Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: East Pacific Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Our most exquisite black tea from the Darjeeling region of India is available today. Try this rare and exotic tea to experience a bold rich taste with an unsurpassed aroma.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a wonderful Darjeeling – it is quite robust for a Darjeeling.
I typically think of Darjeeling to be a lighter tea. It possesses a lighter body and somewhat of a light, almost sparkling kind of taste, a trait that I think may have earned it the title the “Champagne of tea.” But this Darjeeling is different. Yes, it still has a sparkling kind of taste to it, as well as that wine-like muscatel, but, the flavor is quite a bit bolder and not quite as light and crisp as a typical Darjeeling. This one is really unique and quite special!
The fruit flavor that give it that wine-like quality is quite strong. I taste the grape-y, black currant-y kind of flavor but I also taste a plum-like kind of flavor in there. The medley of naturally occurring fruit flavors is quite delicious, and melds nicely with the woody kind of note that I taste in the background, creating a somewhat earthy note to add depth and contrast to the fruit tones.
The flavors are also quite smooth and there is a mild astringency at the tail. The finish is less dry than in a typical Darjeeling. There is a slight drying effect on the palate at the finish, but, not nearly as pronounced as I have experienced with other Darjeeling teas. The aftertaste is sweet with a hint of tangy flavor.
Quite a lovely Darjeeling, one I’d recommend to Darjeeling enthusiasts … this is one you’ll want to savor often!
Yellow Spirit from East Pacific Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yellow
Where to Buy: East Pacific Tea Co.
Product Description:
Yellow tea is one of the rarest types of tea to touch the earth. Halfway between white and green, this tea provides the best of both worlds: high in antioxidants and rich in flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yellow tea is my favorite tea, so I am always excited when the opportunity presents itself to try one that I’ve not yet tasted. This is a fantastic yellow with its delicate, creamy taste and a hint of nutty flavor in the background.
It has a silky mouthfeel to it, but I notice that it is not as prominent a mouthfeel as I’ve come to expect from a yellow tea, and there is a hint of tangy astringency that was also quite unexpected. Neither of these things are bad or render this beautiful yellow tea “off” in any way, it just makes it a little different than the rest.
The tea is sweet with brown sugar-ish kind of notes – it is very pleasant and ties in well with the aforementioned nutty tones of this tea. There is a vegetative note that arrives about mid-sip, and it is reminiscent of steamed bitter greens with a touch of butter.
It’s quite a delicious tea, sweet yet savory, and an absolute pleasure to sip.
Pure Nirvana from East Pacific Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: East Pacific Tea Co.
Product Description:
This certified tea from the Darjeeling region of India produces a cup of refined exotic flavours like no other. The mountain grown leaves have a distinct rich taste that you will love.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! When I first opened the pouch and smelled the slightly spicy tones of this tea, I didn’t realize it was an Oolong. I read the package and saw that it was a Darjeeling tea, so I steeped it according to the parameters I generally set for a Darjeeling black tea (that is: 195° F, for 2 1/2 minutes in my Breville One-Touch). Fortunately, these parameters seemed to work well with this Oolong.
Even as I sat here, contemplating my initial thoughts about this tea (the color and aroma: clear, medium-toned amber and sweet, spicy notes with a raisin-y front note), I hadn’t thought of this as an Oolong, but as a rather intriguing and unusual Darjeeling black. However, after the first few sips, I knew that this wasn’t a black Darjeeling, it is more similar to an Oolong. A quick visit to the East Pacific Tea Company’s webpage for this tea confirmed my suspicions.
Having only tried a few Darjeeling Oolong teas, I am very pleased to be able to have the opportunity to try this one. And of the ones that I have tried, I must say that this one is probably the most memorable. It has a sweet, somewhat fruit-like flavor (raisins?) to it. The texture is smooth and silky. There is some astringency to this, but not nearly as much as I would usually associate with a Darjeeling black. The astringency here is nice as it seems to cleanse the palate of the soft mouthfeel. The soft, smooth texture doesn’t build up on the tongue. It feels fresh and new each time I take a sip.
What is very special about this Darjeeling Oolong are those aforementioned sweet, spicy notes. This set of spice tones combined with the fruit flavors (I’m starting to notice an apricot-y kind of taste now, along with the raisin) makes for a very rewarding cuppa.
Now that I’ve tried this tea, and realized it to be an Oolong, the next time I shall enjoy it even more fully by brewing in my Gaiwan! I look forward to my next experience with this tea – and I highly recommend that my readers try this one. A truly memorable tea, one with which you will enjoy making memories!
Foreign Affair from East Pacific Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Rooibos
Where to Buy: East Pacific Tea Co.
Product Description:
Our Foreign Affair blend features buds from flowers of the Provence region in France. This rooibos tea is the most deliciously aromatic combination currently offered.
Taster’s Review:
This rooibos blend is beautifully fragrant. The dry leaf beacons me to brew it, while the brewed liquor beacons me to sip. The lavender and rose perfume the tea so pleasantly, while the fruit notes come through to cut through some of the floral notes just enough so that the tea doesn’t become all about the flowers.
What I like best about this blend is that the flavor of the rooibos is quite subtle. I can taste the rooibos, but only mere hints of a nutty, woodsy taste, and none of that weird sweetness that often comes from rooibos. The rooibos here seems quite content to let the fruit and flowers do all the work – and that’s quite alright with me.
The lavender and rose are a delightful pairing. Together, these two flowers give a slightly sweet, decidedly feminine taste to the cup. It is not unpleasantly sharp or bitter. The fruit flavors of blueberry, raisin, black currant and red currant offer a light tartness and just enough sweetness to the cup without going overboard.
The tea finishes soft and slightly tangy. It is a pleasing contrast of flavors: sweet and tart; fruit and flower. And it makes for a refreshing, restorative tisane that is delicious any time of the day, but especially in the evening when you want to succumb to the relaxation it offers.
Gold Flake from East Pacific Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: East Pacific Tea Co.
Company Description:
This tea is a treasure from the Yunnan province of China. Since it is grown high up in the secluded mountains there are only limited quantities of this rich tea available each year.
Taster’s Review:
What a remarkable Yunnan!
All the flavors that I would normally expect in a high quality Yunnan are there – but each note is just a little better than I expected. Am I contradicting myself? Allow me to explain what I mean…
When you think of a black Yunnan tea, what immediately comes to mind? For me, these qualities come to mind: complex, full-bodied tea with a rich, bold flavor and deep notes of spice.
The spice notes are there, but somehow they seem more enhanced – spicier, perhaps? Hints of pepper and even a slight nutty taste come through. There is also notes of earth and wood to the cup. Yes, this is a very interesting and complex cup of tea!
The flavor of this cup is indeed rich and bold; well-rounded with a fair amount of astringency that is drying and even a little bit starchy. It has a sweetness to it that reminds me of sweet potato.
What a beautiful Yunnan – every bit as beautiful as a flake of gold!