip by Sip Rather Than Gulp by Gulp lifestyle.
Didn’t know what I wanted on this grump-tastic day. This came in the mail so I figured, sure, why the heck not.
1.8g in this tea bag. ROT’s bag size doesn’t thrilled me. But whatever. It smells good though. Exactly like chocolate covered strawberries. But once it starts brewing, the sour wood smell of rooibos is apparent. Meh. Whatever, we’ll give it a go. Maybe the sourness will blend well with the tart, fresh strawberry smell which I hope translates to taste.
Okay, my 18-year old arthritic and not-so-steady-on-her-feet kitty just traversed a table, two chairs, and a chasm between a chair and the couch to get to me for love so at this point, this could be the worst tea ever and my day has gotten pretty awesome. That was quite a feat for her! (She had to go via such a route because she physically can’t jump up to the couch directly and her stairs up are up to the chair on the other side of the living room).
Well, the good news is, this tea is not horrible. Nowhere near as cool as my kitty, but then what really is? (Nothing. Just in case you were curious. Nothing is.) It tastes pretty sweet but there is a little tart, too. Sort of like fresh strawberries with a dash of strawberry jam. The chocolate comes in mostly on the aftertaste for me but it is distinctively chocolate.. I can taste some ick from the rooibos hiding underneath everything, but eh. It’s not that bad. A little like moldy wood but not as obvious as I feared based on the smell. Easy enough to acknowledge and then attempt to ignore.
I could almost see myself buying this. Of course when I imagine it, most of the scenarios I come up with end with me giving it to my mom and just having a cup every so often when I visit. But still, that’s a lot better than I was expecting. A lot. Hordes. I don’t totally trust it though. I almost feel that I like it so much because it wasn’t disgusting and I was expecting to be disgusted. This tea and GM’s White Licorice tie for the ‘Weird Tea I Thought I’d Hate But Ended Up Liking But Maybe I Just Like It Because I Didn’t Hate It’ tea award. I kind of want to own about 5 servings of this so I can give it a proper taste run.
I have to be honest, I went in to the tasting of this tea with a bad attitude. I am not a big fan of RoT. Generally speaking, I find the bag size is too small and the price tag is too high. Also when I think strawberry and chocolate, I think Neapolitan ice cream. I really don’t care for Neapolitan ice cream. This tea doesn’t stand a chance.
Steeped for 5 minutes. First taste was ok but a bit bland. Added sweetener (which is my usual habit). Sipped again. I have to agree with Bonnie’s review – this isn’t bad. In fact I kind of like it. Read the label and noticed this is rooibos. I tried but I can’t taste rooibos in this at all. It is just a pleasant mix of strawberry and chocolate actually more cocoa, with a hint of vanilla. It tastes natural to me, not fake or candy. It is rich enough to enjoy, yet not overbearing in the cup. This is not something I would drink everyday but it is a pleasant caffeine free calorie free desert drink. Glad I tried it.
Things being as they are, I am now allergic to Rooibos so this goes to the grandsons. However, my daughter got me a tea timer that fits on the lid of their cans…wierd huh…but you don’t lose it that way! So I now have an empty can for it!
If any one asks… tell them its art.
Made a lovely cover for the tin with pretty scrapbook paper, or paint the outside, make a new label, then use it to store another tea!
I thought I could store my small tea spoons in it. Or my Pu-erh knife so my grandsons can’t find it (tempting to play with!).
Oo, great ideas!
After seeing Auggy’s post about this tea, I knew a RoT catalog was on the way. When I got home from work, it was there waiting for me. Yay! I usually do not order anything from RoT, but I do look forward to the tea sample they include with the catalog.
Let me start out by saying that this is the best sample I’ve received from them thus far. OF COURSE it contains Rooibos…I would be shocked if it didn’t. This is what I taste – in order:
-a little zing of strawberry (very nice)
-the oncoming taste of mild chocolate (good)
-ROOIBOS!!! (loud and proud – Ehh…)
I understand that Rooibos is a good filler and that sometimes tea blends need that little extra something (the cowbell – see Steepster Dictionary thread). But this would be so good with a nice black tea base. Why can’t they push the freakin’ Rooibos aside just once and see if their sales don’t improve. The Rooibos takes over the aftertaste with that sawdust/woody/straw-like taste. I like Rooibos…and for some reason I do not taste the negative aspects when I drink it plain. But in blends, it’s there…and obvious.
Rant over. This is a big victory for RoT, but in the tea world, it’s just slightly above average.
Is the catalog the same as the last one or is it a new one? A few days ago I received a second Comfort and Joy. Ohhhh nooo. I do like rooibos, I have a feeling I might enjoy this one.
it’s a new one. the cover is all about this strawberry chocolate tea. i guess they are going for a valentine’s motif.
