I’m not going to lie, I enjoy fruit tisanes that taste like juice. I mean, it’s hardly even tea even in the most generous sense of the word, but it’s tasty! Like fruit punch without all the sugar. A lot of Teavana’s blends are like this bu just a bit too tart for me, so I am looking for a less hibiscus-y version.
I got a sample of this on a whim, and oh boy am I glad I did. When I opened up the little bag I smelled… cinnamon! The first thing I thought was that my sample had been contaminated, but I have never had a sample from Persimmon Tree pick up flavors from other ones they are packaged in. Also, I don’t have any cinnamon teas in there—a chai, but the smell of that one is pure ginger and cardamom. My second, more reasonable thought was that my nose was just off so I cold brewed a cup and thought it would be totally fruity by morning.
Well, blessedly, it’s not! The smell is strong cinnamon and vanilla, with a strong fruity undertone. The taste is like cinnamon coffee cake with fruit compote on top, cherry and strawberry! I’m kind of fascinated by this since there are only fruity ingredients listed aside from the flavoring. But really, I’m sure if there was cinnamon/vanilla in here someone else would have made a note of it!
As it is, I would give this tea a ridiculously high score because it is just so so tasty. However, I don’t think it is really supposed to taste like this— happy accident indeed, but I am left wondering what happened.