This night has been a dark, cold, damp one and I find myself unable to slumber here in the wee hours, so I looked for a soothing tisane. I’ve had this one sealed up in my tea cabinet for a few years (time flies!) so I pulled it out and got to brewing. And I find that mastressalita added a note on it much more recently. Well, she did a fabulous job of reporting, so there is little more for me to add. I used 1-1/2 heaping tsp of material in a steel infusion basket with 8 oz boiling spring water, and let it steep for 5 min, as recommended by Tealyra. I also found the hibiscus very subtle, and to give a nice gentle tartness to an otherwise sweet-tasting cuppa. Though it really wasn’t very sweet, only giving the impression of sweetness! I did not discern any piney aroma or flavor, mainly just berries – berries – berries! Yes, there were notes of blackcurrents, but there was no such ingredient: it must be the reputed flavor of the buchu leaf. I really did enjoy the tea while hot, and I found as it cooled that the berry notes in aroma and flavor intensified, as did the sensation of sweetness. I loved how the sweet aftertaste wrapped itself around my tongue for many lingering minutes. I am resisting the urge to spike some sugar into the brew, because it seems like cheating — and unnecessary! I’ll rate this as an 85 for the pleasure I got out of the cup. Gonna brew a second cup right now…….
EDIT: Second cup was also good, but I wonder if the ingredients were truly caffeine/stimulent-free, because sleep did not finally arrive ’til 5 AM.
Flavors: Apple, Berry, Blueberry, Hibiscus, Sweet
