★★★★★
I described this to my daughter as 'Earl Grey, but less TEA.' The rooibos is mild, which makes for a pleasant cup where the other notes shine brighter.
A caffeine-free twist on a classic blend. Zesty citrus, but smoother and sweeter than traditional Earl Grey.
Customers use these reviews to describe their experience with Rooibos Earl Grey, including flavor, aroma, preparation preferences, strength, and how the tea fits into daily routines. Browse the full review history page by page to compare tasting notes, steeping tips, and favorite ways to enjoy this tea.
I described this to my daughter as 'Earl Grey, but less TEA.' The rooibos is mild, which makes for a pleasant cup where the other notes shine brighter.
I'm an Earl Grey fan and like many versions of this tea. This Rooibos Earl Grey version was good but will not be one of my favorites unless it is very watered down. I first brewed it at 195F for 5 min. following the recommendations of other reviewers. This may have quelled any bitterness but I half expected a small duke out between the tanginess of the Rooibos and the strong flavor of bergamot upon my first sip. Milk and sugar to the rescue! The additions of these smoothed out the edginess of the two larger than life flavors and allowed the orange flavor a fighting chance to be enjoyed in peace. The second steep was better for me and the third steep was even more enjoyable. For the third steep, I used half the amount of water at 212F for 5 min. This yielded a gentle herbal tea with a hint of Earl Grey. This was a winner. I could drink this third cup without milk and sugar as it was tasty and smooth. If I have the opportunity to drink this again, I would probably rinse the tea ingredients first.
This tea smelled so good and looked beautiful. I made it with honey and a splash of cream. It was definitely a middle of the road tea for me.
I was excited to smell bergamot when opening the CommuniTEA packet for today. This one smells just like the standard Earl Grey.
Steeped for 5 mins at 212°F as suggested on the packet. (This is the same as the setting for standard black tea on the VelociTEA kettle.) The first cup after steeping smelled slightly different, and like a plain Rooibos tea with bergamot. Like an Earl Grey minus the actual tea leaves, it has a 'rounder' smooth scent. The flavor was just as it smelled, much smoother than a true Earl Grey, missing the tea tannins and with the bergamot astringency coming in stronger as an aftertaste.
Overall, this is an OK tea for those craving the bergamot flavor of Earl Grey in the afternoon or nighttime without the caffeine. However, it left me wanting a real pot of 100% caffeine Earl Grey afterwards. So maybe this is more of a 'gateway drug' for those already addicted to Earl Grey? 😄
As a regular Earl Grey tea drinker, it's hard to judge this tea in isolation without comparing it to the original Earl Grey or other Adagio Earl Grey blends. If I had to rank them, it'd be: Earl Grey Bella Luna (favorite), Earl Grey Moonlight,
Earl Grey Lavender, Earl Grey Bravo, and finally this Rooibos Earl Grey. I haven't tried the Earl Grey Green, or the new Arabica Earl Grey.
A fair citrus tea, I wouldn't compare it to earl grey. A solid caffiene free option for those who desire it. I sampled this Tea as part of the CommuniTEA January Box.
I don't mind rooibos teas, but I'd say that unless you're a lover of both the aforementioned as well as earl grey.
If you like bergamot flavor and rooibos, it might be for you. It wasn't my cup of tea.
I really strongly dislike rooibos, so that put this tea at a disadvantage right away. On the other hand, Earl Grey is one of my favorite types of tea. The rooibos and bergamot flavors actually seemed pretty balanced - I was able to pick up both without either being overpowering. But I definitely prefer the black version of Earl Grey and would not choose this again. My kids really like red tea though, so that was good!
It's okay. I generally do not care for rooibos teas, but I do like Earl Grey. I like this better than I generally like rooibos thanks to the Earl Grey flavors. If you are a rooibos fan, you'll probably enjoy this.
I generally don't care for rooibos tea, but it worked well here. The earl grey bergamont flavor was present and covered up the rooibos taste I just don't like, but wasn't overpowering.
