Which flavor is "tea flavor"? Black, pu-erh, oolong, green, white? For black, is it Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling, etc, etc? Why should the specific flavor blend that Lipton's tasters put together for their Yellow Label be good enough for everybody?
I think someone who refers to a generic "tea flavor" really just means "tastes vaguely like a plant".
I had the opposite experience in many coffee shops when asking what kind of teas are offered and the answer was "black and green" as if that told me anything.