I’m a fan of chrysanthemum as I grew up drinking it and appreciate the sweet floral flavour! However, I rarely find it as an ingredient in tea blends.
Description: “The bright sparkling high notes of chrysanthemum round out the deep dessert-like qualities of good shu pu’er so perfectly.”
Instructions: Mug of tea – 5 grams | close to boiling water | 1 minute | or lower brew time
Review: Aside from the chrysanthemum, the cardamon also drew me to this blend. Ever since I tried a black tea blend with cardamon from World Tea House a few years ago, I’ve been looking for blends with it. So, I was curious to see how the chrysanthemum and cardamom pair together!
The dry blend had a strong spicy notes of cardamom, coriander, and tulsi, followed by a musky herbal and soft floral aroma. Since the ingredients were distinctive, there was a clear contrast with the pops of pale green, yellow and tan against the dark brown broken tea leaves. This blend was brewed with boiling and 90°C water.
Brewing with boiling water, the liquor became a deep reddish colour. The classic notes of the pu’er were immediately evident, followed by the spiced notes of cardamom and coriander, and then herbal. The sweetness from the chrysanthemum weaved in and out of the sip. The taste of the blend followed the order of the smell of the dry blend. When the liquor cooled, the cardamom taste was more apparent with the fermented and herbal note more toned down.
Like brewing with hot water (90°C), the liquor had a fermented and spiced mixed smell and was a deep reddish brown colour. However, the musky taste was mostly absent at the lower water temperature. Rather the taste was a combination of cardamom, coriander, and smoke. Since the pu’er taste was less present, the spiced notes of the cardamom lingered in the mouth. However, unexpectedly, when the liquor cooled, it had the tell-tale smell of the more fermented and ‘fishy’ smell of some pu’ers.
The wet blend was a contrast of tan and yellow from the spices and large chrysanthemum among the pu’er leaves. The leaves did not have a distinctive smell.
Overall, this was a nice blend for someone who enjoys spices like cardamom, coriander, or tulsi. For people who are not big pu’er fans, I like that lowering the water temperature allowed for the other ingredients to shine. Even when using boiling water the pu’er taste was not overly strong (3/5 rating).
- Type: Fermented, shu pu’er
- Origin: Unknown
- Caffeine: Unknown
- Ingredients: Shu pu’er, burdock root, chrysanthemum, cardamom, coriander, tulsi
- Company: CHROMA Tea Blends (Verdant Tea)
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