It's fair to say that you won't find many reviews of rooibos tea on this blog. It's not a tea that I will ever drink on a frequent basis, there is something about it's natural sweetness that I find off putting (probably as I don't seem to have much of a sweet tooth lately). But it does have it's qualities, and one of them is it takes to flavours extremely well!
It's also fair to say that I have a huge (tea) crush on Piacha tea at the moment! They are a fun, vibrant company who make gorgeous tea. And their fabulous Apple Tea is easily my favourite new tea of the year, so far.
Recently they very kindly sent me out some samples and included was this Rhubarb Rooibos tea.
This tea is a wonderful cornucopia of flavours and ingredients. Not only does this tea contain rhubarb, but, amongst other wonderfully delicious things there is: hazlenut pieces, strawberry pieces, pineapple, vanilla, elderberries, apple and caramel.
The picture doesn't do this tea any justice - the tea is brightly coloured and is a gorgeous copper colour. A very real treat.
When I opened the packet there was a definite sweetness. In fact it reminded me of my favourite boiled sweets - rhubarb and custard. Mouthwatering and very interesting. I closed my eyes, inhaled it's aroma and looked forward to trying this very busy tea!
Whilst the tea was infusing, the lovely aroma of the tea was rich and creamy and I could smell it from upstairs, it seemed to waft around the whole house which was lovely, rather like a tea version of a gorgeous Yankee Candle!
There is so many elements to this tea that it's really rather hard to know where to start, so I think, I'll just dive in.
This is a VERY sweet tea, so for those of you who like your tea sweet, this is a nice way to enjoy a sweet tea without adding sugar, so it's totally guilt free. It's also caffeine free, so for those of you who want to cut back on caffeine, or, for instance, who are pregnant and want a great caffeine free alternative this is the tea for you!
Rhubarb is, naturally, the most prominent flavour. It's rich and fruity, but there is a slight sharpness too which is a brilliant alternative to the sweetness that is the base for this tea.
There is a smooth element to this tea which I found to be soothing on my throat which has recently been really croaky as I've had a chesty cough and that smoothness comes from the vanilla and caramel which has also been included into the tea. The vanilla is rich and full flavoured, the caramel is more present in the aroma of the tea rather then the actual taste but you do get hints of caramel weaving through the tea, usually as a slight aftertaste.
What I really enjoyed is the added fruit. I have to admit the strawberry was a little bit in the background but I certainly could detect the sharpness of the pineapple. The addition of quite sharp fruits really does balance out well with the sweetness of the caramel and vanilla. Without these fruits this tea could be heavy with it's sweetness but actually is light, easy to digest and comforting.
As we are now in autumn there are a couple of outdoor events coming up, Halloween and Fireworks Night. This would be a really great tea to serve up at your fireworks party. It's warming and makes your entire body feel as though it's glowing. I think making up a huge pot and handing this out to your friends and family on firework night would go down a real treat! It's actually almost like a desert in a cup. And because you don't add milk to rooibos and certainly don't need sugar, it couldn't be easier to keep your family and friends warm on November 5th!
I was genuinely impressed with this tea. I will admit that I don't feel as though I'll ever be the greatest fan of rooibos tea, however, I certainly enjoyed this wonderful Rhubarb Rooibos and am actually enjoying my third cup today!
It is a charming tea.
And to Francesca at Piacha, I have been really impressed with everything I've tried so far. Thank you for the samples. I'm really enjoying them!
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