Black Grapefruit from Teas, Etc

Scent in package: very grapefruit-y- like the oolong version from last week.
Brewed in: small porcelain teapot
Steeped: 6 min. @ 212 degrees (got sidetracked)
Cup: big ceramic mug

I was home yesterday trying to convince my body that it really didn’t *want* to get the cold my husband has had for the past several weeks. It seems to be working, and I think the tea helps…I planned on posting this review yesterday, but just never quite got around to it.

In any case, you can imagine my delight when this free sample showed up in an order I got last week from Teas, Etc. Honestly, I didn’t eve know they had Black Grapefruit until I got the sample. Naturally, I was more than ready to try it after my really great experience with the Grapefruit Oolong from Adagio. The dry leaves of this flavored black were nice – smaller as expected, but in good shape as I’d also expect from this company. The tea smelled great as it steeped, wafting a lovely citrus scent throughout the kitchen.

I got back 6 minutes after I’d set it to steep, and was really worried that it would be over brewed. Since I used the whole sample for a pot, which did not really make me happy. And if the base tea had been the dreaded Ceylon, it would most certainly have been bitter and tannic. But the base tea for this is listed as “Chinese Black Tea”, and it withstood the over steeping well, without a hint of bitterness or extra astringency. Whew! I’m guessing it was a lower grade Yunnan tea, since I tasted a bit of maltiness (I actually thought it was an Assam until I visited the web site).

Either way, the base tea was delicious, which provided the perfect backdrop for the grapefruit flavoring. The flavor is light, and not really as strong as it could be, but it showcases the tea itself well, which is the whole idea anyways. It’s refreshing, but still a bold, dark tea with good viscosity and “presence” in the mouth.

I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as Adagio’s Grapefruit Oolong, because I would have liked a little more of that citrus flavor to come through. But overall, as a flavored black tea, it was very good, and very satisfying too. I’d certainly recommend it – a great morning tea to wake up with (which is what I used it for).