Harney & Sons

Edit Company

Recent Tasting Notes

I came home from writers’ group soooo hungry. I didn’t want caffeine this late but I didn’t think I should have a chocolate shake, which is my go-to night time I’m hungry snack.

Instead I made the pinterest popcorn in the microwave – pour 1/2 cup popcorn kernels into container, stir in one tsp. oil, pour into brown paper lunch sack, fold top of bag over and microwave on high for 2 1/2 minutes. you can spray it with Pam or pour melted butter over it, salt or season to taste.

To go with it and cut down on calories I had this herbal tea blend. Very refreshing, almost no calories since I only added a touch of sugar, and no fat. Hooray! And I finished the pitcher! My next iced tea I think will be Passionfruit by H&S.

SimplyJenW

Passion Fruit makes a great iced tea. I have some pouches of the Decaf Passion Fruit to try. I find it interesting that loose, they have Passion Fruit and Decaf Peach (Midsummers) and in the 2 qt pouches, they sell the reverse….Peach and Decaf Passion Fruit…..

Daisy Chubb

Did the popcorn trick work? I’m desperate to try but I keep forgetting to buy brown paper bags haha

ashmanra

Jen: I noticed that last night at Barnes and Noble. I even stooped over to look at the tin more closely to see if it said decaf anywhere, but nope! The iced peach is not decaf, the Passionfruit is!

Daisy: oh yes, it works very well. I thought one teaspoon oil would not be enough but it is plenty. I bought fifty cheap, thin brown bags at WalMart. Fold the top over once or twice. We didn’t use salt because we used that seasoning they sell at WalMart and most groceries. Our favorite is white cheddar but we are having nacho flavor now.

Daisy Chubb

ah yum! Thank you, I will definitely try it as soon as I remember to buy those bags o_o

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

This was a free sample provided with my last H&S order. I received the large sachet for iced tea. It makes 2 quarts.

The description states that this is a hibiscus blend but doesn’t go into as much detail as the description of Raspberry Herbal loose leaf, so I don’t know if they are identical mixes or not.

When I was at Barnes and Noble a few months back, an employee was encouraging me to buy a tin of this. I asked if she had tried Tazo Passion and she said yes. I asked how this differed and she said it didn’t. I think she was wrong there.

While the two are similar, this is a bit more restrained than Passion. The hibiscus is there, don’t get me wrong, so if you hate hibiscus you probably won’t like this. But it isn’t so….well, like a kids’ drink.
There is more than hibiscus to this blend and while I think children would enjoy it, I think it has a little more refinement than some such blends.

This is not one I am likely to buy unless the family just goes crazy over it, but I will enjoy this pitcher of it. I would really love to try their other iced blends that have a tea base, black or green!

SimplyJenW

Lucky you getting a free sample. I have not gotten one in my last several orders even though Mike mentioned on Facebook that they put one in all orders. Don’t get me wrong, I am glad they treat you so well. (If anyone deserves such treatment, it is you!) I am disappointed, lately. I will still keep buying from them, but I don’t think I am such a fan of their customer service anymore. My experience with them has turned pretty average. It kind of makes it hard for me to be such an advocate for their brand.

LiberTEAS

I didn’t get a free sample with my last order either, which I found strange as well as disappointing, because in previous orders I had received samples, and I thought maybe they had changed their policy or something. It was, as I said, disappointing.

ashmanra

I have received a sample in my recent orders, but I can not say for sure that I have received one in every order. I think I remember being surprised the first time I got one a long time ago, so my first orders may not have had them. I thought it was just a sometimes thing.

SimplyJenW

I thought it was a sometimes thing, too, until I read on Facebook:

Do you offer free samples?
Like · · June 29 at 3:27pm
Harney & Sons Fine Teas James, We do add free samples into every box that we ship. Also we do sell loose tea samples for $2-3. Let us know if we can assit you.
July 2 at 5:44pm · Like

SimplyJenW

To be fair, I have had them in about half of my web orders, probably moreso in the beginning rather than lately. I would not have expected one in this last order except for the posting above. Maybe there is a price threshold?

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Chinese Flower by Harney & Sons
2816 tasting notes

Thanks to ashmanra for this one, I am enjoying it this morning. I’m not going to rate it because my taste buds are totally askew from not feeling well but it’s a nice blend of citrusy flowers and it did the job to perk me up this morning. :))

Azzrian

get better soon Amy

TeaBrat

bleh – I’ve lost 5 pounds in the last few days which is not the healthiest way to do it!

