I'm not a huge fan of hibiscus, so it's hard for me to rate this. Compared to tea and most herbal teas, I don't like it much, but that doesn't mean this isn't of good quality.

Cup is an intense opaque red like the color of 100% cranberry juice. Aroma is mostly of cooked fruit, like the intermediate stage in making jams and jellies. Reminiscent of rose hips. I find the aroma slightly unpleasant.

When brewed as recommended, the flavor is very sour, to the point of making it undrinkable. I tried brewing more weakly than recommended: less leaf and for under 4 minutes, and it was still unpleasant and undrinkable.

I find that this drink produces very good results though if used to brew iced tea. Brewed this way, I still like to use less leaf and a very short steeping, only about 1-2 minutes. Then I ice it and make about 2 cups worth with a single teaspoon.

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Comments:

E. Alex Gerster wrote: on July 18th, 2011

I don't know anyone who has actually tried to drink hibiscus tea without lots of sugar! It is sour and bitter, and used extensively in Mexican cooking as a marinade, color enhancer, and (when sweetened) like KoolAide. I like the article here on RateTea.net and here is a link to another page that shows how it is used in cooking: http://www.mexconnect.com/articles/3621-mexican-roselle-hibiscus-cooking-with-jamaica

Alex Zorach wrote: on July 20th, 2011

I'm not a big sugar person so I tend to try everything without sugar. That is an interesting link though...maybe I can incorporate some of this into RateTea.net's article on hibiscus tea / jamaica. But I do think I probably just don't enjoy sour tastes as much...I love bitter tastes, not so much sweet or sour. =)

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