Peach (flavored black) by Adagio

Scent in tin: Peachy keen…just like fresh peaches, sweet and fragrant.
Brewing method: ingenuiTEA pot by Adagio
Steeping: 5 min @ 212 degrees normally, once for 3 1/2 min. instead.
Cup: 12 oz porcelain mug

I was excited to try this tea – I love flavored teas, and peach is one of my favorite flavors. I was completely optimistic when I opened the sample tin, and took in the sweet, peachy smell. I scooped a teaspoon & a half out into my ingenuiTEA pot, boiled some water, and poured it over the leaves, noting the bits of peach joining the leaves in their dance. I smelled the brew, and it was a wonderful experience. When it cooled a little, I took my first sip. And almost spit it back out.

Okay, not really, but the tea was surprisingly bitter, the peach flavor horribly “off”, and I was completely perplexed at the difference between what I was expecting to taste from all the “nose candy” that came before. Compared to other peach flavored teas I’ve had, this one was definitely the worst, and I was supremely disappointed in it.

To be fair, since oversteeping is normally the cause of bitter tea, I decided to try once more with only a teaspoon of leaves and 3 ½ minutes brewing time. This did get rid of the bitterness, and made the overall cup smooth on the tongue, but it also got rid of any taste there had been, tea, flavoring or otherwise. It was more like drinking heavy water than anything else. Not even as good as most white teas I’ve had. Two thumbs way down – unless you’re looking for an aromatic peach potpourri, in which case I highly recommend this particular tea.