Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
It’s classic! It’s English (actually it’s Indian and Sri Lankan)! It’s…breakfast! Nevermind. We’ll cut to the chase. It’s a nice cup of malty black tea from the Bargara and Kandoli Assam estates of India and the Kenilworth estate of Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Great with milk, good with sugar, best in the morning. This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve enjoyed quite a few of M&K’s Tea Company’s blends now so I was really eager to try this Classic English Breakfast Black Tea to see how well they crafted a traditional favorite. And I’m really glad that I had this opportunity to try it, because this is quite nice.
To brew: I put 1 bamboo scoop of tea into the basket of my Kati Tumbler and then poured in 12 ounces of boiling water. I set the timer for 2 1/2 minutes and let time take care of the rest.
This is a robust blend. I like that it focuses more on the Assam than the Ceylon, which gives it more of a rugged, hefty flavor. It’s strong and edgy, but without being bitter or too astringent. Had I steeped this for longer, though, I think that I would have had a bitter cup. Take care not to oversteep this blend!
The flavor is bold with notes of malt and there is a fruity, wine-like quality to this as well. There are two single estate Assam teas in this blend and I suspect one is more malty while the other is a more ‘wine-like’ Assam. It’s a nice balance between the two qualities. The Ceylon adds a certain ‘evenness’ to the flavor. It’s a rich, flavorful cup that would take the additions of milk and honey well – which is what most people look for in a breakfast blend.
Personally, I don’t usually add milk or honey to my teas, so my cup has that rugged edge to it that I like in the morning. It’s the kind of tea that I’d want if I need a good shake awake. It’s the kind of tea that will get you going.
Really nice!
Tulsi Green Indian Chai Tea from Teabox
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green Tea & Tulsi
Where to Buy: Teabox
Tea Description:
This Organic Herbal Tulsi Green blend is one of the first products aimed at combining the health benefits of green tea with Tulsi (Holy basil) leaves.
A work of art and science as it is a classic India-style masala (spice) tea with the best of all worlds: Darjeeling tea, fresh Indian herbs and spices.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Hmm … different. This Tulsi Green Indian Chai Tea from Teabox isn’t exactly what I think of when I think “chai” but it’s still pretty tasty.
The base is composed of a Darjeeling green tea and tulsi. I definitely taste the tulsi in this – it’s warm and has distinct peppery notes with notes of basil and whispers of crisp mint. The tulsi gives this cup a distinct herbal flavor.
I find that the green tea flavor is a little less discernible. It’s definitely there and I can taste it, but it’s not a strong presence and has a difficult time asserting itself in the presence of the tulsi which seems to really dominate the cup.
The same is true of the spices. I can taste warm spices but they’re difficult to really pick out and say, yep, I taste this or that spice. I can taste notes of clove. Every once in a while I taste a note that reminds me of cardamom and every once in a while my palate detects nutmeg. Because of the strong tulsi notes dominating the rest of the flavors, it’s difficult to determine with certainty what spices are in this blend and Teabox doesn’t mention on their website or on their ingredient list, which mentions only “green tea” and “tulsi.”
This is a warm and comforting blend though. It’s not particularly spicy – again, the tulsi is probably the ‘spiciest’ of the flavors that I taste. But it’s a cozy sort of blend with which to unwind. I do wish that the green tea was a little more assertive and the spices more expressive in this cup, but, as it is, I enjoyed what I drank.
Maple Marshmallow Flavored Iced Black Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Zoomdweebies
Tea Description:
Why hasn’t anyone combined these two flavors yet? I don’t know, but I’m not scurred. Here’s our premium organic Indian black teas blended with organic maple and marshmallow flavors.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn about SBT’s subscriptions here.
Taster’s Review:
YUM! This is seriously good.
My mouth watered when I saw the label on the package. I want those cupcakes.
And while this tea doesn’t have “cupcake-y” flavors to it, it definitely has the maple and the marshmallow! These flavors are strong and very well-defined. And even though they are really strong, I still taste plenty of black tea flavor too.
It’s sweet and refreshing. It’s something that tastes so good that you’d swear you’re cheating on your diet when you drink it, but you aren’t! It’s iced tea! It only TASTES indulgent.
This is one of the best flavors I’ve tasted from SBT thus far. This might even be better than my lime favorites (Lime Cola and Lime Jello).
If you’re one who doesn’t like sweet flavors – this tea probably won’t be to your liking. But for the rest of us, seriously, you’ve got to try this. It’s so good.
AND Southern Boy Teas has a new Kickstarter Campaign going. Please take a moment and check out the campaign and if you can, please consider contributing to this small business!
Organic Okayti Silver Needle Second Flush Darjeeling White Tea from Golden Tips
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Golden Tips
Tea Description:
Handpicked from the most delicate and tender portions of the tea bush, early morning and just before sunrise, this Okayti White is a class apart. The fluffy silver needles are manufactured to perfection and display an opulence only found in certain select White teas. The nose to the infusion is superb with a delicate character combined with grassy notes which follow sweet hints of honey. The liquor is pale and almost colourless. The flowery character in the flavor is extremely complex and perfectly fruity. With no grassiness at all, the flavor keeps on developing in the mouth once you keep rolling it for a few seconds till it peaks and flushes your mouth with a unique sweetness. If you love white tea, you should not miss this.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh, this is a lovely white Darjeeling! It seems like the Darjeeling region focuses primarily on their black tea production, but I find that the white, green and Oolong offerings that I’ve tried to be just as delightful – if not more so! – as the black teas and so when I do discover a white Darjeeling like this one from Golden Tips, I’m a very happy sipper!