I love Earl Grey. I generally don't care for rooibos, but I think it works in some blends. This is not one of those blends. The bergamot just does not complement the nutty rooibos flavor. It came across as oddly perfume-like, almost medicinal. So much for my hopes of a great caffeine free Earl Grey :(
Strong flavor. It’s pretty floral but I’m into it. I think it’d be great with honey.
I like earl grey, but I am not a fan of Rooibos and this was no different.
Oh, this is lovely. Very strong earl grey taste and not at all overpowered by the rooibos. I enjoyed mine as a sort of quasi-London Fog (I only had cold half and half, which I shook vigorously to froth, rather than steamed milk or cream). Lovely drink, and I'm excited to find a way to make one of my favorite comfort drinks without having to worry about overdoing on caffeine. (5 mins at 212F)
Both rooibos and bergamot are pretty divisive flavors (personally I love both), so if you dislike either: don't order this tea!!! The medicinal taste of rooibos and bitterness of bergamot are prominent, but to me they come together quite well.
The tea itself is a gorgeous red color, and smells a little cough syrupy (but not overpoweringly so). It tastes mellow and earthy with a good bit of citrus to brighten it up. There's an underlying sweetness that allows this tea to be drunk without additional sugar.
This would be a good tea to sip on all day to nurse a sore throat, or as a caffeine-free way to enjoy earl grey flavor before bed.
A perfume-y smell, a medicinal taste. Rooibos and fruit tend to be a sign I'm not going to like a thing particularly well--I was unfortunately not surprised by this.
This tea tastes like nothing but medicine to me. I’ve never really enjoyed rppibos much but can usually tell when it suits the blend. This blend, however, isn’t my favorite at all.
The dry blend is very pretty with the contrasting rusty rooibos and the blue cornflowers. The bergamot flavor was a bit lighter in this--probably to match the rooibos since it's much less robust than the black tea bergamot is usually paired with. A little bit of orange flavor came through. Not really my cup of tea as I don't favor bergamot especially, but nice if you're looking for a decaf Earl Grey.
Not a fan of rooibis teas and this is no exception. Earl Grey tea is best left to the black tea family.
This tea sadly was undrinkable for me. I’m not sure why, but I couldn’t get past the smell or the taste. I enjoy Earl Greys, but I don’t have much experience with Rooibos so that may have been the determiner.
I will start off this review by saying that I really enjoy a good earl grey, that being said, I find that not all earl grey's are good. This tea smelled lovely upon opening with the bergamot flavour coming through the rooibos. Everything appeared present in my packet, so I steeped up as per instructions. I find this tea pretty good, The bergamot does nicely balance out the woodier taste of the rooibos, however, it does not drown it out completely, so I think those with an aversion to rooibos may not find this to their taste. The orange does come through although not as strongly as the bergamot, it remains in the background complementing the flavour. The taste does change somewhat as the cup cools, the rooibos becoming more of a prominent taste, lending the cup a more earthy, woody tone. I enjoy it much better when drunk hot, and while it's nice to have an option for a decent non-caffeinated earl grey, I must admit that I prefer earl grey on it's usual black base.
Got this rooibos earl grey in the CommuniTEA box. When I smelled the packet, I was reminded of a cleaning product but thought maybe it was just the orange making me think that. It tastes better than it smells but the flavor isn't for me. I'd describe the taste as kind of musty, guess I don't like bergamot or something. I did not resteep another cup.
I'm not a black tea drinker, so this was a tea I could enjoy with my Earl Grey friend. I quite enjoy the bergamot flavor with the rooibos in the background.
This is just weird. Earl Gray is fine, but paired with Rooibos is too strange of a flavor. There's almost a weird cooling effect with this tea that I'm guessing is coming from the bergamot. Normally it isn't that present in a regular Earl Gray. Can't recommend this one, but as always, your mileage may vary.
Not a fan, but I tend to dislike earl greys with strong bergamot, and this tea has VERY strong bergamot.
