Mountain Rose

Today is the day of the Derelict Reaper, my favorite plot mission in Mass Effect 2, I mean how could I not love it? It is crawling with reaper themed enemies (still want to paint a zombie to look like a Husk to live on my desk) and all the references to space Cthulhu make me happy. I really do love the Reapers, they might be one of my favorite things about this series and the reason why I picked Scourge as my army in Dropzone Commander. Though the inside of the sleeping god did spark debate between Ben and myself as to whether or not the interior design was at all creepy. He thinks the designers found organic (it is very Giger) things to be creepy but the ‘grimdark organic cathedral’ fails at being at all creepy, and is not a big fan. I find the design to be all sorts of awesome, but not at all scary…in fact other than the dangling wires I find it a bit cozy.

For today’s tea I am taking a look at Teabox’s blend Mountain Rose, a blend of roses, black tea, jasmine, rose hips, and cardamon…ah roses and cardamon, two of my favorite ingredients in a tea blend. As I have stated many times how rose in tea reminds me of rose milk or Persian and Indian desserts, add in cardamon and you more or less have kulfi, which is delicious. The aroma of the tea is wonderfully sweet, strong notes of rose and jasmine with underlying notes of malt and cardamon, a tiny touch of saffron and tangy rose hips tie it off at the finish. It is a very dessert like tea, the floral notes compliment the black tea base and spices quite well.

Steeping this tea was quite lovely, the aroma of rose and cardamon wafted out of my steeping apparatus and coated the area in a heady fog. There are also notes of jasmine and malt, with a touch of saffron and woodiness. Luckily for me the jasmine is gentle and not at all overpowering. The liquid is nectar sweet, with strong notes of cardamon and rose and a gentle jasmine note that dances with heavy malt and a touch of saffron.

What a smooth and sweet tea! Mellow notes of jasmine and malt at the front that very quickly give way to heady rose and sweet cardamon and honey. Towards the end of the tea is slight tanginess that is a blend of rose hips and also a bit of cherries, with a lingering rose finish. This tea is wonderful hot, but it is also pretty spectacular cold steeped as well, with the notes of cardamon and rose becoming stronger and the jasmine really taking the back seat. Even Ben, who is usually not a huge fan of rose flavored things (more for me!) liked this tea, it is well balanced and the cardamon mellows out the floral notes keeping them from being overpowering.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2016/07/teabox-mountain-rose-tea-review.html

Sipin’ this down and loving it. Rose and cardamom are my some of my favorite flavor. I’m getting all of the best of it using a teaspoon and a half in my 16 ounce urban tea tumbler. I just let it steep away, then I am rewarded with a delightful aroma and taste. I’m not sure this is just a credit to the tea; my tumbler has actually made a difference in many of the teas I have.

I have never tried rose with black tea before and thought that rose would be overpowered by the intensity of the tea. I was pleasantly surprised by the delicate scent of rose permeating through the smell and the taste and naturally enhanced by the softness and tanginess of the quality black tea. The cloves are just slightly present in the beginning and come out a bit more as you keep drinking. This tea can be enjoyed with desert or by itself as an after meal delight.