Verbs of Taste and Smell
When brewing custom herbal teas, you will naturally want to describe their unique aromas and flavors. In English, we say that an infusion smells or tastes "like" an ingredient. In Portuguese, the verbs cheirar (to smell) and saber (to taste) require the preposition a to express this exact idea.
| On the one hand, the green tea smells like pine. | Por um lado, o chá verde cheira a pinho. |
| I like the infusion, because it tastes like chamomile. | Gosto da infusão, pois sabe a camomila. |
Because you are referring to the general essence of a flavor or scent—rather than a specific, physical piece of the plant—you usually drop the definite article (o or a) and place the preposition a directly before the noun.
Combining Flavors and Aromas
If your mixture features multiple distinct notes, repeat the preposition a before every flavor or scent in the list.
| Your tea tastes like pine and eucalyptus. | O teu chá sabe a pinho e a eucalipto. |
| The syrup smells like clove and honey. | O xarope cheira a cravinho e a mel. |
Finally, you can easily use both verbs together to give a complete sensory description of your herbs and blends:
| This herb smells like rosemary, but it tastes like lemon. | Esta erva cheira a alecrim, mas sabe a limão. |
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