JC

I was in that ‘train’ a while ago, lost 9 pounds. Coincidentally, I lost the weight I wanted, not the way I would have lol. I hope you get better. Drink lots of water/a.k.a. tea.

TeaBrat

thanks. :)

Missy

D’oh hope you feel better soon.

TeaBrat

me too…

Charles Thomas Draper

I hope you feel better Amy..

ScottTeaMan

Get well soon! I know one thing-the Steepster community shines less brightly in your absence Amy!

Indigobloom

eep! get well soon Amy!!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Taiping Houkui by Harney & Sons
57 tasting notes

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Someone had asked me to post when I got my glasses and tell how I liked them. I think they are more beautiful in person than online or in the catalog! I took a photo, which is a little blurry, but maybe it will give a good idea anyway.

You really only pour about four ounces in these to be in keeping with how hot tea is served in a glass container. One thing that makes it extra pretty to me is that the very bottom of the glass is clear and it somehow seems to make the tea look more delectable and I think the light plays with the glass color better because of it, too.

I bought four, but one had a burr on top, I think possibly a splinter of wood that flew up during melting and stuck to the glass and was coated in a think layer of glass. I don’t mind imperfections and variation in hand made items, that is part of its charm and value, but it was sharp enough that if you didn’t know it was there you could possibly cut your lip while drinking or your hand while washing it. I sent an email to H&S and had a phone call the next day to keep the glass, and another was being shipped to me. I think it came the next day, but it may have been two days. Either way, that was great customer service! I will use the extra glass for flowers or demitasse spoons.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24998856@N06/7501791282/

If you go to previous and next, there are four pictures in all – three of the glasses and one of my Harney tea shelf which I FINALLY cleaned and dusted today!

Nicole

Those are very pretty! And your tea shelf…I think I need to save that picture to show people who tell me I have a tea problem! I am in awe. :)

TeaBrat

How lovely! I also like your Harney tea shelf. I want to stay at your house. heee heee!

Missy

That is a rather nice set. :D

ashmanra

Nicole: LOL! Those are just my black tins. The Historic Royal Palace Tins are in the living room by the tea table, and the pound bags are stored in the pantry! And that’s just the Harney! Then you add the Teavivre and miscellaneous companies…oy vey!
Amy: I wish you could come to tea! :)
Missy: Thank you! The pot was Inherited from my godmother, along with a matching tray and cream and sugar. It really is more Williamsburg in appearance, but I thought putting it on the stand gave it a bit of Moroccan flair!

JacquelineM

Your Harney shelf is a thing of beauty. Sam is looking amazingly cute, too! He must have had a great time at the beach!

Azzrian

NICE HandS Shelves!

ashmanra

JacquelineM: Thank you! I guess it is a little OCD to love how the tins look all lined up and matchy! And Sam had a wonderful time at the beach – apparently dead jellyfish smell amazing and are the best playmates EVER, and ghost crabs are up to no good and taunt puppies on the beach.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Diamond Jubilee by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

This was the second tea of tea party yesterday. I like it but I don’t often crave bergamot so it is getting old. It is still good, though.

This is more like a gentle Lady Grey sort of tea rather than an Earl Grey. No in-your-face bergamot here, just a delicate and lightly citrus cup.

Sil

BLLLERGAMOT!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Diamond Jubilee by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

This is getting old so we are trying to polish off the tin. It still tastes great.

Too light for die hard Earl Grey fans who like a face full of bergamot, but very nicely flavored for those who want just a hint of it. This seems to be Harney’s Earl Grey Supreme, which has Ceylon Silver Needle in it, with some grapefruit added. And it works very well indeed.

This was the first tea served for tea party today, and was served with a fruit tart that a friend brought over. It went very nicely, with the black tea complementing the sweet fruity tastes and the flavorings taking a back seat and not overshadowing the dessert. I usually pair unflavored black or oolong teas with sweets, but sometimes lightly flavored teas go well and this one worked.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Diamond Jubilee by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

I just love clicking “add to cupboard!”

I need something good to celebrate being home from my all day jaunt to Raleigh, Garner, and Durham. When I got here the box was waiting for me on the front porch. Hooray!!

This is the first time I have ordered a black and gold tin to go with the pound bag of loose leaf tea. I am really delighted that this service is available to us. I had the label preprinted for Diamond Jubilee so I don’t have to use the computer to print a clear Avery return address label for it. I think it was $1.25 to do this, tin and all. This is going to make it soooo much easier to split bags of tea with a friend.

