Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Golden Tips
Tea Description:
Our second flush ‘Arya Ruby Black Tea’ is a classic example of Darjeeling summer royalty. The well-made leaves are wiry and have a delightful appearance with plenty of silver tips. Manufactured to perfection, the tea boasts of an immensely complex character with abundance of muscatel flavor. The fruit-flowery notes flush your mouth with a sweetness that is pleasant and comforting. The aroma scents of rich caramel with a slightly woody character. The nose is sharp and slightly fruity which resonates muscatel richness. Overall, the tea has a fantastic texture, a balanced and rounded body with an extremely smooth flavor that leaves a sweet lingering aftertaste in your mouth. An excellent limited edition Darjeeling second flush black tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having tried Arya Ruby Darjeeling teas in the past, I was pretty confident that I’d enjoy this. It’s one of my favorite Darjeeling teas out there.
And this is indeed lovely! Sweet, delectably fruity and delightfully floral!
To brew this tea, I used my Breville One-Touch. I measured 2 bamboo scoops of tea into the basket of my tea maker and added 500ml of freshly filtered water. I set the temperature for 195°F (my go-to temperature for Darjeeling teas unless they look really green, then I might lower it to 190°F or even 185°F.) I set the timer for 2 1/2 minutes and I let my tea maker do the rest.
A few minutes later, the tea is done! Mmm!
The sip starts out with some what I’d describe as a medley of floral and fruit notes. By mid-sip, hints of fruity muscatel shine through. Subtle yet lovely notes of grape! A mild astringency toward the finish.
I’d categorize this as a medium bodied tea, it’s got a little more texture to it than a typical Darjeeling, but it certainly isn’t as hearty as say, an Assam tea. It would make an excellent afternoon tea!
A really lovely Darjeeling. I’d recommend this to any tea drinker, and especially those who might not have liked Darjeeling in the past. I believe this Darjeeling could change their opinion of Darjeeling!
Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea (Competition Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
Region: Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan
Type: Black Tea
Harvest Time: Winter 2013
Oxidation level: Fully oxidised
Taste: Natural flavour of cinnamon with a slight hint of mint.
When to drink: Throughout the day
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having tried and LOVED the Premium Grade Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea from Cameron Tea, I was excited to try their Competition Grade Ruby Black to see how it would compare.
I brewed this tea in my ceramic teapot which I warmed using hot tap water prior to measuring out the tea leaves. I pinched out what appeared to be the equivalent of two bamboo scoops of the tea into the vessel. This tea – because of it’s long, wiry leaves – is difficult at best to attempt to actually measure out with my trusty bamboo scoop. So, unless you have a scale, you’re probably better served to use the noggin here and give it your best guess rather than to try to measure this tea with scoops or spoons. I personally do not have a tea scale – and I don’t want one! Tea should be simple and scales = scientific. Science = not simple.
Anyway, after putting an estimated 2 scoops of tea into my teapot, I then added 16 ounces of near boiling (205°F) water to the teapot and let the tea steep for 3 minutes. The result is a near perfect cup of tea! (Well, actually, a mug of tea!)
It’s been a little while since I last tried the Premium Grade Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea, but what immediately caught my attention about this tea is the cinnamon-y spice notes! I don’t remember the spice notes being quite as forward in the Premium Grade version of this tea, and I’m not sure why that is.
Just beneath the cinnamon-like notes I notice flavorful notes of cacao – now those flavors, I remember! I think that the big difference, at least in flavor, between the two grades is that this Competition Grade has a more pronounced spice note and the Premium Grade has a stronger cacao focus.
Other than that, this tea is very similar to the Premium Grade … both are rich, satisfying teas that would serve well as a breakfast tea or mid-to-late morning tea. There is a strength to this cup that I find appealing, it’s the kind of tea that I want early in the day to keep me going.
This is really quite lovely on a day like today, when the weather is getting just a little cooler. Not a lot cooler yet, but, I’m certainly ready and eagerly awaiting more signs of autumn to appear! But this tea definitely has an autumnal sort of flavor going on and I like it a lot.
Another cup of AWESOMENESS from Cameron Tea!
2014 Organic Arya Ruby Darjeeling First Flush from Happy Earth Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Happy Earth Tea
Tea Description:
This Arya Ruby is finely crafted with its signature fragrance deep and rich in complexity that will cheer a Darjeeling enthusiast.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Sweet! That’s the first thing that I thought when I took my first sip of this tea: this is beautifully sweet!
The dry leaf is appealing to me with the varying shades of green, brown and silver. These leaves produce a coppery colored cup with a pleasant fruity note that evokes thoughts of grape. I could also pick up on some floral tones in there.
