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The beguilingly hot climate of the African Serengeti serves as the inspiration for African Summer tea, with its unique combination of herbs that are known for their healing and nourishing properties. Its main ingredient is honey bush, which is related to the rooibos plant and additional vitamins and minerals are provided by eucalyptus, hibiscus, safflower, and marigolds. African Summer also contains citrus and rosehips that help boost your immune system for a healthy tea in a flavorful package.
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Steeping instructions:
Amount of water: 6 oz
Amount of tea: 1 flat teaspoon
Water Temperature: Boiling
Steeping Time: 5 - 8 minutes.
African Summer is an herbal offering which consists of Honeybush, Lemongrass, Lemon Myrtle, Rose Hips, Eucalyptus, Hibiscus, Safflower, and Marigolds. Having reviewed so many teas, many of the herbal blends have started to meld together and I thought that this blend would surely end up in that mental pile of indistinguishable and/or unmemorable herbal concoctions. However, the inclusion of lemon myrtle and eucalyptus give this blend a special little zing that makes it stand out from other similar blends (...and also makes me wonder why this tea wasn't called Australian Summer rather than African Summer, but I digress). This tea had a mild spiciness that was characterized predominantly by peppery and citrusy notes; the flavor came across as fresh, crisp, and uplifting. I could taste the faintest zing of tartness from the hibiscus, but thankfully there was not an abundance of it to make the tea too sour. The honeybush was actually quite mild in terms of its contribution to the flavor, but it did add a nice sweetness to round off the flavors of the lemongrass, hibiscus, and lemon myrtle. The herbal properties stopped just shy of crossing the line into medicinal flavors. Even before I knew that eucalyptus was in this tea, I noted that the aroma had a very nose-clearing property to it, so I could see this tea being very comforting for those suffering with colds and congestion. This blend consists of a unique assortment of ingredients that have a distinctly delicious and inviting flavor, and this is a tea I would surely recommend.
Vanessa -Teaviews.com -Reviewer
Red Leaf Tea brandishes this as the top seller on their site, which is odd because I've never heard of a honeybush or rooibos topping any company's charts. Honeybush, while good, isn't the end-all/say-all of teas, herbal or otherwise. I tend to like it but would rank it somewhere around lone rose petals; great as a base, but not as a sole. To be fair, though, this is a blend. Honeybush is indeed put in its proper place as one among many attributes. Other ingredients include: lemongrass, lemon myrtle, rose hips, eucalyptus, hibiscus, safflower, and marigolds.
A veritable smorgasblend.
On first sniff of the dry stash, I didn't get the image of Africa but rather a faint impression of Southern California. Particularly San Diego County, an area rife with twisty eucalyptus trees. The tea has a very unique smell - sweet, honey-lemon-esque - almost like a designer soap I could eat. The leaf-mint aspect is the most appealing feature.
What is most striking is how green it is. Even with the incorporation of usually-reddish safflower, hibiscus, rosehips or honeybush. The affluence of greenery here might be due to an overabundance of the lemony bits and eucalyptus. Their citrusy tang definitely dominates, and perhaps account for why I can't get the SoCal scenery out of my head.
I brewed 1 tablespoon for five minutes in 12 oz. of boiling water. It infused to a deep red; almost burgundy, I'd say...maybe carmine. (Can ya tell I had to look at a color spectrum?) The liquor smelled quite similar to the dry batch, lemon and mint. Taste-wise, I would almost say that the eucalyptus and lemon myrtle took point. Yes, I do know what a eucalyptus leaf tastes like. I was one of those children that tested things with his taste buds first, including trees. Honeybush is hardly present, nor is the tart hibiscus. I did detect a bit of rosehip in there and some marigold sweetness. I can see why this is their top seller. While not my absolute favorite blend, it still ranks pretty high.
Geoff -Teaviews.com -Reviewer
This is a soothing and refreshing tisane, with the nectar-like sweetness of the honeybush being being complemented by strong lemon flavors, and a bit of zest that you can taste from the eucalyptus!
The aroma of the tea is heavy on the lemon, and because of that, the lemon seems to stand out a lot in this tea, however it’s in a very refreshing sense. Predominantly a honey & lemon tea, the other herbs in this blend – the rosehips, eucalyptus, and hibiscus – all give this tea a really unique “zip” that makes a very invigorating flavor. In fact if you have a cold or are down sick, this is a perfect tea to drink since it soothes while cleansing the palate and providing providing immune-boosting herbs.While this tea is exceptional served hot, it is also great served chilled over ice. Sweet yet tangy, this brew provides a wonderful caffeine-free pick-me-up! As I mentioned, I am really enthusiastic over the inclusion of Eucalyptus in the ingredients, as that is a pretty non-standard ingredient in most teas, and I love the beautiful complex and zesty flavor it adds to the overall taste of the tea.
The Tea Guru - Stephanie
African Summer is a very pleasant herbal tisane from Red Leaf Tea it is a blend of Honeybush, Lemongrass, Lemon Myrtle, Rose Hips, Eucalyptus, Hibiscus, Safflower, and Marigolds. I was intrigued by the description on Red Leaf’s website: “The beguilingly hot climate of the African Serengeti serves as the inspiration for African Summer tea, with its unique combination of herbs that are known for their healing and nourishing properties. Its main ingredient is honey bush-which is related to rooibos-and additional vitamins and minerals are provided by eucalyptus, hibiscus, safflower, and marigolds. African Summer also contains citrus and rosehips that help boost your immune system.”
The loose leaf is a pleasing earthy mix of color – fresh greens of lemongrass, myrtle and eucalyptus, mellow brown and yellow honeybush leaf, safflower and marigold and bright splashes of hibiscus and rose hip. The lemongrass seems to be predominant in the blend and the citrus scent comes through before and after brewing.
I was surprised at how dark the brewed tea was with nice red tones – certainly a family resemblance with rooibos. The flavor, not surprisingly, was mild and mostly lemony with the honeybush hinting sweetness and the floral notes contributing a bit of tang. Happily I didn’t notice a strong enough eucalyptus flavor to remind me of a cough drop. Overall African Summer is a pleasing cup of tea; very refreshing, and according to the Red Leaf people – good for you too!
Its All About the Leaf - Melanie
Smells like Cologne with a hint of fruit.
I was afraid of the ingredient mixture – mostly with the Hibiscus – esp with my more recently H-cus attempts…lol…but this is lovely!
I am enjoying it!
TeaEqualsBliss - Reviewer - Steepster.com
I really like this blend a lot. It’s great hot or cold, and would mix nicely with other teas.
Justin Lamb - Reviewer - Steepster.com
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