Surprisingly, hubby agreed to drink this with me. I am surprised because he really does not like flavored black tea other than Vanilla Comoro or Vanilla Black by Harney, or Marco Polo from Mariages Freres.

This tea is fit for a Queen. The bergamot is definitely there but not bold and in your face and peppery. This is genteel tea for which one wants to hoist one’s pinky into the air. My tea party friend is not a big fan of bergamot, but I will serve it and see if she likes it better when it is mild like this one. I am having trouble picking up grapefruit flavor, but that has been true of every tea I have tried that says it has grapefruit flavor. I usually just get a citrus-y sweet taste.

Thank you, Harney and Sons, for humoring your tea fans who want everything loose leaf!

LiberTEAS

This is definitely on my shopping list, going to have to get some!!!

Kittenna

I also love clicking ‘add to cupboard’! And then I get a rush of guilt (sometimes!)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Diamond Jubilee by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

I used the last ittle bit of my same today to make two small cups of this to share with my friend. This is very good, with light bergamot, not the overpowering bathroom cleaner taste that some Earl Greys can have.

ashmanra

Harney and Sons has this tea back in stock, and they are making it available loose leaf in one pound bags for $25!! Squeee! I have two pounds already requested!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Diamond Jubilee by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

A friend came to tea at my house, got hooked on tea, and just had me order a huge box from Harney and Sons for her! Today it was my turn to be Invited to tea, as I delivered her new stash.
She mentioned that she is going out of town and is rather distressed because she needs her good tea but doesn’t have any teabags to take traveling.

Well, voila! I happened to bring this sample with me in case she wanted to try one more new thing.
This tea only comes in sachets right now, other than the loose leaf sample. If she liked it, we would simply order again and get her the tin of sachets!

This was absolutely delicious! I wonder if this is really just Earl Grey Supeme (my favorite Earl from Harney) with grapefruit flavor added? The bergamot is very light, as in VERY light. My friend and her daughters all loved it, and apparently so did her beagle, who kept trying to get the envelope out of my purse!

Is it too soon to start begging Michael Harney to make it available loose leaf? We will even accept it by the pound, right? And maybe people can order it by the ounce from the Millerton shop? Russel, can you make puppy dog eyes at him for us? Thanks!

SimplyJenW

Oh, yes! I want this loose leaf!

ashmanra

To Facebook we go! To let Michael know! We begs and we pleads, until he concedes!
We…want…our….prreee-cious!

SimplyJenW

Nice verse!

ashmanra

Thank you! Tea inspires us, precious….

JacquelineM

I am shocked-
This tea is out of stock!
I cry and I cry,
I lament “WHY?”
I wanted to order
Now I feel like I’m in Mordor

(he hee I even got Lord of the Rings in it to pay tribute to YOUR poem ashmanra!!!)

ashmanra

We loves it, precious! JacquelineM hits the nail on the head again! :)

gmathis

OK, poets, you win … I was trying to work something about hairy hobbit feet into something amusing and what little brains I have left after a wicked workday have just melted into a puddle.

ashmanra

LOL! That’s okay, G! Next time…

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

This was a sample that came with a Harney and Sons order from some months ago. I kept meaning to get around to trying it, but I am glad I didn’t because it made a nice tea to share with oldest daughter tonight after we went out for Mexican food. Drinking green tea together each time she comes has become a bit of a tradition, and she loves minty things.

I steeped this at around 175F for three minutes. That is my standby green tea steeping method unless I have seen something that leads me to do otherwise.

This is a really pretty color, and since it has been over a hundred degrees for the past few days, my first thought was that this would probably be pretty awesome iced. We drank it hot, though.

The green tea base and the mint are really well balanced. This is a very smooth green tea and I didn’t detect any bitterness or bite in it. I wonder if sme green tea lovers would find it bland? But for me, it was very pleasant. The mint is very pressing but doesn’t overpower the green tea. I have had mint tea before that left me feeling a little TOO tingly, like I might never taste anything else again ever!

We made a resteep of this sachet and that was very pleasant, too.

I am glad we got to taste it, and I wouldn’t be surprised if my daughter asks me to order some for her. I do not usually drink mint tea, other than my Moroccan Mint from Tin Roof Teas, so I doubt I would order it, but if you like mint greens this one is very good.