Can’t say I’m really enjoying this one, unfortunately…
I got this as a sample from RoT in their catalog, and I was kind of excited to try it. Strawberry and chocolate! Where can it go wrong?
Well, for starters, the bag smells a little musty. I really wanted a bright strawberry smell, and it just smells like dusty strawberry mixed with dusty chocolate. So I steeped this bugger up for 7 minutes, and tossed the mini-bag.
Here’s where the problem begins. For some reason, the infusion smells like strawberries and chocolate, mixed with a cilantro-type smell. I loathe cilantro. I’m one of those people that has that gene that makes it taste like disgusting soap. I don’t know how people can like it. Soapy-cilantro-rooibos-strawberry-chocolate. No thanks.
It actually definitely doesn’t taste like cilantro, which is a plus. This is a very light rooibos, with the strawberry and chocolate clearly coming out. The strawberry is more on the forefront of the taste, the chocolate in the aftertaste, but the two blend together. The only problem is that this tastes like cheap chocolate, like the kind you get from CVS for Easter. That kind of musty, goes-white-very-quickly chocolate that kind of doesn’t taste like chocolate, but more like plastic-chocolate. The strawberry isn’t a round and juicy flavor, but an echo of something more akin to strawberry candy. Like those little strawberry hard candies wrapped in a pseudo-strawberry paper and had a semi-liquid filling.
The rooibos base lends an odd tartness to the blend. I definitely think this would have been better with a black tea base. The rooibos isn’t robust enough to support these flavors.
Is it horrific? Nope, but it’s certainly not great either. I’m having trouble finishing my cup. I could imagine other people enjoying this, though.
I thought the same thing about Adagio’s Valentine Tea. I mean come on Strawberry & Chocolate? It was disgusting.
yay im not the only one who thinks cilantro is horrid! the smell of it turns my stomach in knots too :(
I have no idea why I thought this smelled like cilantro! But it was making me so unhappy that I could barely drink the cup. I can sense it in pretty much anything. :(
I could drink a cilantro tea. Mmmm. :)
Well, of my box of cuppa chocolate teas that I got from RoT, this is the one I like the least so far, of the 4 I’ve tried (Still have the velvet one to go). It definitely tastes like chocolate and strawberry, but I’ve never really liked that taste except for an actual chocolate covered strawberry. Strawberry ‘flavour’ just doesn’t taste quite right to me in most places and this is not an exception.
I can see why some people like it and some people hate it though. I wish this wasn’t a rooibos blend because generally I don’t like those very much, though there are exceptions to every rule. This is at least palatable. I think I’ll probably end up giving away the three bags left of this that I have.
Bought this on impulse during a lunchtime grocery store run. Not like I need more tea… went ahead and made a cup when I got home, because why drink one of the 100+ teas I have when I can open a new tin, right? Anyway, it’s yummy and soothing – it tastes and smells more like candy to me then a real fresh strawberry, but that’s ok. I find the scent comforting. It’s sweet enough but not tooth-achingly so, which is nice. The chocolate isn’t strong, in fact it blends seamlessly with the strawberry flavor. This reminds me a bit of a milk chocolate Ritter Sport candy bar w/ strawberry filling that I had recently. Next time I will try it with a splash of milk as suggested. (It would probably be good with almond milk, coconut milk, or even vanilla flavored versions of either.)
Was gonna choose my Yogi Immune Support with echinacea tea this morning, but my fingers grabbed this one instead. I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed it, despite having not been fond of the strawberry flavoring in the past. I agree with some other posters, the amount of tea in the bag leaves a little to be desired. I almost steeped mine with two bags instead of one, but decided against it at the last second.
Anyway, perhaps the fake-tasting strawberry doesn’t bother me so much when I’m sick. The chocolate flavor came through okay, and the rooibos hid in the background most of the time. Enjoyable enough. :)
Side note: I’m surrounded on both sides by snoring cats. XD
I had this last night. Despite the fact that it says caffeine free, it does have chocolate in it, and I think that plus the sugar is what kept me up pretty late last night….though being a terrible night owl it could of been anything.
1st smell: Sweet and strawberryish.
1st taste: Pretty sweet. Not overkill though.
While I’ll be ok finishing off the canister…I am not sure I will get this one again. It wasn’t terrible….but not really inspiring either. I think I agree with another person that posted a review for this tea. They said that they think it would taste better with a black tea base then a rooibos. I have liked most of the rooibos teas I have had, but I don’t know…..who knows maybe it would taste just as uninspiring with a black tea base. I think I am going to try writing to ROT and see what they think. Some companies appreciate that kind of thing…others don’t.
