Haiku

Following in the tradition of Nikaido’s other “well I have to, it’s got such a nice name” teas, it also helps that this honestly smells vibrant, fruity, fresh and delicious. This was actually the first tea I tried out of the bunch—as soon as I smelled it, I knew it’d make a nice iced tea, so I brewed it hot and poured it over ice the moment I’d gotten home that day.

I usually have a contentious relationship with flavoured greens… They seem to have trouble holding flavours as well as black teas, and don’t often live up to the smell. But I was glad I was right on this one—it made an excellent iced tea when I sipped it way back.

Hot, it’s still smooth and fruity. It has a lasting berry/generic curranty kind of taste, maybe the slightest bit of pineapple. The oolong in this blend I think helps round it out a bit more so that any straight vegetal notes of the green tea don’t overwhelm the fruit flavours that were added. As it cools, I get a silkyness on the tongue that feels like vanilla.

I think I definitely prefer this one iced, though it’s been a bit since I’ve had it that way. Vanilla tends to get lost in iced teas for me, but I remember it being wonderfully light, fruity and fresh.