Kettle Corn

Morning + work = mate. At least, at this time of year. This is one of the last older 52Teas I own, I think other than this there are about 5 left in my cupboard, and all sample sizes. So I’m nearly there, with those at least! I was hoping for popcorn when I brewed this one up, but unfortunately it’s not quite there. The mate is pretty strong, with its distinctive coffee-like flavour, and underneath that there’s a sweet-ish honey flavour. It’s reminding me a little bit of sugar puffs…or sugar puffs eaten with a cup of coffee more accurately. It’s not a strong flavour, just background, but it’s pleasant enough. It made for a good start to the day, at any rate.

I didn’t know if I would like this, given that I am still on the fence about mate in general, but was pleasantly surprised. Not my most favorite ever, but if you like mate, this is a good flavor.

I got this in a swap and to be honest the idea of this tea doesn’t sound appealing to me.

I’ll say this, it excels in what it was meant for and it would be a fantastic cup for anyone who likes the brisk taste of coffee. This is better than a roasted pear mate I’ve had which is odd to say because I thought I’d say something negative towards this teas’ taste. While I probably wouldn’t purchase it again, I was surprised by deep flavor.

I wanted some roasted yerba mate today. I don’t have many of those in the cupboards… but I’d say I have enough green yerba mate in stock. I didn’t expect much from this one, as I think most tasting notes I remember have said this just tastes like yerba mate and nothing else. There was a piece of dried corn in my infuser! I guess I was expecting… popcorn? Rather than dried corn? The flavor is mostly roasted yerba mate but there is a tiny hint of corn and a hint of a sweet flavor, which to me is kettle corn. Not terrible but not inspired. It was roasted mate though and that is what I wanted today.

“Kettle corn’s a fun time snack!” – Troy Barnes I need to get back to rewatching Community! I’ve been wondering why TV has not been reairing season five.
Steep #1 // 10 min after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 10 min a.b. // 2-3 min

I’m pretty happy it’s a short day at work today. This tea is ok. The only thing I’m getting is roasted mate with a sweetness to it. Some other reviews suggested steeping this like a green. I might try that and leave the rating black for now.

I have to work tonight so I figured now would be a good time to steep a cup of this mate. By the way for those of you who are curious it’s pronounced ma as in mama and te like tay. :)

It’s been a long time since I’ve had mate so I feel that I can’t be a very good judge but I’m enjoying this cup. Flavors of hay and a slight mintyness to it. To be honest I don’t taste the kettle corn. But with the roasty flavor of the tea I can see the comparison.

Backlog:

I’m sorry to read that the other review of this tisane here on steepster did not enjoy this as much as I did. I would recommend steeping this a little longer than you would a typical tea – since it’s Yerba Mate you won’t get the same tannic quality of a camellia sinensis blend. I steeped this for 10 minutes at a just under boiling temperature: 195°F.

This brought out a good amount of yummy Kettle Corn flavor.

When the cup is piping hot, I don’t get a lot of Kettle Corn flavor, but as the tea cools slightly, the flavors begin to develop. I found that a pinch of salt helped enhance the Kettle Corn experience as well. I got a sweet, honeyed flavor and the roasted notes of the yerba mate complimented the “popcorn” flavor.

Per the suggestion of Liber teas I ended up steeping this more like a green, I did around 185 degrees for 7 minutes. That brought out the kettle corn flavor some near the end of the cup. But now the mate flavor is so strong it ends up tasting like coffee. Anyway I raised the rating a couple points but wouldn’t repurchase this.