Donna A

I think your review said it well. I just got a sample of this with my order a few months ago and was pleasantly surprised, as I usually go for black loose tea.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Organic Black Currant by Harney & Sons
1220 tasting notes

I went to Fresh Market looking for soup and couldn’t pass this up. They used to have a lot of bottled Argo Tea drinks but this time around there were only 3, 2 I’ve had and 1 hibiscus one. Now there’s 2 Harney & Sons ones too.

It’s sweetened with cane sugar and honey, and just black currant flavored. It’s not too sweetened, given there’s 5g of sugar per cup and not like 20. I think the honey is stronger than the black currant. It tastes really good anyway, because that’s a pretty nice pairing of flavors as is. The black tea tastes like it was just made unlike a lot of already bottled iced teas.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Yeh, baby! That’s what I’m talking ’bout!

I am having my umpteenth steep….okay, maybe fifth, of this and it is so good. This is a really different tea, and this steep is much like the last. It tastes like tea that has been aged in a wooden cask. I hesitated at the price before, but these leaves just keep going and going.

Edited to add: I think I know what the other aroma is. Tobacco!

Thank you, Russel and Harney and Sons!

Azzrian

Ah it is already on my shopping list! Yay!

Scatterbrain

I know in the description of this it says that it isn’t a pu-erh which puzzles me, I was wondering if you or anyone knows exactly why it doesn’t qualify as a pu-erh haha. Nevertheless, sounds good.

ashmanra

KWinter: it is illegal to call a tea puerh that doesn’t come from Yunnan province. That is my understanding, just as in the US, Vidalia onions have to be grown in Vidalia County, Georgia. The same onion grown elsewhere is just a sweet onion! The same rule applies to champagne and many types of cheese.

Scatterbrain

Oh, I see. Thank you. :)

TeaBrat

Gah! I want this too!

ashmanra

I know, Amy, I know! You NEED it! I am sure you can ’splain that! I bet Russel will send you a sample if you ask! :DDD

Jim Marks

Yes, the 20 Chinese Famous Teas are a “protected” product in the same way that France, Italy, and now the EU in general, protects regional specialties when it is recognized that “terroir” plays a crucial element in a thing tasting like a thing.

This is done less in the USA, but there are some prominent examples. Vidalia onions are one, Hatch peppers are another. There are also informal examples (some of which ought to be formalized in my opinion) like Philly cheesesteaks (there is something about the local bread, probably due to local water, that makes these “not the same” anywhere else), New York pizza, Atlantic City salt water taffy, gumbo from the Gulf coast, and of course the myriad varieties of both pork and beef based barbecue techniques which produce radically different flavor profiles depending on whether you’re talking about Memphis, Carolina, St. Louis or Houston.

Jim Marks

For those who have access to the HEB speciality Chain ‘Central Market’, there is an exclusive offering from Republic of Tea in the bulk dry goods area which is an aged green cake tea of excellent quality which sells for something like $50 a pound. Which is actually quite cheap compared to pu-erh. Even their loose shou pu-erh sells for twice that much.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

I hope I don’t die. Well, I know I will die someday, but I mean right away, because I am doing something I probably shouldn’t do and have never done before. I am steeping leaves from over 24 hours ago! O.O

If you don’t see any more posts from me, please send my husband a card. And tell my kids I said I love you, clean your room.

This tea has a learning curve! But I am enjoying learning about it! I should never have used that whole chunk in my small pot, even in a big pot! Today as I poked through the leaves I saw how ferociously compressed these are! This is a lot of leaf. I took two bundles about a rounded teaspoon in size and put them in a larger pot than I used last time. This may be a wee bit on the weak side though, so next time I would use three. This has been through multiple steeps but there is still nice flavor here. The liquor is golden brown and there is a pine-y taste or maybe it is cedar! It is sweet and smooth, like tea aged in a wooden cask. This reminds me a wee bit of that taste in Mengku Palace Ripened Golden Buds – a sense of antique wood polished with Murphy’s for decades, maybe centuries. Minutes later, the sweet aftertaste rises like a soft breeze, like a gentle ocean wave rolling in. Aaahhhh. This is a tea to which you want to pay attention!

I can’t buy any more of this right now because I just ordered the Moroccan Mint glasses they sell at Harney and Sons! (Missy, that is why I havent tried those samples you sent me yet! I want to do a head to head comparison between them all in the real glasses. LOL!)

When I build the tea budget back up, though, this one is on the list.