My first sip, I was really blown away with how sweet it tasted. I could taste notes of raisin (not always something I notice in a first flush Darjeeling) and peach. I’m tasting some of that sugary sweetness that I would taste with a dried fruit with hints of a grape-y like flavor. The peach is much more apparent to me, with mere hints of grape-like flavor, but I’m definitely tasting the sugary sweetness which leads me to think “raisin” rather than “grape.”
I taste floral notes that have been softened by the sweetness of this tea. As I near the bottom of the cup, the floral notes begin to emerge stronger than at the start.
But what really surprised me is that lovely hint of chocolate that I started to notice at about mid-cup. There were these really rich, decadent, smooth flavors developing: somewhat caramel-y with notes of chocolate! Love! There’s a delightful smoothness to this cup with very little astringency.
Yet another amazing Darjeeling from Happy Earth Tea. If you’re a fan of Darjeeling, you really can’t go wrong with the teas that Happy Earth Tea offers. It’s a great company that is socially and environmentally responsible, and I really appreciate that.
Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea (Premium Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
Region: Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan
Type: Black Tea
Harvest Time: Winter 2013
Oxidation level: Fully oxidised
Taste: Natural flavour of cinnamon with a slight hint of mint.
When to drink: Throughout the day
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Another gorgeous black tea leaf from Cameron Teas! When I opened the package of this Sun Moon Lake Ruby Tea, what I found were leaves that looked exactly like the photo above – beautiful, chocolate brown to black tea leaves, long with wiry curls.
The aroma of the leaves reminds me of leather with very subtle spice notes. Once the leaves are brewed, the spice notes emerge. The tea smells of warm spice and leather and wood. It’s a very masculine fragrance.
The last tea that I sampled from Cameron Teas was a Sun Moon Lake Assam tea, so as I was brewing this tea, I found myself wondering how different this would taste from that Assam.
There are some similarities to that memorable tea: most specifically, notes of caramel, cocoa and malt with some earthy notes. Both of these teas share these characteristics, but they definitely DO taste different. I think that the Assam has more malt to the cup and more of that caramel-y undertone, while this tea has some distinct warm spice notes of cinnamon – just as the description above suggests – as well as a subtle yet crisp, mint-like finish and aftertaste.
This tea has less of the fruity notes and more of a rich cacao and spice flavor than the Assam. They are distinct differences between the two, and I would find it a difficult undertaking to recommend one over the other because I enjoyed both and rather than recommend one over the other, I’d simply say that you should also try both and determine which you like best!
Both teas are rich and satisfying, but if I were to choose one for that all important first cup of the day, I think I’d reach for this one. The Assam, while delicious and rich in it’s own way, it has more of an “afternoon tea” type of flavor to me with it’s fruit notes, while this one has the kind of flavor that I think would stand up nicely to a splash of milk and a drizzle of honey if you care to add it to your morning cuppa.
This tea seems more robust to me, which almost seems odd for me to say and to read as I type it … because I generally consider Assam to be a bold, robust sort of tea. But when it comes to these Sun Moon Lake varieties, I think that this Ruby has a slightly “heftier” flavor and texture than the Assam. That isn’t to say that I’d recommend this one over the Assam … only that this one offered more of a “breakfast tea” experience to me while the Assam offered me an “afternoon tea” experience.
This is a really excellent Sun Moon Lake tea. I’m very impressed with these teas that I’ve been trying from Cameron Tea!
Organic Arya Ruby Darjeeling Black Tea Second Flush from Happy Earth Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Happy Earth Tea
Tea Description:
Second Flush Arya Ruby is much sought after by Darjeeling tea enthusiasts for its rich muscatel and a floral-fruity complexity. Our earlier batch was entirely sold out even before we could put it up on the website. We are glad we managed to get a fresh stock, albeit limited.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
YES! This Organic Arya Ruby Darjeeling Black Tea Second Flush from Happy Earth Tea is the type of Darjeeling that I think of when I think “Darjeeling Tea.” This is it! When I say “I think I’d like a Darjeeling Tea today … this is the kind of Darjeeling that moves me to want that type of tea! This is the Darjeeling I LOVE!
This is as close to perfect that a Darjeeling can get.
As with most Darjeeling teas, it has a lighter body than a typical black tea. A typical black tea generally delivers a rich and robust flavor while this Darjeeling delivers a crisp and lively flavor. This has a smoothness to it and a milder astringency than many Darjeeling teas that I’ve tasted.
This is sweet! Lovely floral notes that weave their way throughout the sip. Toward mid-sip, I find that muscatel. Piquant and fruity. It’s a delicate muscatel note and keeps to the rest of the flavors within the tea. That is to say that this tea isn’t just about it’s grape-y notes. This Arya Darjeeling has a wonderfully complex character.
Toward the tail, I notice the dry wine-like astringency. Again, this astringency is mild, much more so than I might experience with another Darjeeling tea.
I think I just found my favorite Darjeeling tea. If I could, I’d put this on everybody’s MUST TRY list, because you really have got to try it!