To brew this tea, I used my 2 cup teapot (it’s a little ceramic teapot) and I ‘eyeballed’ a measurement of leaves that is approximately 2 bamboo scoops. (These leaves are very fluffy and difficult to measure with an actual bamboo scoop. So I must imagine that my hand is the bamboo scoop.) Then I poured water heated to 170°F into the teapot, put the lid on the teapot and let the tea steep for 3 1/2 minutes. Then I strained the tea into my brand new mug that my daughter gave me for Christmas.
And ah! This is truly a delight to sip.
The flavor is delicate – it is a white tea! – but not as delicate as you might expect! This has a stronger, more assertive flavor than a Chinese Silver Needle, but it’s certainly not as assertive as another leaf type.
It’s sweet with a very pleasant, thick texture. The description above suggests floral notes, and I am tasting those, but I’m also tasting delicious notes of melon and sweet grape. The sweetness comes not only from these fruit notes but also a honey-esque sweetness. There is an enjoyable balance between the fruity notes, floral tones and honeyed sweetness and I like how these play on the palate.
And this is a white tea! That means multiple infusions!
The second cup is darker in color. The first cup was quite light, almost colorless! This time there’s more of a light yellow-amber color to the cup. The flavor is stronger too, but I’m finding that balance between the fruit, floral and honey notes to remain. Each of those flavors is stronger with the second infusion but the flavors are still balanced. The texture seems a little thinner than the first cup and the best way I can think of to describe this difference is that the first cup was almost “creamy” in the consistency although it didn’t taste creamy. The texture of this cup isn’t as creamy.
With later infusions, I noticed the flavors change a little. The honey notes softened somewhat and I started to pick up on distant nutty tones. The tea is still sweet, just not as honey-like. I started to pick up on orchid notes. I could taste floral notes throughout, but I couldn’t really distinguish the flower I was tasting and as I continued to steep these leaves I began to taste more defined notes of orchid and maybe even a hint of honeysuckle.
The grape notes started to become more wine-like to me, too. Like a gentle white wine, but not such a dry or astringent finish as I’d experience from a white wine. Quite lovely!
If you’re one who tends to avoid white teas because you find that they taste too delicate for you, try a Darjeeling white tea like this Okayti Silver Needle. I think you’ll find the flavor more pronounced and much more satisfying!
24 Days of Tea Holiday Countdown – Day 10 from Teanzo 1856
OK, I can’t believe that it’s already the 10th of December! Sheesh! It seemed like this year disappeared way too fast.
For today’s artistic inspiration, I decided to show you a piece crafted by artist Sherri Auld. Like several of the other pieces I’ve shown you thus far, this ornament was part of a 12 Days of Christmas mail art swap I was involved in a couple of years ago.
The photo doesn’t really do this adorable little ornament justice. What Sherri has done is backed a metal cookie cutter with decorative holiday paper and she’s strung the cutter to make an ornament out of it. Then she finished the piece with a little snowflake embellishment.
I love the dimension of this piece. I also love the sparkle that the silver metal adds to my tree! It’s a fun ornament – something that would be awesome to make for that “little extra touch” to top someone’s gift under the tree.
Today’s tea is one that when I started exploring Teanzo’s website, I hoped that they’d include it! It’s YUMMY!
Signature Coconut Chai Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Teanzo 1856
Tea Description:
Our Signature Chai has the spices of a traditional Indian Chai, with a tropical twist. With flavors of coconut and vanilla, this Chai is a real treat without all the calories!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I pulled the sampler pouch marked with it’s “10” label from my Advent Calendar box from Teanzo and flipped over the pouch to read the tea for today, I was excited! Coconut Chai! Oh yeah!
The dry leaf aroma is yummy. Strong notes of coconut with notes of cinnamon and ginger. It smelled warm and exotic. It smelled delicious!
The brewed tea doesn’t have quite as delectable an aroma as the dry leaf. The brewing process has brought these essences together and they’ve become more melded. I still smell a strong coconut note, but the ginger and cinnamon seem to have become more of a background note. The black tea notes have more prominence in the aroma of the brewed tea.
This is really tasty. I can see why Teanzo have chosen to call this their ‘signature’ blend.
Although they call this a chai, I would categorize this as more of a warmly spiced coconut tea rather than a “chai.” Sure, chai = tea but, when I say the word “chai,” I’m talking about a blend of spices that may or may not have been blended with a tea base (or possibly a base of rooibos or other tisane-type base). I’m talking about a heavily spiced drink.
If I were to blindly taste this, I don’t know that I would have declared it a chai by taste. It tastes like a spiced coconut blend.
But I’m just arguing semantics here, if Teanzo wants to call this a chai – they can! It’s a really tasty blend of black tea, coconut and spice. If you like coconut – it’s a tea that you should try!
The black tea is a prominent flavor – it’s a bold black tea! It has notes of malt. it’s a substantial tasting black tea. It’s got a strong flavor with notes of malt. It’s a powerful presence in this cup and it has some real gusto to it – this would be a great tea to start the day with, especially if you’re looking for a tea with some flavors other than your typical breakfast blend. The warmth of the spices and the sweet coconut notes will add just that change of pace you’re looking for.
The coconut is sweet and creamy. I like how I feel that slick coconut feel in my mouth when I take a sip, however there isn’t that oily taste to it the way some coconut teas can taste. It’s very pleasant. I like the way the coconut is accented by the warm, zesty ginger and the spicy-sweet cinnamon. These spices are not too spicy, as I eluded to before. Instead, they’re a warm, cozy note to the cup that reminds me a little bit of being at gramma’s house while she’s baking cookies. You know, that delicious smell that keeps you going back into the kitchen wondering what’s in the oven? Yeah, that’s what the taste here reminds me of.
It’s really a yummy combination of flavors and one that I’m really thrilled that I got to try. I’m really happy that Teanzo included this in the box! YUM!