South African Red Rooibos

This tea is fantastic. It arrived quickly and I promptly made my first batch. It has a nice deep flavor and it is a large bag so it will last me for quite some time. I have Psoriasis and this tea along with Oolong (Phoenix Mountain Oolong made by Peet's Coffee and Tea) has been helping clear my skin immensely. This is the first product along with the Oolong tea to have helped my Psoriasis to the point where I believe I will be clear in a month or two and I have quite stubborn Psoriasis. If there is anyone else with Psoriasis reading and is interested I drink about 3-4 cups of each tea a day. About the tea itself, the fibers of tea are very fine; you will need to use a coffee filter (I use a little thread to tie up the top) or some sort of tea bag to contain the fibers. Mesh tea infusers will not cut it. I steep my tea for about 30 minutes at 212° because I enjoy my tea strong but you could steep for about 7 - 10 minutes and you'll be fine or even much longer if desired; this tea is very forgiving. I use an electric kettle to steep my tea and it works wonderfully. The electric kettle I use is the Chefman RJ11-17-GP Precision Electric Kettle if anyone is interested. I also tend to make large batches and store them in pitchers in the fridge. I have not had any problems with the teas clouding from being stored but I usually drink the pitchers within 2-3 days. All in all this is a wonderful tea and I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

This tea is just how it should be: tiny tea leaves, tastes great

We normally buy flavored teas, but wanted to try a plain rooibos. I'm so glad I found this one - it has a great flavor by itself. Plus, I prepared it with the same amount of sugar I usually use, & this came out sweeter than I expected. So I will be able to cut back a little on the sugar with this tea & it will still be really great. The fact that this is also organic is a bonus, & at this price it's a great value. Love it!

So I am relatively new to loose leaf teas, this would be the third variety I've bought directly from this seller, the previous being Assam and the latter being their "Ti Kuan Yin." I don't have much to compare them with other distributors of loose leaf tea, but they are so far beyond what you can get at the local grocery store, I almost don't care. If you are new to rooibos...I can't say I would recommend it on it's own. It tastes minty/medicinal? I would only try the varieties they sell that are premixed. It has a wonderful aftertaste and otherwise is odd on it's own.

There seems to be a dearth of quality rooibos in the past few years. I've tried several types of loose-leaf and tea-bagged types. Most fall short on desired robustness, brew strength, and subtleties of the tea flavor. Additionally, some initially good products have had flavor quality deteriorate. As for Positively Tea Company's rooibos, I'd rate it as "decent." Right out of the package, it can seem promising: organic leaves with a uniform cut, russet color and a subtly inviting aroma. However, once brewed, the tea falls short, lacking the nuances of great rooibos flavor, particularly some of its fruitier notes. I find this tea is best with some type of milk, the richer the better, to somewhat round out the flatness of its flavor.

I was born and raised in South Africa. Before she married and had children, my mother was a teacher and before WW II she taught at farm schools in the Clanwilliam area of the Western Cape. This is where she discovered and acquired a taste for Rooibos tea (also referred to as Bush Tea and in the Cape Town area as "Bossies"). In my first year of school (1950's in an area called the Eastern Cape) my teacher was born and raised on a farm in the Western Cape. My mother obviously shared her teaching experiences in that area and must have made a big impression on my teacher. After the first school vacation, when we were all back at school, my teacher gave me a large brown paper bag to give to my mother. Apparently her family produced Rooibos on the farm and the bag contained raw, unprocessed, and, what to me, looked like smail twigs. My mother was over the moon to get the "real stuff" that she remembered, as the tea was not yet easily available commercially. I tell you all this so you understand that when I look for Rooibos tea, I want a product that takes me back to what I grew up with in my childhood. I have noticed that a lot of "Red Tea" sold in the USA is more like a boutique blend, cut with other ingredients, which does not impart the full unadulterated smell and flavour of Rooibos tea. This tea from Amazon does. I was delighted when I opened the package, and there was the familiar look and fragrance I remember. After brewing a couple of teaspoons, and smelling and tasting the tea, I can only say that to me this is the real stuff. If anything has been cut into it I cannot see it visually, nor can I smell or taste it. Of possible further interest, at business meetings in Cape Town, when tea is served, there are usually two pots, one of historical "tea", and the other of "Bossies". It has a large following in the Western Cape and I can only recommend it to those who have not yet tried it, or developed a taste for it. Also, most people I have known who drink it, do not add milk, and drink it black (or red, rather), and infrequently, the only additive might be a touch of sugar.

This is my most favorite tea. It helps to mellow out a long day. There is a slight hit of vanilla which was surprising and pleasing. I also use this tea to make a cold process soap. It gives the soap a beautiful color and some of the rooibos scent transfers to the bar. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys loose leaf tea. The benefits of rooibos alone make this an excellent addition to anyone's tea collection (although, rooibos is technically a bush ;-) ).

it's okay tea. You need to get used to the odor & the flavor. when tea is prepared in hot boiling water, it starts to smell like tobacco but it tastes like normal tea. nothing extraordinary. I don't think it has any health benefits. it may be more of a marketing gimmick. I'll not be ordering this tea again once my stock is depleted since this tea is expensive.