Crossword Genius

Go with a fresh essence (10)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

peppermint

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'essence' is the definition.
Although both the answer and definition are singular nouns, I can't understand how they can define each other.

'go with a fresh' is the wordplay.
'go' becomes 'pep' (I've seen this in another clue).
'with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'a' becomes 'per' (eg 'one a day' means 'one per day').
'fresh' becomes 'mint'.
'pep'+'per'+'mint'='PEPPERMINT'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for peppermint that I've seen before include "herb" , "Sweet flavoured with aromatic oil" , "Pungent sweet" , "Aromatic plant" , "flavour" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.