If anyone else tries it, I recommend doing whatever you must to get that clump broken, remembering it will expand GREATLY and you don’t want to waste it!

Thank you, Russel and Harney and Sons for this special treat!

Bonnie

I had an e-mail on how to save leaves. Spread them out to dry then cover for use later. You want to prevent bacterial and mold development. I live in a super dry climate so leaves dry in 20 minutes. I save leaves all the time. Reuse for iced beverages or elongated brews.

ashmanra

Oh, thanks, Bonnie! I will definitely do that! I will be saving these for more infusions and more experimenting. This is a fun tea! I guess it is mostly because it is a new type for me.

Jim Marks

I reuse leaves from the day before all the time. Especially sheng or sheng-like teas.

I find that if you keep them damp, they steep better, but obviously that radically shortens the amount of time you can keep them.

Jim Marks

As for the compression of the leaves and how much to use. Yes, you want a big, open space. I have read people who use yixing and then cram it full of leaves, but I genuinely believe this is not the best approach.

I do a lot of my steeping in open top pyrex and I’m finding with sheng and sheng-like tea that less leaf is actually better because you avoid the extremely sharp, biting flavor that comes from lots of cramped leaves.

When I do sheng in my gaiwan, I’m only using an ounce or two of leaf at this point. The results are fantastic.

ashmanra

Yes, Jim, and this tea was fine while it was still so tightly compressed because there just wasn’t much actual leaf exposed to the water. As it loosened up, I could see there was waaay too much in the pot to continue! I often steep leaves a day after, but I think I actually drank this one Monday, so it has been sitting in a one cup measure in the kitchen since then! I read when I first started looking at steepster to keep the leaves wet for resteeping, but you are right, I think that should only be if you will use them the next day . There is so much leaf here I will not be able to do that, so I will dry part and keep part wet for steeping throughout today.

Jim Marks

Hey, you’re pouring boiling water on it. What can go wrong?

Missy

Lol I totally get it. I have tea faceoffs too. :)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Unusual, indeed! Thank you to Russel Allyn and Harney and Sons for this sample!

I started out with good intentions. I was going to break my sample in half and make some for me tonight and save the rest for my friend tomorrow. Boy, is she going to disappointed! Heh heh, she didn’t know about this one so we just won’t say, shall we?

I couldn’t break this in half. It was as hard as a brick! I gave up and tossed the whole chunk in my pot. I did a very quick rinse since it was hard, but perhaps it should have been longer because when stabbed the chunk with a spoon during steeping it still didn’t want to break up! But the aroma was very intriguing!

I know it isn’t a puerh, and isn’t supposed to have the earthiness of one, but there was something earthy about this to me. The liquor is golden with a brown tinge. There are tiny specks of leaf in my teacup, which I find beautiful and artful, like a sprinkling of parsley In a white sauce, or ground pepper on top of potatoes. We eat – and drink – with our eyes first!

The taste is smooth, with a little tiny tingle of astringency. No, this definitely isn’t tasting like a puerh. This is smokey! And after the second steep the leaves have a tiny hint of coffee aroma! The liquor has a coffee taste as well, but light and fruity at the same time. This is most unusual.

Looking in my little pot, I see that the clump has broken up and my pot is FULL of leaves. I decide that the third steep will be extra short so as not to become bitter. There is a definite learning curve with this one.

Steep three now tastes like a sheng! With a drop of coffee in! My friend need not worry. I am going to stop here for the night, and we will be drinking this tomorrow, probably quite a few more steeps from the looks of things.

This tea is all I hoped it would be…different, unusual, a new experience, and worthwhile!

Thank you, Russel and Harney and Sons!

TeaBrat

Some shengs are a bit smoky. This sounds like an interesting tea though. I wonder if it will keep for a long time like a pu-erh?

ashmanra

I don’t know! I would love to know if it has the beneficial tummy effects of puerh and is probiotic. The wet leaves now smell like freshly cut timber!

Michelle

Ooh! I’d love to try this one. On the shopping list it goes!

Azzrian

Yup added to the list too!

Just Me

I’m intrigued.

gmathis

Oh, my, I need to get my eyes checked. I thought the name was HUMAN Aged Green Cake. (Soylent Green Tea? ;)

ashmanra

Soylent green is people! LOL!

Jim Marks

What I do with sheng is use a paring knife to pick it apart. Any long, thin, flat, whippy bladed knife will work. Obviously, a pu-erh pick is ideal, but I hate buying specialized tools that do only one thing.

