Count me as another person who couldn’t resist 52teas’ recent 4 for 3 deal. I console myself with the fact that 2 of the pouches are in fact going to my brother. That’s right! I managed to sell Mr. Monocle on the idea of Earl Grey Cheesecake! Go me! (doubt I had anything to do with it honestly, think he just read all the reviews that said that the cheesecake part wasn’t too ostentatious).
So he chose two, and I chose the last and I get to keep the free pouch because I may not have told him about the deal and what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, mwahahahahahahahahaha.
Now, when choosing my one was torn between this tea and the blueberry cream cheese danish, but then I thought about it, and between coconut cream pie, cheesecake chai, and earl grey cheesecake, I kind of have enough creamy/cheesy teas for the moment. In fact, I could do with a tea that wasn’t pretending to be a dessert…a more MACHO tea. Also, the blurb (which consists solely of “yes, really.”) amused me, and I’d been wanting to try something from the Man Teas line. Also, also, any time I asked someone for their input on the matter they told me I was insane for even considering Chocolate Bacon and there is generally no better way to get me to try/do something than to tell me that I am insane for trying/doing it.
Now, not being male, I am obviously not really the target demographic for this tea, but I will do my best to be objective! It is…very interesting, particularly as the base tea is quite smooth. Smoother, I’d say than some of the other 52teas blacks that I’ve tried. I only get hints of chocolate and the bacon was, at first, only discernible as a faint hint of smoke but the more I drank, the more of it I was getting – there are even hints of saltiness about it, which, while certainly novel also kind of makes me more thirsty rather than less. Which is somewhat irritating because once I finish it I need to make MORE tea to stop being thirsty…well-played, sir, well-played.
The flavor of the chocolate comes out more as the tea cools, which is a recurring theme, I’ve found, with chocolate flavored teas, with the exception, perhaps, of the inimitable Florence.
This tea is certainly different from any other tea I own, so I am quite pleased. I think it will be excellent for those times when I want something different but can’t quite put my finger on what.