Tried as part of Dark Matter 2016. I will further preface this review by saying that I hate pickles.
This tea, as expected, smelled like pickles. This, I thought, was not a good thing. I was correct. Along with the vinegary pickle note, there was also something else there in the aroma that in my notes I struggled to describe – attempts included “rubber” and “yeasty?” The smell of the wet leaves was a bit different – more of wet autumn leaves covering a pile of pickles. The taste was sharp, but not bitter – quite sour. It did also have woody notes and some of that strange mystery flavor. I noticed a sweet finish as well. I will admit this is the first tea I gave up on very quickly – I got through three steeps, which all tasted rather similar. Made my stomach feel kind of upset and was not very good in my opinion.
I used 3.5 in a 100mL gaiwan with 190 degree water. With most other teas, I would give them a try with different parameters, but I don’t think i have it in me for this one. For the record, I made sure to drink it with my pickle-loving fiance (she’ll sometimes drink pickle juice straight from the jar – yuck), who also did not enjoy it.
Glad I got the opportunity to try something like this with just a 5g sample. Whatever else it is, it’s certainly interesting.
Flavors: Dill, Sour, Sweet, Wood
This’ll be the next tea that I’ll review!
Good luck! ;)