I’m a bit confused by H&S is insisting this isn’t a pu-erh. Green pu-erh is not all that uncommon. Is it pressed? Is it aged? Then it’s pu-erh.

TeaBrat

Jim, I am confused by it too. Recently Verdant put an aged silver white needle cake on their website, it’s under the white tea section and they don’t call it a pu-erh. There must be something we are missing!

Jim Marks

Well, that’s a bit different. That’s something genuinely distinct from the pu-erh processing tradition.

But from what I’ve read, pressed, raw, green tea is a fairly typical kind of pu-erh.

In fact, back when all tea was essentially Chinese green tea, when it was being traded up the silk road, it was also essentially all green pu-erh as well. Packing it into bricks is what made it “transport ready”.

Like anything else pressed, age can only do it good, not ill, provided you store it properly.

Jim Marks

I wonder if this isn’t pu-erh because it is from Hunan instead of Yunnan?

Harney & Sons The Store

Jim is right on track. Pu-erh is exclusively from Yunnan, and has an a time honored tradition of tea leaf variety and processing. It is also my understanding that it is in violation of Chinese law to market non-Yunnan teas as Pu-erh.

Jim Marks

There are twenty “famous teas” in China, of which pu-erh is one. In much the same way that EU law protects certain regional products such as Champagne and Parmasen, the law in China protects these teas.

I didn’t realize the rules on the famous teas were just as strict, but it appears that they are.

ashmanra

I plan to have some more steepings of this later on, while I pick up some puerh attributes, it really doesn’t taste exactly like a puerh. I would say it resembles a sheng puerh more than anything else, but isn’t exactly the same. I am sure the regional protection is the reason for the name. It was quite an interesting experience, and that is what I was looking for!

gmathis

For what it’s worth, the Dr. Oz episode that aired locally yesterday touted pu-erh as a fat-burner when drunk first thing in the morning. (White tea recommended at lunch, chickweed tea in lieu of afternoon snack and bilberry tea—tisane—suggested to reduce cravings.)

TeaBrat

question for Harney and Sons: will this tea keep for years and improve like a pu-erh?

Jim Marks

Interesting. All the CTM folks I know talk about oolong as the tea to drink during exercise, not pu-erh.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

This was a free sample from Russel Allyn and Harney and Sons.

The last time I tried this tea – which was also my first time trying it – I used the parameters suggested on their site. Honestly, I wasn’t that taken with this, but I thought the instructions a bit odd for a green and white tea. Also, I haven’t been drinking greens that long and perhaps I am a bit of a wimp! The first steep that time was a bit sour and not too floral, while the second was very astringent. I put it off to user error and decided to try again, this time using steeping parameters that made more sense for ME and what I like. I thought perhaps the higher temp was to facilitate the unfurling of the pearls, but they unfurl just fine at a much lower temp.

The website says 195F for 4 to 5 minutes. This time I gave it 2 minutes at 175F. MUCH BETTER! For me, at least. The liquor was the color of pale champagne or cream soda and the texture of the tea was creamy, the flavor sweet. The jasmine is not very pronounced this way. Nice! Very nice!
No soapiness.

Second steep, I got bolder and used hotter water and added a minute, so still well below their suggestion. The color is much deeper. Now it is astringent again, but not undrinkable. My tongue is tingling and a light sour taste is present. Not my thing, but some people like it.

I combine the two steeps. The color of the second steep was so much deeper than the first that it deepens the whole glass pitcher to its color. I like this better than the second steep alone, less than the first steep, though with a meal i might want it to be this strong. Again, the jasmine is more subtle than in Teavivre’s while the green tea is more prominent. It is a little more reminiscent of Grace Rare Tea Flowery Jasmine Before the Rain, which is a pouchong.

I think I will continue to steep this one my way – keeping the water temp low, and the time shorter. (Ah! Here it is! It hits! My beloved late rising plum sweetness that follows some greens!)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

I have been meaning to try this for a while. Thanks to Russel Allyn and Harney and Sons I can! They sent a free sample of the loose leaf version.

I have only had one other Jasmine Dragon Pearl tea and that is the one from Teavivre. I will try to compare and contrast the two teas as best I can. I gave some of the Teavivre pearls to a Teavana employee, and he said that the Teavivre ones seemed more earthy than Teavana’s. Let’s see how these two stack up.

Appearance: the pearls are very similar. Teavivre’s pearls are ever so slightly larger overall. I notice that the Harney and Sons says green and white blend on this page. I had not noticed that before.

