Every January, Smith Tea releases its seasonal, limited edition Lover’s Leap blend, in honor of Valentine’s Day. It has the cutest backstory as well – the black tea is sourced from the Lover’s Leap estate in Sri Lanka, which is associated with a star-crossed lovers folktale.
Anyway, this tea had been sitting in my stash for a fair while – and I had totally forgotten about it until I bought a new pack last month (breaking my self-imposed tea no-buy), as I am a sucker for limited edition teas. I then remembered I actually had a pack lying at home, hidden somewhere, and therefore “re-discovered” it this week. The main reason I wanted to feature this tea is that after reading Trespasses, I knew I had a “forbidden lovers” blend somewhere, and I just didn’t know where. I mean, what better to pair with a book featuring some forbidden lovers than a tea sourced from an estate associated with star-crossed lovers, right?
Lover’s Leap is absolutely gorgeous – it’s like a bouquet, but with caffeine. The rose petals are so pretty, and the chamomile petals give the blend a little romantic whisper. It also smells like a bouquet, which is nice for someone like me, who loves flowers but hates the pollen and fuss that’s needed to care for fresh blooms. As someone who loves floral tea, I’m also surprised I accidentally forgot about this tea – I remember being extremely excited to try it when I got it… I guess it’s a sign that I just have too many teas? 😅 (My new official tea no-buy started this week, and I’m hoping I have the discipline to make it until June, at the very least.)
Pre-Brewing Thoughts
- OMG SO PRETTY.
- Smells like a flower shop. But also less perfumey. Like the outside of a flower shop. Or one of those bodegas with the flowers on the outside and you walk by it – smells like those flowers.
- I wonder if this would make for a good potpourri. It’s so pretty and smells so good!
- I also wonder if I can mix this with a lychee seltzer since lychee + florals always go well together. A Lover’s Leap soda with some lychee jellies or aloe vera would be nice, I think. I should taste this first 🙈
Tasting Notes:
- TYPE: Black | Flavored
- DIRECTIONS: 2 tsp / 8 oz | Steep at 212ºF/100ºC water for 5 minutes. Now fall head over heels in love.
- I ended up using 4 teaspoons for my half my 900 mL teapot. I also used filtered freshly boiled water, and steeped it for about 2 songs (5-7 minutes).
- I did fall in love with the tea – just not with any living being. Instructions were unclear as to what/who to fall in love with. 😜
- BLEND: Ceylon & Indian black teas, pink rose petals, chamomile petals, bergamot oil and natural black currant flavor.
- SCENT: Super floral with a hint of fruit.
- TASTE: Super light, floral, a bit of sweetness, minor astringency
- RATING: 4/5 – This would make for a great afternoon tea for days when I need extra caffeine but don’t want anything super strong tasting.
End Thoughts:
Honestly, this was so nice! Super floral, tiny bit fruity, little astringency – quite lovely! It’d be nice with cake or scones for cream tea. Honestly, it might even pair well with a savory ham & cheddar scone – and now I’m hungry. I’m excited to experiment and see what types of drinks/mocktails I can make with this – especially with Spring around the corner.
Side note – for safety (and liability) reasons, I do not recommend drinking teas past their “best by” date – so please don’t follow my example and drink teas way after their best date. And don’t be a tea hoarder like me either.
michelle's obsessions 