Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Harney & Sons
Tea Description:
We are introducing our SoHo Blend in honor of our new shop in Manhattan. Emeric Harney, the shop’s host, came up with this flavored black tea concoction. Our SoHo Tea is a beautifully delicious blend of black tea with chocolate, coconut and vanilla flavors, and amaranth petals.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
When I read the description of this SoHo Black Tea Blend from Harney & Sons, I really wanted to try it. Chocolate? Coconut? And Vanilla? That sounds too yummy to pass up. It sounds like … a candy bar in tea form! After checking through my reviews though, it would seem that I’ve reviewed this tea previously … so, consider this my second voyage with this tea.
The fragrance of the brewed tea is incredible. I can smell all the components: the rich chocolate notes, the creamy vanilla, and the sweet scent of coconut. I can even smell the earthy notes of the black tea in the background. I even smell very faint hints of flower, although these are somewhat obscured by the chocolate-y tones, which seems to be the most prominent aroma in this cup.
And this is a tasty tea. Unfortunately, it’s just not … quite as rich as I expected it to be. The body falls kind of flat and thin. Perhaps a more robust black tea base would help … something rich and malty like an Assam? Something with some heft that will not only support the chocolate, vanilla and coconut flavors, but also elevate them.
It’s not a bad tea. It has an agreeable flavor … I can taste the chocolate and the coconut and the vanilla notes. I can even taste the black tea. But, everything is just sort of … lacking in gusto. It’s a thin chocolate taste and you know me, I like a rich chocolate-y flavor. The coconut and the vanilla meld together to create a unified creamy note that’s a little bit coconut-y and a little bit vanilla-ish, but both of these flavors have the capability of producing a really rich, creamy flavor and I’m just not getting that from the sip.
Like I said, it’s a tasty, decently flavored tea, very much like my first experience, although I think maybe I liked it better the first time around than maybe the second. I guess it just goes to show that our palates change!
Sweet Chai Black Tea Blend from Spire Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Tea Description:
A sweet-spiced black chai tea blend with traditional spices and citrus notes. We dare you to try it with a bit of sugar and no milk!
Learn more about Spire Tea on their website.
Taster’s Review:
Also known as Soho Chai, this Sweet Chai Black Tea Blend from Spire Tea is a delightfully spicy-sweet chai that evokes thoughts of the holidays with its notes of spicy-hot cinnamon, warm cloves and sweet orange.
And what I like best about this particular cinnamon-orange type of chai is that while it has those familiar sweet-spiced notes of the red-hot candies, it isn’t as over-the-top or in-your-face as some of those teas can be. This has a little mellower, a little milder … and this makes a big difference. I can taste the rich black tea in this … this tea is not all about the cinnamon and orange!
But the cinnamon and orange play big roles in this tea. This is a very energetic, warm tasting tea that will invigorate you on those cold days when served hot, but it also tastes GREAT iced! It’s a very refreshing, deliciously different tea when served iced. The spice becomes slightly more subdued with the chill, and this makes the tea very thirst quenching and easy to drink.
This is one of those middle of the road spicy-hot yet sweet cinnamon teas that is not quite as in your face as some of the teas out there … but it’s bold enough to take your taste buds on a wild ride. I like it.
Green of London – Earl Grey Mao Feng Tea from Le Palais des Thes
Tea Type:Green Tea
Where To Buy:
Product Description:
Green of London is a particularly fine and well-balanced blend, consisting of an excellent Chinese green tea, a fresh and delicate bergamot, and flower petals – cornflower and blue mallow. An exceptional Earl Grey, finally available with a green tea base!
Earl Grey has been a great English classic ever since Charles Grey, 2nd Earl of Falloden and Foreign Secretary went on to become Prime Minister in 1830. For saving the life of the Chinese Mandarin, he received in gratitude a specially scented tea flavoured with oil of bergamot.
Tasters Review:
I received a lovely email from Fanja at Le Palais des Thes explaining that Green of London – Earl Grey Mao Feng is now available at their SoHo/NYC Store! Exciting!!! They sent the Sororitea Sisters a batch of their brand new US release and we are VERY excited to try this!
I must say – I cannot remember if I have had an Earl Grey flavored Mao Feng before. I know I have had Senchas, as well as other types of green’s that were EG flavored but I really don’t remember a Mao Feng!
I do really like this! They hit the nail on the head for EG flavor especially with the Green tea base, here! It seems to be the perfect level of EG flavor to be strong and true but you can still taste the Green Tea base which is grassy and sweet. The Bergamot is really nice too! And there is a hint of floral flavor and it increases as I continue to sip!
This is a nice sipping tea as well as a gulping tea. I enjoyed this hot and cold. Pretty brilliant!
I thought this was a pretty neat tea to review on my Birthday! CHEERS!
SoHo Blend from Harney & Sons
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Harney & Sons
Tea Description:
In honor of our new shop in Manhattan, we are introducing our SoHo Blend. Emeric Harney, the store manager, came up with this flavored black tea concoction. Our SoHo Tea is a beautifully delicious blend of Chocolate & Coconut flavors.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
YUM!
Over the last couple of months or so, I have been reading the tasting notes for this tea on Steepster (drooling all the while), and I’m so glad that I finally get to try it!
And this tea has definitely lived up to my expectations of it. It is so incredibly good! The black tea base is a strong, sturdy tea but it doesn’t have an overly aggressive flavor to it so it doesn’t overwhelm the nuances of the chocolate and coconut flavors.
There is a delicious balance between chocolate and coconut. The coconut tastes sweet, creamy and authentic, as though someone purified real, fresh coconut and put it in my teacup! The chocolate is rich and decadent tasting, like a fine quality bittersweet chocolate with hints of milk chocolate-y undertones.
Until now, my favorite teas from Harney and Sons have been Indian Nimbu and Paris (which I am shocked to find that I have not yet reviewed!) … now, I think it’s time to add a third favorite. This is a MUST TRY for chocoholics!