Steeping: both smell great! Neither has a sickening, artificial perfume aroma, and that is important because my first jasmine tea experience was somewhat traumatizing.

Color: the liquor is very similar. Both are golden, but there is a tiny peach colored cast to the Teavivre when the level is low in the cup. When the cup is filled completely, the Teavivre tea is slightly darker. H&S remains golden.

Wet leaves: though the Harney pearls were smaller, the unfurled leaves are larger, especially in width. They are a bit lighter in color than Teavivre’s, which have more…stem?…attached. They are long and wiry.

Taste: wow, I feel so spoiled. Both are these are very good. The Teavivre tea is softer and smoother, the jasmine perhaps a tiny bit more pronounced up front with the tea flavor following, and it gains astringency as it cools.

The Harney and Sons tea tastes more like the greens I have been drinking for the past six months with just a hint of sour astringency at the front, and the jasmine following at the end. This is not a bad astringency I am referring to, but the palate cleansing property. I am getting that sweet, late rising aftertaste that comes with many greens, and I suspect the Harney and Sons tea is the source of that as I haven’t noticed it before drinking Teavivre’s, and the Harney tea has the sort of taste up front that I associate with teas that do that.

Summary: both are great. Teavivre’s version is jasmine followed by green tea flavor until it starts to cool. Harney’s is the opposite – green tea flavor that says, “Here I am!” followed by soft jasmine.

Different people and different tastes mean some will prefer one, some the other. I hope this review helps!

If you love jasmine tea, also try Harney’s tea just called Jasmine. It is incredibly inexpensive, you can drink it every day at the price, and very, very good. I actually preferred it over one of their more expensive jasmine loose leaf offerings.

Hesper June

I just tried this tea, and loved it so much!
It was my first taste of any kind of Jasmine Tea, so I do not know if that counts for a educated opinion.
I agree the tea has a very decadent feel to it, like you are really spoiling yourself and like it should almost be a naughty treat:)
I am sold on Jasmine Pearls and cant wait for my H&S order to come.
I also ordered H&S’s Jasmine Tea, I am hoping that it will satisfy my Jasmine cravings, so I do not drink up my pearls right away:)

ashmanra

I think you will really love their Jasmine tea! It was quite good. I tried to place an order for it a few keys back but they were sold out at the time. I saw it was back in stock!

Hesper June

Haha! maybe that was me, I bought them out and they finally got it back in stock;)

K S

Glad you were finally able to do this side by side for us. Very nice!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Blue Ginger by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

I can’t believe this one wasn’t listed yet and I am the first one to review it!

This was a free sample provided by Russel Allyn of Harney and Sons. Thank you for sending this for me to try! This is one whose description has intrigued me for a long time. The only thing that held me back was that it is only available in sachets, and I prefer to buy loose leaf.

When I steeped this I thought the ginger was the predominant aroma, so much so that I wondered if I would like it. I like a bit of ginger, but not too much. The sip was different, though. While the ginger is plainly there, it didn’t bully me. It added a nice sweetness to the cup. I have had only one lychee flavored tea and that was also by H&S, and I remember thinking that it tastes like light rose scenting instead of fruit. (I tried the fruit once and it was ><. It tasted like bathroom cleaner to me. The brand I won’t use because it smells so bad. Like lychee fruit. Maybe I got a mutant one.). The H&S Lychee Black tea was so good I would consider keeping it on shelf as a floral black.

In this one, the ginger and lychee are running neck and neck in strength, with ginger maybe winning out a bit. This is leaving a sweet taste at the back of the mouth, sweetness at the end of the first sips, and a lingering heat on my tongue from the ginger…not a really strong heat, just an aftertaste.

I have never had Thai food, but I bet this is what it tastes like. Very nice to get to try this! Thank you!

TheMarshain

Trying this right now, thanks to ashmanra!

ashmanra

I hope you like it!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Birthday Tea by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

My daughter asked me to choose tea for her boyfriend in Northern Ireland for his birthday. He loves mostly black tea but drinks a lot of herbals as well. He isn’t really keen on greens. I chose RMS Titanic Blend because the Titanic was built in Northern Ireland, and I chose this one because…well, it was for his birthday!

He loved both teas, but this one seemed to fascinate him. He said it tasted like a birthday and he couldn’t explain how, snce it didn’t taste like cake or ice cream. He said it was fruity and floral. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about so I asked for sample. Thank you, Russel and Harney and Sons for obliging me!

