This tea is an odd combination, and Teekanne markets it quite strangely as well. As a part of the Teekanne Herbal Wellness Tea line, it is supposed to be completely full of herbals that will improve health. Now, when I think of an herbal blend, I think of a blend of herbs, not a tea that has herbs in it. From the entire Herbal Wellness Tea line, this is one of the few that are caffeinated, as it contains decently large amounts of green tea (33%) and some green mate. So, I suppose, in a way, this is one of the few in the line that lives up to the name of an herbal wellness TEA. But enough of semantics, you say, what is it like?
Smelling the teabag when I removed it from the package afforded me a large whiff of what seemed to be pure lemongrass. Not the best start, but I will accept it. The package directs the drinker to steep for 5-8 minutes in freshly boiled water. I opted for seven minutes (I like my tea stronger) of steeping in just-off boiling water. I was a bit concerned where it came to the green tea, as just-boiled water and tea do not mix well at all. During those seven minutes, the very distinct aromas of passionfruit and of mango wafted from the cup to my nose. This tea definitely smells as advertised! As for the taste…it is complicated. My first sip started very, very watery. As the tea moved over my tongue and I began to swallow, the mango and passionfruit revealed themselves. Not very strong, so, I would recommend steeping this tea for longer periods of time rather than shorter. In the aftertaste, one can faintly detect hints of the spearmint that is said to be in this blend. The flavors of passionfruit and mango stick around on my tongue long after the sip is done.
This tea is naturally quite sweet, and needs no additions. For such an oddly described tea, this was pleasantly drinkable. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea an 80/100.
