Whoa! I was not expecting this tea to have such a distinct lime scent. To me, it smells exactly like key lime pie, both the dry leaf and after it’s steeped. I’ve had Earl Greys with vanilla before, but I don’t remember them smelling quite like this. (I went and sniffed my sample of Adagio’s Earl Grey Moonlight, just to be sure… Yup, that one smells more like a traditional Earl Grey, with a very faint note of vanilla.) Maybe it’s an effect of the “cream flavor” Upton mentions on their site? It’s a delicious smell, though, so I’m not complaining!
Taste-wise, this is more what I expected… A bright black tea with mild astringency (Ceylon?), coupled with the crisp citrus of bergamot, and softened by cream/vanilla. I don’t find the cream flavor dominant, but it’s certainly present. It smooths out the citrus, and gives this tea a sweet aftertaste. (I also detect a bit of that “key lime” note in the aftertaste. Interesting!) Not my favorite Earl Grey with vanilla, but a pleasant blend worth sampling. If you like both Earl Grey and key lime pie, I would definitely recommend it!