I’m not thrilled w/ their weight, but I am surprised at the strength of them (I’ve only tried two though) considering the weight.
The moldy wood part is what turns me off!
I’d like to see you get the trophies get engraved for that award. Maybe ones with a little bowling figure on top or something equally appropriate.
At least it sounds better than Comfort and Joy. A few weeks ago I thought cats only lived to ten. Ahhh, silly kitty (4.5yrs) is pawing me at the moment because she wants to play (except for the fact she doesn’t realize the claws on her paw actually hurt). I thought they only lived till ten cause she’s been in surgery twice already =(
@Fred, I’m generally not a rooibos fan but this was actually pretty good. The moldy wood was there but it was pretty easy for me to ignore so I consider it a win.
@takgoti, I’m so incredibly tempted to try to find trophies that would be tea-appropriate. Do they make hot dog eating champion trophies? Because it’s kinda the same genre of competition, right?
@Ricky, Most things are better than Comfort and Joy. :) Also, I’ve read somewhere that the average age of a free-roaming cat is 3yo and the average for an inside cat is about 15. My 18 year old has had a few health scares (she now lives in the master bathroom most of the time because of her last one) but for her age she’s doing really great.
Ooh, I guess I can expect a new RoT catalog soon. I never order anything, but I always look forward to receiving their lone teabag, which usually sucks. Easily amused, I guess.
Since meeting my husband (who is a cat man) I’ve mostly converted to being a cat lover. Before that, I was all about dogs. I guess it takes a special cat to bring a person around.
@LENA, another one? I just got mine before Christmas!
Hey, I just realised that apparently I can have a catalogue sent all the way over here, so we’re trying that out. They can’t put VAT and customs fees on that, can they?
@Auggy The only rooibos I have tried was from the samples when you go into Teavana….which by the way is very overpriced for the quality. They tasted ok i guess sort of like cough syrupy flavor as far as i remember. Maybe it was just the particular blend that day. They like to mix two types together there.
@Auggy http://bit.ly/7rhZ9a [Wow…that looks incredibly inappropriate. My inner adolescent is giggling uncontrollably.]
@Fred, as a general rule in my world (no clue about yours), Teavana samples are evil. The cough syrupy flavor though would probably be some noxious fruit tea plus honey. Not that I feel one way or another about Teavana or anything.
@takgoti, OMG. Are you sure that’s for hot dog eating???
@Auggy Haha. In my world Teavana is evil. I go in there just to take a look at the teapots but then get bombarded by people trying to sell me tea who know less about tea than I do. Plus I realized that my main tea supplier tea trekker has way better quality tea which is a lot cheaper per oz.
@Takgoti: Ahahahaha! I wonder if the winner is compensating for ‘something’ with the size of that trophy…. XDDD
I’m trying to think of something witty to say about that trophy….nothing coming to mind other than BahahHAHAHA!
Aww, good job kitty! On a tea-related note, I have still not tried rooibos tea yet…the descriptions of “sour wood” are scaring me!
@Shanti If I told you that rooibos reads as sweet and woody to me would that help? I don’t know whose you have vendor wise, but I wouldn’t call rooibos a shocking, holy-shizz-spit-it-out kind of taste. I consider it a mild taste. Then again, I like it. Can anyone who doesn’t like rooibos confirm or deny?
I don’t care much for rooibos, but I’d go with sour rather than sweet. Bit like unripe berries. I agree about the woody, though.
I would agree takgoti’s statement, too. Overall it is a mild woody taste which you may or may not like (and I think can probably vary, too, with how well it works with the other flavors in there… though straight I kinda think it tastes particle board).
Rooibos to me is woodsy sweet. In a weird way, sort of like if pencil sharpener shavings actually tasted good.
Okay, that sounds unappetizing, but… I’ve only had rooibos mixed with stuff or flavored. Never alone. So I can’t speak for its unaltered taste. But it’s pretty mild.
I made a cup of plain rooibos right next to a cup of plain honeybush. (i like both, btw) To me, they are both woodsy, but the rooibos has a bit of a tanginess whereas the honeybush is sweeter (no tang). Next I will be comparing the green, unfermented versions of both of these. I reckon the rooibos acquires the tang (or sourness) during fermentation.
Aw gee, I miss my kitties :( The asthma and arthritis have made them absent from my apartment. But I sure enjoy giving a friendly kitty a rub when I go out, after which I come home and wash hands, sigh. Please keep ‘em inside for long hair-on-the-cushions life, and enjoy them while ya’ got ’em!
I’d agree with the rooibos/honeybush comparison. I’m not in love with either of them but have had more success with honeybush. I haven’t seen a green version of it though. If you find/know one, let me know because I’d be interested to try it, too!