today's tea...

I've had this one for a while, so it's probably not as fresh as it could be (and we have bad water-- I can't afford to only drink bottled water), so take any uncomplimentary notes with that in mind, because I really love Republic of Tea. They have an awesome look, good tea, neat gimmicks.

Anyway.

Today we have Republic of Tea Pineapple Guava White Tea.

It's got the perk that white tea never gets bitter because it has hardly any tannins*, so it's a good one to brew and leave, which is my favorite way to have tea. No muss... after the original ritual of getting it made.

I always want this one to be really fruity, maybe sort of tropical-floral, but it's not. At least my jar isn't. It smells good in the tin, but not really like pineapple or guava, both of which are very complex and specific scents, and the smell doesn't really translate to the tea. I don't remember if it did when this was new, but I'm sure I'd remember if it was really good, so probably not.

My two favorite fruit flavors are lychee and guava, and so far, guava-flavored things other than guava juice or paste have all let me down, so I think I'll stick with lychee for tea. But overall, this is a pleasant tea, just not anything amazing.



* Why are tannins in tea bracing, while tannins in wine are the cause of horrible morning-after headaches?