Alpine Berry Herbal

A family member gave me a few assorted bags of tea from this brand over the holidays, and I’m just trying one out now. I needed something caffeine-free, and this tisane seemed promising! Apple, blackberry, raspberry, citrus… and it smells exceptionally tasty, like plump juicy berries. Except… I somehow missed that hibiscus was the very first ingredient. Now that it’s brewed, though, it’s unmistakable in both scent and color.

As for taste… hmm. OK, the hibiscus is not horrible. It’s definitely the first flavor I get, but it’s not quite as aggressive as it could be. (An admittedly low bar.) There’s the faintest bit of something syrupy and sweet to back it up and temper it a bit. I have no desire to drink this one again, but I don’t utterly hate it.

The dry scent of this sachet smells like an interesting berry mixture. The steeped liquor smells like hibiscus. HIBISCUS. Very hibiscus. Not my favourite thing.

Aaand it tastes mostly like hibiscus too, with hints of berry flavours, especially in the aftertaste. Not a fan.

So, I stole this from a 7-11 the other day…

Not consciously, of course! I was grabbing some ice cream, and I noticed that the store had switched bagged tea brands so I decided to see what the offerings were. Generic chai, Earl Grey, Chamomile, green tea, nothing really exciting. Except for this herbal which looked like it had the potential to be interesting.

I paid for my Ben & Jerry’s and walked home, only then did I realize I still had the teabag in my non dominant hand… Oops!

‘ll just pay for a tea next time I’m at that sev, and not take a teabag. That seems like it should balance out, right? I did try the tea though; hot. It wasn’t anything super unique/special but it wasn’t bad either! I thought it was pleasantly tart, and had a good mixed berry flavour. Blackberry/blueberry is sort of what I was leaning towards in terms of flavour. I knew there was something else too; but I couldn’t place what exactly until I saw the entry for this on steepster – it was the orange in the mix! It didn’t taste super citrusy in the blend, but I think it added sweetness and a touch of diversity to the flavour.

Not bad, honestly! I would drink this again, but not pay for it (or steal it).

How do I describe this herbal blend? It is hard to put into words, this brew is somewhat sour, but not in a displeasing way. There is something else there too…a slight fruity bitterness that hangs on my tongue after each sip. The color truly is amazing, a rich magenta as others have pointed out, but at the same time there is nothing in this herbal tea that leaves me yearning for more.

I think I will bring it to the office for my coworkers to try, it might go to waste sitting in my pantry.

This was an okay tea. Not brilliant. Had a good scent but it didn’t carry over to flavor for me. It was very light tasting without a whole ton of flavor. I was glad I only got one as a sample and not a whole box. I’d drink it again but I have lots more tea I like more. Was not overly berry flavored and not a strong tea in general. Hint of mint but not strong. I just wasn’t a fan of this one. Brewed it according to the directions

Method: 1 tea bag in 8 oz at 205 degrees for 3 min.

Impressions: The color was lovely and the aroma was nice, but the tartness of the hibiscus was overpowering. After adding about a tsp. of rock sugar, this was much better. Even with the sugar to soften things, I didn’t taste anything past the hibiscus.

I had this while I was out today, because I’m cold. It wasn’t bad for a hibiscus based herbal. I had it with honey. The blackberry flavours were a nice alternative to the usual herbal offerings (orange, lemon, chamomile…).

It hailed the saddest, teensiest hail on us today. Like little seed beads. But we walked, and went into the forest, and that was nice.

It’s better with a cold brewing than hot, otherwise it’s too tart without a sweetener. It’s not exactly what I had expected upon buying. The mixed berry from Clipper Tea is much better. I haven’t made it in a while because of above reasons.

Still smells funny and I am still drinking it. Not sure why I am still drinking it. Perhaps it is because of the lack of other options in my tea drawer at the moment. On a really nit-picky note, the string on the tea bag is too short and I have a hard time keeping the paper tab from falling into the cup while water is being poured into the cup.