I was reading about this tea and found it interesting on the type of rose they use. I don’t like strong rose but they use a different type of rose, call the Phnom Penh rose and comparatively speaking, it’s smaller, lighter in taste, sweeter than the typical rose. That sounded promising.
So, the little handmade tiny ball smelled of strong rose. They are gorgeous to look at because of the gold and rose colors in it. One thing about dragon balls, they are like mini tuochas, so convenient for travel or those lazy days. The wet leaves (pretty much still a ball at this point) after the 5-sec rinse smells sweet, of black tea, of delicate rose. The bright orange-reddish copper liquor had a very nice light rose (not perfumey) and is that honey sweetness or is that the sweetness from the rose itself? The tea itself is so smooth, a nice thick, warm comforting mouth and throat feel. It’s malty, cacao, very mellow, full-bodied, flavorful. I don’t really taste the spices per se, but I can feel it in the aftertaste ever so slightly. Even though I’m not into a strong rose taste (at all), I think I actually prefer this one over the Chrysanthemum Dragon Ball. Unfortunately, I bought all my TeaVivre black tea before the sale (boo) but that’s okay, I can always buy more.
Porcelain gaiwan, 110ml, 194F, 8 steeps: rinse, 25s, 20s, 10s, 15s, 20s, 30s, 40s, 80s
Flavors: Cacao, Floral, Malt, Rose, Smooth, Spicy
Glad you liked it. :D
I did! You were right. Not the typical overpowering cheap rose perfume. hehe