’Tis the season for many headaches, ugh, every year around this time when the central heating starts being a necessity I start getting terrible headaches, I blame it on the fact that the heat is dry and I end up doing my best Mumm-Ra impersonation. Headaches or not, today we celebrate the final day of Pu Erh week with something tropical and exotic.
From the Terra sampler and of course the Boo Erh Giveaway, we have Adagio Tea’s Pu Erh Tahiti. Blending the Pu Erh with Coconut, Apples, Mango and Papaya for a truly tropical treat, I feel like I need one of those little paper umbrellas, no reason. The aroma is fairly tart and fruity, with strong notes of apple. I am mostly getting the apple with a slight hint of coconut and tropical fruit and an even fainter hint of Pu Erh earthiness. I will be honest, I am not a fan of the way this tea smells, the different aromas seem to clash with each other.
Giving the tea a good soaking (no, not in the sea water it is clearly reminding me of) the aroma that wafts from the steeped leaves is mostly creamy apple (vaguely reminds me of apple ice cream actually) with a sweet bread tone. It actually reminds me a little of Hawaiin Sweet Bread. There is also a faint hint of coconut and again, a very faint hint of Pu Erh earthiness. The liquid without the leaves is a little odd, the aroma is yeasty and sweet but it has a waxy note, I mean it smells like candle wax does when you are making candles, paraffin wax to be exact. There is also the underlying aroma of earthiness that has been present the whole time, good to see things are consistent.
I want everyone to know, Ben just walked in with a pizza, to settle his pre-finals jitters and to share with me. Awesome. Anyway, tea eyeballs pizza the taste is a bit odd, first thing I notice is earthiness and a hint of metallic, a typical Pu Erh base taste, same as the other teas in the Terra sampler. The midtaste is the sweet and rich mixing the taste of coconut with the smooth nuttiness of coconut oil, there is also a faint hint of apple tartness. The aftertaste is a faint blend of tropical fruits. The overall sweetness of this tea is mild and pleasant, and the mouthfeel is very smooth, almost oily from the coconut. Sadly this tea just did not work for me flavor wise, I don’t hate it or would even cringe away in fear if it was offered to me, I just feel that the flavors clash too much. Perhaps just coconut and apple would be good, or just coconut and Pu Erh, but mixing the other fruits together just seems like a mouth cacophony. I certainly encourage other people to try this one though, it is an unusual experience if nothing else. And now, PIZZA!!
For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2013/12/adagio-teas-pu-erh-tahiti-tea-review.html