Strawberry (Sparkling) (SC) (WF) (10-7-23) – 2nd to LAST one on deck people. Normally something in the smell or finger test sets the tone for me with flavors, but this one, it might just have been the COLOR. Post steeped this one had a somewhat lighter pinkish, almost amber color which was interesting being a Strawberry flavor. Normally they are clear, so WHAT exactly WAS in this flavor ?? Well, I can make it easy for you, it tasted like a juicy red strawberry, mixed with a light, sweet champagne, with a touch of marshmallow. Yes, I know what that sounds like, hehe. Now, I have to clarify the previous profiles. The champagne was my best, closest comparison, but without any dry-ness, wine-ish notes, but with some “sparkle” in it. The marshmallow was more about some of the mouthfeel I got from this one, and a hint of the taste, as opposed to a full on marshmallow assault. There weren’t any “sharp” edges on this one, and had a slight smoothness to it, hence my thoughts of MM. The strawberry, while reduced somewhat due to the other profiles, tasted mostly red, juicy, and with hints of white/green SB thrown in. 3 testers later, I couldn’t find any off-notes, and overall, it was full , BUT, the SB was not as pronounced as I would have liked.

This is where YOUR personal preferences will come into play. The ratios. The SB did NOT taste like it was dominant here, so that may decide for you where to rate this flavor. A completely guessed ratio would be 40% Red Strawberry, 50% light, sweet champagne, and 10% marshmallow. Wow, this one was tough to describe for you guys, but there you have it. It indeed DID “sparkle”, and did so in a very unique fashion. Overall, my only complaint would be the somewhat recessed SB, so I finally decided on an 8.0/10. Dropping in some SB on top would easily resolve it for my tastes.