Steeped for around 6 minutes at 210, and it brewed up a mid-deep coppery brown. The rooibos is more prevalent in scent than it is in taste, but you do still clearly taste the woodiness of it.
Received for Day 4 of January communiTEA.
I prefer honeybush to rooibos. This tea has very perfumey earl gray flavor, that I don't like as much. I prefer black tea early gray. This would be an ok alternative if you want something herbal but I think I'd pick a decaf black tea earl gray over this .
Not an early grey fan, but it was smooth. I may drink again, but now a favourite.
I'm not a fan of Earl Gray because the taste of bergamot is too strong. And I'm picky when it's time to try tea with this. This one has a strong smell of bergamot with a touch of rooibos. To taste, it's orange, rooibos and, of course, bergamot. It's not really strong at first. But the more I drink it, the more it takes place in my mouth. Although I'm glad I tried it, it's not for me.
Ah the familiar scent of Rooibos. I do enjoy rooibos, and earl grey flavors have become a recent new favorite. My CommuniTea packet was missing orange peel, so I added a few pieces from my own stash. There's not much more to say about this tea other than it's a Rooibos flavored with Bergamot. A good combination, I always thought citrus worked well with rooibos. I added some [almond] milk and a tiny bit of sugar. It was a very enjoyable cup.
I’m skipping today’s communiTEA. I hate Earl grey (bergamot) and not a huge rooibos fan, so I’m not subjecting myself to this variety knowing in advance there is no way I’ll like it.
If you like earl grey and rooibos, you’ll probably love this tea. I generally don’t like earl grey tea and only enjoy rooibos when the added flavors disguise the taste of the leaves, like in the rooibos nutcracker and rooibos mango. So I’m not surprised this was not my favorite. I used a few tips I learned recently to try to make this cup more enjoyable, but nothing helped for me. First took a sip of the plain tea and found the bergamot flavor super strong. It always tastes like pine sol or some other cleaning product to me. So I added honey, which recently helped me enjoy a green earl grey variety (not from Adagio), but it just tasted sweeter... the bergamot was still overwhelming and bitter. After a few more sips, I tried adding almond milk, which didn’t help. Added more honey, still didn’t like it. Drank less than half the cup. Decided to give up and make a cup of tea I will actually enjoy. I’d still give other earl grey teas a chance if they come up in the CommuniTea box, but I hope I don’t encounter this tea again.
Awful medicinal smell and equally bad taste. Not for true EG fans.
I like earl grey, so I was excited to see rooibos and earl grey together in one tea. The aroma was very good when I opened the packet. Taste wise, it is good, but it may need one more addition of something to pull the combination together. It was good enough but I felt like , mmmm, something is missing.
I'm not a fan of earl grey, and I'm hit and miss on the rooibos. The bergamot was very strong on the first steep, which was a huge turnoff; second steep was very strong on the orange flavor. If you like earl grey and don't like caffeine, give this a try.
the bergamot scent was really strong in this blend, but overall was not a bad cup. I enjoyed it, even though it's not something i would keep on hand myself.
I probably should have just skipped this days tea choice in my comminitea. I don't care for rooibos or earl Grey, but I keep trying both in the hopes I'll find one that suits me. This one just didn't work for me.
I am usually not a fan of red rooibos but I think that in this blend the red rooibos and earl grey meet up in the middle to create a balanced blend. Neither the rooibos nor the earl grey are overwhelmingly overpowering each other.
The Earl Grey flavor blends with the rooibos to make a smooth cup of tea. Although when hot, the earl grey is dominant, as it cools the rooibos asserts itself. This tea doesn't need any sweetener unless you want to bring out light citrus, then honey does the trick. No caffeine is a plus for those who like earl grey but are avoiding caffeine.
I don’t taste the bergamot at all. I strongly tasted the orange rind. I have some saved and I will try it with milk and honey to smooth it out like others suggested.
