Review of Manzanilla (Chamomile)

AromaFlavorValueTotal
6 of 104 of 55 of 573 of 100
GoodGoodOutstanding

Value-wise, I've found that cheaper chamomile really is best much of the time, since the quality doesn't seem to vary greatly from one brand to another. So when I run low or out, I just grab something inexpensive when I see it. Such was the case here, and I rate "value" highly for two reasons:
1) The tea was on sale for a couple bucks in a Hispanic store in Dallas, and
2) My box had 24 bags (!), which reverses the modern "shrinkflation" trend of going with 18 or 16 bags in what used to be (and still are the same outer sizes as) 20-bag boxes.

Each tea bag comes in a plastic wrapper, with a string wound around inside the bag, and a tag right next to the bag that you first use to pull enough of the string out to be able to drape it over the cup. All righty, then. The dry-bag aroma was pleasant, just straight chamomile. However, the scent came alive when pouring the boiling water into the cup, such that a sweet, somewhat creamy, sharp scent wafted a foot or more above the cup before dispersing.

Even after 5 or more minutes of steeping, the color never darkens from medium-golden (faintly amber), but don't let that offer the impression of a weak tea. It's not. In flavor, it doesn't have anywhere nearly the richly buttery character of McCormick—my gold standard for chamomile—but it's smooth, clean, reasonably robust, just a little astringent, and doesn't leave as much of an aftertaste as many others. This puts it solidly above average for chamomile tea, in my book. Also, the squeezed wet bag still smells appropriately fragrant, and isn't somewhat slimy in texture like some other chamomiles can get at this stage. All in all, this is a nice, worthwhile product.

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