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“The first time I had this, it was a bit too smoky for me. The second time, I gave it a shorter steep than recommended, which was much better. Then I could taste some fruitiness like rhubarb or...” Read full tasting note
“When Roswell Strange ordered a Create-a-Blend tea & told me that they wanted a Rhubarb blend – I was just a little thrown off because I’ve never worked with rhubarb before. I’ve never cooked...” Read full tasting note
“It’s heeeeerrreee! This past year I purchased one of Anne’s “Create a Blend” fundraiser perks and I pretty promptly sent her what felt like a million different flavour ideas. They all had one...” Read full tasting note
Tea of the Week for January 8, 2024!
This tea was the brainchild of one of my customers who purchased a create-a-blend option during my fundraiser last year & this is their tea! They wanted a rhubarb flavored black tea. They gave me several different options & since this tea is my first tea featuring rhubarb, I wanted a little bit of time to work with the flavor to create something special for them.
This blend starts with a blend of black teas – Assam, Yunnan & a touch of Lapsang Souchong for a hint of smoke – to which I added some rhubarb essence plus some candied rhubarb (made simply with organic rhubarb & sugar) & some Sri Lankan Cinnamon chunks for a hint of contrast in the cup. The result is fantastic!
The cup has that wonderful sweet-tart flavor of rhubarb with hints of cinnamon & smoke. Very pleasant to sip – it invigorates the taste buds!
Allow me to take a moment to spill some tea and say that I like it a whole lot more than I thought I would. To be completely honest, I had hesitated until now to work with rhubarb as a tea flavoring because I’m not too experienced with it – as in at all. I had never had a rhubarb pie or anything else – except for that one time when Frank did a strawberry rhubarb tea – but again – being honest – I don’t remember that tea so I don’t think it was particularly memorable – or it could be that after crafting as many teas as I have & before that – sampling as many teas as I have – not all teas are gonna stand out in my memory.
That said, I really, really like this so that means that there are gonna be at least one or two more rhubarb teas on the horizon!
organic ingredients: black teas, cinnamon, candied rhubarb (rhubarb & sugar), amaranth petals & natural flavors
to brew: shake the pouch to distribute the ingredients. Use 3g of leaf to 12oz of nearly boiling water (205°F), allow to steep 3 ½ minutes. Strain & allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before you start sipping. Enjoy!
serving suggestion: I like this one both hot & chilled. I find that the cool time of 10 minutes after brewing is key with this cuppa – the flavors really need a chance to develop over that 10 minutes. It allows the smoke to settle a little bit, the rhubarb to elevate a little bit & the cinnamon to find its place in the sip.
I do like to add just a little bit of sugar (less than ½ a teaspoon per 12oz of brewed tea) to help round out the flavors a little bit because my palate tends to be a little sensitive to tartier flavors like this.
At 52teas.com, you will find unique, hand-blended artisan loose leaf teas: a new limited edition creation every week of the year. We pride ourselves on offering truly unique, one-of-a-kind tea blends that you won’t find anywhere else.
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FredstedThe first time I had this, it was a bit too smoky for me. The second time, I gave it a shorter steep than recommended, which was much better. Then I could taste some fruitiness like rhubarb or strawberry along with the smoky base. But the smoke was much milder and supported the flavor profile well. It was quite pleasant with milk and sugar.
When Roswell Strange ordered a Create-a-Blend tea & told me that they wanted a Rhubarb blend – I was just a little thrown off because I’ve never worked with rhubarb before. I’ve never cooked it, I’ve never even eaten it. The closest I’ve ever come to a rhubarb before working on this tea was spotting them on occasion in the produce market.
So, I asked Roswell Strange if they wouldn’t mind if I took some time to familiarize myself with the flavor – and allow me to play around with the components that I’d use to create the tea to figure out the best path forward with a previously very unfamiliar flavor profile. (I would say that I’m still somewhat unfamiliar with it, but far less now than I once was.)
But after having taken the time to work with it, I’m really glad that Roswell Strange ordered this blend because it’s not only really delicious, but it has also inspired additional rhubarb flavors.
This blend starts with a blend of black teas including some Lapsang Souchong. The smoke isn’t overwhelming here, but it’s strong enough that you’re not going to miss it in the sip. The Rhubarb flavor is tart, a little sweet & quite pleasant. It melds really nicely with the hints of smoke & the touch of cinnamon. The cinnamon notes develop as I continue to sip, they were barely noticeable in the first sip or two, but as I continue to drink it, the cinnamon continues to pop. It adds a pleasant roundness to the overall cup which is smoke, sweet-tart rhubarb & a gentle warmth of cinnamon.
It’s heeeeerrreee!
This past year I purchased one of Anne’s “Create a Blend” fundraiser perks and I pretty promptly sent her what felt like a million different flavour ideas. They all had one common thread, though. I really wanted a rhubarb tea. I think rhubarb is such an underrated fruit (technically vegetable), especially when it comes to tea blends. You rarely see it used outside of strawberry rhubarb teas, and even those aren’t exactly all too common…
I gave Anne a ton of ideas ranging everywhere from rhubarb and vanilla ice cream to just a straight up smoked rhubarb. What I didn’t realize at the time was that Anne hadn’t ever worked with rhubarb before – so it ended up being a bit of a longer and more experimental process (not that I minded one bit). She even sourced some candied rhubarb just for the blend, and dang it looks cool! Ultimately I had all the faith in the world and was really just excited to be along for the ride.
I’m really, really happy with the final tea though! It’s got that perfect jammy cooked rhubarb note with a hint of tartness that I was hoping for and the subtle additions of cinnamon and Lapsang Souchong (just a smidge) give it that cozy baked pie sort of vibe that was in a lot of the ideas I’d sent. Like a rhubarb pie if you juuusssttt slightly burnt the crust. I happen to love that smokey edge though. It feels very tailored to my own personal tastes.
I’ve already seen that Anne’s used the rhubarb flavouring it at least one other blend, so I’m happy to have unintentionally snuck this flavouring into the 52Teas repertoire. If I may be so bold as to suggest another rhubarb concept, I’ve always adored the more British influenced “Rhubard & Custard” rooibos blends I’ve tried but I’d really like to see the same concept on a caffeinated tea base.
Anyway – the tldr is that I am a happy customer!
PS. The name for the blend comes from the 1989 Batman movie where it’s said by The Joker. It basically means something along the lines of “Don’t mess with my girl”. I just thought it was a fun, nerdy reference though.