I really enjoyed the rooibos earl grey tea sample. I will be purchasing this in the future.
I really enjoyed the unique nature of this earl grey... very soothing to me
I love Earl Grey. I hate Red Rooibos. I was hoping that the strong bergamot and orange flavors would calm down the rooibos. They did not. There was only one little chunk of orange, so I added more to help it out. While I could taste the lovely earl grey flavors, the rooibos was still too prevalent for my liking. If you are a fan of rooibos and earl grey, then I can imagine that this would be a winner. (reviewed through CommuniTEA; 5 min @ 212F)
Everybody appeared to be present in my communiTEA packet this morning. However, the orange peel decided to jump ship. I took care of that by making a visit to my cookin’ spice pantry and adding a tiny pinch of them little buggers to the tea. Mild bergamot aromas were noted. The blue cornflowers threads were looking “purty!” I lowered the steep temperature in hopes of staving off any woodiness from the rooibos.
When hot, woody flavors from the rooibos were not present, but a mild nuttiness was. Very mild bergamot flavors were noted. No orange favors were present at this point. A bit of sugar was added just ‘cause I wanted to. The cornflowers gave it up by losing their color.
When warm, Earl supplied some smooth floral flavors. No soapy tastes were noted from the bergamot, which is a plus for me since I’m not a big Earl Grey fan. Pleasant Orange flavors closed things out at finish.
In the end, this blend tasted like a mild version Earl Grey Bravo black, but with the nuttiness of rooibos as a base. Decaf is the “big deal” with this one. (5 mins @ 190ºF, 1/4 tsp sugar)
It is definitely better with honey added and I can taste the floral notes, but nothing about the tea 'wows' me.
Today communiTea was a combination of one of my favorite teas, red rooibos and one of my least favorite teas, earl grey and I wasn't quite sure what to except. Hmm aroma was quite nice, a pleasant zesty citrus, when I first opened the packet. But as it steeped and transformed into a beautiful rich red color, unfortunately my kitchen filled with a slightly strong floral scent. Upon first sip, a sharp bergamot flavor was present sending floral notes up my nose but as it cooled finally the sweetness of red rooibos and some light Citrus notes entertained my tongue. Something was off, so I added a little extra Pizzazz, some of adagio rooibos honey. My question for you, do you love Earl gray, and sipping on a delicious rooibos tea? Then you'll definitely enjoy this blend. For ME, Earl Gray tea and it’s floral notes are still to strong, and that alone has me tapping out. Thanks to communiTea I got to experiences something out of my norm, but nope, I still didn’t love Earl Gray based tea. (212°F for 5 minutes) note: my stars today reflect not the blend, but my personal tea preference.
The earl grey flavor comes through but is muddled and not complimented by the rooibos. The rooibos leaves a medicinal after taste as well.
Looked a bit like sawdust in the pack and indeed smelled a bit like sawdust as it was brewing. I love Earl Grey and was disappointed to find nothing resembling the taste of Earl Grey. The rooibos and orange were strong and the flowery taste overpowered everything. Not going on my favorites list.
I like earl gray and it was interesting to see what the Rooibos would be like. It was lovely. I did not taste any medicine like flavor. To me it was full bodied earl gray without the caffeine. Just what I wanted. I had it hot with a tad of stevia and loved it. Kept some to cool and that also was excellent. Looks like I have to get this one. A good cup for curling up with a book in the evening. 💗💗💗💗💗
I usually like a regular Earl Gray and rooibos on their own so I was excited to try this one for a caffeine free version, but something about the combination is just a little off for me. It smells medicinal or almost like a cleaning product. I can taste some woodiness from the rooibos and a bit of citrus, but overall the flavor is very perfumey. I added a teaspoon of honey and it did help a bit, but I wasn't able to finish my cup. I'm glad I got to try it as part of the CommuniTEA but wouldn't purchase it for myself. (212°F for 5 minutes)
I general don' t like bergamot. That said I do really like Rooibos so this blend was decent enough for a cup.