Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
GIDDAPAHAR MUSCATEL, manufactured by Giddapahar Tea Estate which produces some of the world famous Darjeeling Teas. The garden is famous due to its distinctive 2nd Flush. The larger part of the garden is planted with CHINA BUSHES which are ideal for the 2ND FLUSH MUSCATEL.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having just gotten over a bad cold, I was worried that perhaps I would not miss the wonderful subtle flavors of this Darjeeling. I feared that perhaps my taste buds were still impaired and that I’d not be able to detect the lovely muscatel that is promised in the name of this tea.
Fortunately, my taste buds seem up to par now, because I can taste the amazing muscatel notes here. Sweet and fruity, with a slight fermented fruit note going on … like fermented grapes. That is to say, there is a wine-like character to this cup that is quite delightful!
In the background, I can taste notes of earth and wood … deep and oak-y. These flavors come in toward mid-sip and are especially noticeable in the aftertaste, and they offer a very intriguing contrast to the sweetness that is introduced to the palate at the start.
Shortly after the fruity sweetness, I notice a sweet, exotic floral tone followed by a clean, almost bubbly kind of sensation over the palate. It’s almost effervescent. I want to describe it as a sparkling mineral water kind of taste that together with the astringency of this tea, creates an almost champagne-like experience. I don’t know if this is why some refer to Darjeeling as the “champagne of teas,” but, it would certainly give me cause to refer to it as such. It’s quite remarkable, and really very enjoyable.
Overall, the flavor is very light and crisp. I find this lightness to be very invigorating. Something that can put a skip in one’s step. Vibrant, complex and bright. A lovely experience!
Assam Mangalam Second Flush FTGFOP1 from Zen Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zen Tea
Tea Description:
Golden tips evoke the hot sun of the early June Second Flush Harvest. One of finest producers in region delivers a beautiful example of what is possible under the right conditions. Slightly heartier and creamier than some whole leaf Assams, this selection picks up deep malty notes of cocoa and subtle fruit.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s been a little while since I’ve had a really good, pure Assam tea … so when this tea arrived I was quick to brew up a pot of it, forsaking some of the other teas that I’ve had waiting for me for some time now. (Don’t worry, my pretties, I’ll get to you soon!)
And I am so glad that I decided to brew this … it’s just exactly what I needed! I’ve been feeling a bit off lately … not exactly sick, although I’ve had symptoms, but really, the cause is lack of sleep. My youngest daughter just started up school again not too long ago and I am one of those people that if they don’t get enough sleep, I start feeling sick with the aches, cold sweats, and nausea. But, I go back to bed for a couple of hours and presto, I’m feeling much more like myself now. Hopefully, I’ll get used to the new sleeping schedule soon!
Until then, thank goodness for Assam tea which has the delicious flavor and strength to help me shake what little residual feelings I might have after my short nap.
And this Assam is one of the very best that I’ve tried in a very long time. The aroma of the dry leaf is earthy and sweet and it brought a smile to my face like I had just met up with an old friend that I hadn’t seen in a while. The brewed tea maintains that sweet fragrance, although the scent is softer than when the tea is dry.
As for the taste: Oh wow… this tastes amazing. It is bold and earthy, with a delectable caramel-y sweetness. The caramel is further emphasized by the malt tones, and I even just noticed a hint of freshly roasted coffee in there too. It has a creaminess to it (and this could be enhanced with a splash of cream if you want to go latte, I did not, and still find it quite creamy without) Very rich, very complex, and very much a joy to drink.
And oh yes… it definitely has the gusto to get one motivated, too! If you like Assam, you’ve really got to try this one … it’s AMAZING!
Goomtee Silver Green 2nd Flush from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
GOOMTEE SILVER GREEN is a visual delight for GREEN TEA LOVERS. This tea comes with a lot of SILVER NEEDLES to add glory to this wonderful and rare tea. Each sip is an instant trip to blissful nirvana.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh… this is nice!
I am absolutely loving this Goomtee Silver Green! It’s not at all what I expected when I first opened the package. As I usually do when I first open a package of tea, I inhaled deeply to take in the fragrance. It had a very vegetative and earthy fragrance, reminding me of the forest floor here in the Pacific Northwest – earthy, mossy, and woody.
Once it’s brewed it takes on a stronger vegetative tone, reminding me a bit of the smell that I’d experience while walking through the “green” section of the produce area in a natural foods market. Very green. Very fresh.
The taste is not quite as vegetative as I would have expected given the strong vegetative and earthy tones I experienced from smelling the dry leaf. Sure, it’s still vegetative, but, it is more like mild vegetables, like something between a steamed artichoke and steamed spinach, with a lovely buttery undertone. It’s remarkably smooth and free of that bitter grassy tone that green teas can sometimes possess. It has a slight astringency to it … but again, not nearly as much as I would expect from a Darjeeling green.
