Country of Origin: not listed
Leaf Appearance: tight ball, mottled green
Ingredients: green tea, crysanthumum, jasmine flowers, peach flavor
Steep time: 3 minutes
Water Temperature: 175 degrees
Preparation Method: glass teapot
Liquor: pale gold
I met the girls from Chai Diaries when I attended the New York Coffee and Tea Festival. A tin of this blooming tea followed me home along with some of their yummy chai granola. I was intrigued because I have not really seen flavored blooming tea other than the usual jasmine or osmanthus scented. Vine was just released for Android when I wrote this review (almost two months ago) so I shot the little video below so that you can all see how it bloomed. I thought that the strings of jasmine flowers were especially pretty. The taste was mellow yet much more complex and satisfying than I expected. It was vegetal with a floral sweetness and just a bit of peachy fruit flavor. It wasn’t overdone or artificial tasting. I allowed the bloom to stay in the water while I finished my first cup and was happy to find that it did not turn bitter or undrinkable. In fact, the peachy flavor had grown a bit stronger. I imagine that it would be difficult to add flavoring to this type of tea but it was very well executed. The flavors that they offer are definitely on my “to try” list now.
You can find out more about this tea here.