Might have oversteeped this one – it’s a little on the astringent side! I’m not really familiar with the flavour of brandy, nor of a sidecar, so I can’t speak to that, but I can definitely taste pear. Unfortunately, the bitterness (which could be intentional for all I know – it’s not as mouth-drying as usual) kind of kills my enjoyment of the pear. I’m also finding the tea a little too strong/floral. So perhaps the problem is that I overleafed. I’ll have to try again, but I don’t anticipate this being a favourite.
ETA: Either my morning mouth is less sensitive to bitter, or this tea changed overnight (yes I left it out and am drinking it now). It’s now really delicious, creamy and pear-y. I almost taste a hint of anise as well. Very weird. It’s reminding me a lot of Butiki’s tea that contained pear and anise (I wasn’t a big fan of it thought because it was TOO anise-y for me). Can’t recall the name offhand though.
If I remember correctly, this one is a Darjeeling base which does tend to be a little more temp sensitive and bitter/astringent as well as come off as a little more floral. So could also be that you’re just not feeling the base tea?
So I read your comment last night and definitely agreed; I generally don’t seem to like darjeelings, even when I steep them carefully, so it’s probably that aspect that’s causing me sadness. And then this morning (as per my ETA), the tea tasted much better! So strange.