The dry leaves do smell of cocoa. I got this in a mystery box from Oolong Owl, there were six balls that weighed 4g, so I put them all in my little cast iron pot with about 9oz of just about boiling water and let them steep for four minutes. Wet leaves still smell of cocoa. The brew is very dark, like coffee. The taste is hard to define, but it’s nice. I expected a bitter brew, but it wasn’t bitter at all. The flavor has the faintest bit of cocoa to it, and malt. I am terrible at finding flavors in tea, so all I can say is that this is a nice, smooth cup of black tea that I like and I would consider purchasing in the future. This could definitely go into my morning rotation.
EDIT: Just for the heck of it, I decided to give the leaves another go, and steeped again for about five minutes. The second brew was just as dark and fragrant as the first, but the flavor was what I imagine bongwater tastes like. So I’m not going to do that again.
