A multifaceted, but somewhat subdued tea.

The dry leaf of this tea has a fruity smell, suggesting sweetness, but not very strong.

Upon brewing, the cup smells like wintergreen, pine needles, and moss, like the forest floor in a northern pine forest, but the flavor is very mellow and subdued and many of the notes in the aroma vanish as I take a sip, leaving a rather clean cup. The wintergreen comes out again though.

I enjoyed this tea more if brewed more strongly. Brewing for only 3 minutes with a teaspoon of leaf, it struck me as a little weak, but using a little over a teapsoon and steeping 5 minutes, I found the aromatic notes to be more persistent, and there was a pleasant spicy and peppery sensation in the finish that I liked.

This tea didn't wow me but there was something intriguing about it. Like most of these dark, slow-infusing Orthodox African teas, this tea was able to be resteeped, but the second steep was less interesting than the first.

Excellent price, especially for a tea of this quality!

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