But it still has much of what I would expect from a Darjeeling green, too. It has that crisp, vibrant taste that is almost bubbly. Hints of fruit notes, although with this green variety the fruit notes are not as strongly pronounced as they might be with an oxidized Darjeeling. Hints of spice as well, but again, a mellower spice note than what I might experience from an oxidized Darjeeling.
A spectacular tea, I just love the sweetness of this cup, as well as the deliciously satisfying broth-y taste. It is very comforting, a nice cuppa to enjoy with the cooler weather of autumn.
Giddapahar White Orchid – 2nd Flush from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
This tea has been made from PURE AV2 plants at an elevation of 6500 ft. A specialised team of tea pluckers pluck the finest 2 leaf and a bud under the full moon beam. No wonder this tea is distinctive from the others.
It gets its name ‘WHITE ORCHID’ as Giddapahar T. E. Is situated in the town of Kurseong which is also known as ‘The Land of White Orchids’ as this valley produces some high quality WHITE ORCHIDS.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! Just wow! This is a white tea?
When someone says “white tea,” thoughts of a pale, delicately flavored tea come to mind. Even now, even after all the tea that I’ve tried, even after trying some intensely flavored, pure white teas … the majority of the white teas tend to have a very “light” overall characteristic, and therefore evoke the thoughts of a very soft taste.
But this white tea simply shatters those thoughts immediately, with the very first sip. Yes, it does have a delicate quality to it, but, that certainly isn’t the first thing that comes to my attention. I first note a sharp floral note that tells me exactly why this tea is called “White Orchid.” This flowery note is not at all delicate! It is there … and it is quite bold.
It isn’t until the tea cools just slightly that the delicate qualities of this tea come into focus. Beneath the bold flavor of the orchid (which, I guess it could be argued is a rather delicate flower and perhaps the term delicate applies), there is a light, crisp note. Here is where the real “delicate” quality that I mentioned previously comes in. The flavor goes from a very powerful floral note to a much softer set of flavors … and while the presentation is on the delicate side, it is incredibly complex. I taste layers of fruit (white grape, hints of peach, and even a honey-like tone that evokes thoughts of Honeycrisp apples), whispers of an airy quality, and sweet notes of vegetation.
This is one of the most amazing white teas I’ve yet to taste. It is deliciously sweet, floral and possesses such an intriguing complexity. It is refreshingly full-flavored. This is a white tea for those who seek to challenge their previous thoughts about white tea. This is unlike any white tea I’ve tried before, and I love it!
Margarets Hope Bi-Mudan (2nd Flush) from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
MARGARETS HOPE BI – MUDAN has been made from PURE AV2 clonal plants at an elevation of 6000 ft. A specialised team of tea pluckers pluck the finest 2 leaf and a bud under the full moon beam which enhances the flavour of th tea. This tea is very high in antioxidants due to the process by which it is manufactured. A must try for the tea lovers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve tried maybe a handful (at most!) of white teas that were produced in Darjeeling, and I must say that the more I try, the more I like this rather rare tea! It has some qualities of a black Darjeeling with the lightness of a white tea … but then again, as a white tea, it has more flavor than a typical Chinese white tea. It’s quite an enigmatic tea, and I’m loving every sip of it!
And just because this IS a white tea, don’t think for a second that it is going to be “too delicate.” It is delicate, yes, when compared to a black or even a green Darjeeling. However, it is not delicate if it were compared to, say, a Silver Needle white. In comparison, this one has so much more flavor! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking a Silver Needle, I love them! But, I am also loving the delicious differences I’m noticing from this Bi-Mudan from Darjeeling Tea Lovers.
I taste much of the fruit notes that one might expect from a Darjeeling, I even taste hints of a grape-y muscatel! This muscat grape note is accompanied by a deliciously crisp apple-y taste that is a little bit sweet and a little bit sour. As I reach the end of the sip, I notice a slight mint-like note that is crisp and clean, and this note seems to meld with the astringency in such a way that is quite unique, leaving the palate feel clean and taste sweet. My mouth actually waters shortly after the sip ends, and I’m not sure if this has anything to do with the effects of the tea or just the fact that my taste buds are loving what they’re tasting so much that they want more!
It has a crisper taste than most black Darjeeling teas that I’ve tried, and usually these are sparkling and crisp! This is even more so! It has a very uplifting quality – not quite as calm or soothing as a white tea, instead, I’d say this has some energizing properties to it.
A fantastic Darjeeling white – and it’s FABULOUS iced!