Currant Affair

Smells overwhelmingly like cough syrup. Tastes like cough syrup. I got about two sips in and couldn’t finish the rest of it – and I have a cough.

I’m feeling a bit pouty today, because I’ve been sick and I thought I was getting better, but I don’t think I am. I was feeling pretty decent all day, and then I went to pick up groceries for dinner and started feeling faint levels of feverish. So I had to cancel my plans for the evening :( I also ordered a variable temp kettle that was supposed to arrive today and it didn’t. So boo. I was hoping that this tea would sooth me and cheer me up.

I love black currant so much, and the smell of this is to die for. It captures all of the depth and nuance of juicy black currants. It smells sweet and rich.

Sadly, the flavour just doesn’t measure up. There’s a hint of black currant on the finish, which is nice, but the rest of the sip is pretty meh. It doesn’t have a lot of flavour and the start of the sip is mostly rooibos woodiness, which is followed up b a sweetness that tastes artificial to me. There seems to be dimensions missing that should be there. I want this to fill my mouth, but it doesn’t even come close.

It gets better as it cools but it’s not great.

This was my pick for tea of the day at my local Davids Teas: tart with deep berry tones in a caffeine-free blend. The dark fruit notes are strong enough to compete with the medicine-like flavors of red rooibos. It is even more amazing as a tea pop, which brings out the zing of sour berry. If I made this myself I would steep it longer than recommended to get more of the tart currant flavors. Plenty fruity and sweet without sugar, it is a nice alternative to sweeter berries like blueberry or strawberry. I would be worried if it would taste too medicine-like when brewed hot, but I’ll have to order some and try it. Cold, the tartness of the currant works in its favor.

Black currant flavour is a bit to much like candy for my taste. A little bit of tartness might make this more authentic-tasting.

As the infusion is cooling, I’m detecting an artificial sweetner aftertaste. Maybe it is from the “artificial black currant” ingredient listed.

Thanks to Roswell Strange for a sample of this tea! Initially, I thought it smelled pretty good – all deliciously of berries, specifically black currants (duh). Unfortunately, though, it occurred to me after a few minutes that the aroma really reminded me of something… Medicine. And not rooibos- medicinal; in that respect it was just fine. Nope, it was the flavouring that reminded me of some sort of flavoured medicine I’ve had. Blech. And I can’t blame the tea for this – it was quite tasty until I had this realization, so overall I’d count this as a pretty good blend, just one that I am prejudiced against due to previous experiences.

Also in unrelated news, is the Steepster app available? This new format is not playing nice with my phone. Actually, it’s terrible.

Beautiful and refreshingly sweet. Delicately aromatic and incredible iced!

mmmmmeh.

I’ve been a huge fan of black currant flavours since I was a child and this tea brings up all the nostalgia I could desire.
It tastes like the darker kinds of Wine Gums. Not in an artifical, sugary way, but if Wine Gums were made out of real fruit.
Yum…

Wonderfully fruity without being overly tart. A characteristic I dislike in a lot of herbals and Rooibos blends. You can really taste the currants. More than just a catchy name!

I adore Currant Affair. Hot, iced, you name it! This tea reminds me of candy, without that hurt-your-teeth sweetness. Yummy!