I made one sachet. Pouring the boiling water over, the first thing that happened was the rush of color from hibiscus. That soon stopped and the cup began to take on more tea color, though it remained fairly red. The berry aroma is the most appealing thing about this to me.

I drank this, I wouldn’t turn it down if offered another cup, but I don’t think I would order it for myself, unless I find that it makes a delectable iced fruit tea, which is very likely. What I definitely WOULD use it for is to replace the horrible Little Citizens tea offerings from Republic of Tea so I could serve something that isn’t disgusting to young children who come for tea with their moms. If you have read many of my reviews, you know I seldom say anything strongly critical, but the two I tried from RoT were awful. This is a much better choice. Soon I will ice it and see if I like it that way, and I think I will try it in the Zoku pop maker as well. The Moroccan Mint pops and black tea pops were awesome!

Kittenna

Haha, once upon a time, I had a boyfriend in Northern Ireland _

Bonnie

can we make up the rest of the story…

who drove a Farrari real fast and wore gold chains on his hairy chest

Bonnie

…who drove a Honda and loved his dear sweet mother-

Kittenna

Hahahahahaha :P “who was tall and blond-haired and quite a wonderful guy.” :D

I probably shouldn’t follow that up with anything else, because I actually still keep in contact with him, and he’s read some of my posts on here (not that I think he follows this or would ever find this… but still!)

Kittenna

He does love his mother though :D

Missy

hehe you guys crack me up!

gmathis

Never fall in love with a guy who doesn’t love his mama.

Bonnie

And garlic!

ashmanra

My mother always told me to pay attention to how a man treats his mother, because that is how he will someday treat his wife. She was right!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Anniversary Blend by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

I needed a firm foot to the butt tea today. We are cleaning and cooking and cooking and cleaning for Christmas soup night. I need to go shopping at two groceries to finish but I have to get the first soup on. The second one cooks faster so it can wait a little while.

Here is my firm foot! I made a whole pot and put it on my beautiful new vintage cast iron warmer that was given me yesterday by the puppy I keep on Tuesdays! I love it!

Here is something you almost never see in my tasting notes…this one gets milk and sugar, almost always. But when you drink this, you KNOW you have had a cup of tea.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Anniversary Blend by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

I got just got my first mandoline! I had used Sandy’s and liked it so I decided I neeeeeeeded one. As a surprise for hubby, I made potatoes au gratin, bacon, eggs, and pan-fried toast with triple berry jam while he was out buying stained glass. I chose this to serve with it and wowzer was it great!

This was hearty seasoned food and not every tea would pair well with it. I really enjoyed this pairing. The tea wasn’t sipped so much as thrown back with gusto, and this time I really felt that malty wash go over my tongue. Also, the fruity/orangey tang of Ceylon came out a little more with this food. The chocolate notes were not as prominent with this food, but would probably be more noticeable with sweets.

I am so glad I bought this. Russel at Harney and Sons had sent me a sample and I just had to order a tin!

I did make it very differently since hubby is pretty particular about his tea and doesn’t like strong tea. (He adds a lot of milk and sugar to most black tea.) I steeped the leaves in 198F water for 3 1/2 minutes and felt it was just right for me to drink plain. Hubby did add his usual additions.

K S

I had a mandoline for about a week. Could not figure out how to fret it. The neck is so tiny and the frets are really close together. I know a week isn’t really long enough, but it was apparent very quick that I would rather bash out power chords on the six string.

ashmanra

K S: I WISH we had a mandolin, the musical instrument. A relative in SC is internationally known for his hand made ones and my mother-in-law offered to buy hubby onesince he plays guitar. However, I am taking about a mandoline, which is a French word for the blade platform that cuts veggies super thin and uniform! Thus I made potatoes au gratin with extremely thin slices of potato! Next up, I am going to make oven baked potato chips!

K S

Call me naive and red faced. I couldn’t figure out the connection but thought you were on a ramble. Even now realizing their is not supposed to be an “e” at the end, I still would have no idea if you hadn’t explained. I’m off to google the blade not the instrument ;p

ashmanra

Don’t be red-faced! Even autocorrect didn’t know what it was! And mandolin with no e is considered an alternative spelling for mandoline. I don’t know of an English name for them. “Sharp cutty thing that shaves off knuckles” might be a good start…I must say, I love it. I don’t have room for lots of countertop appliances and would far rather use this than pull out a food processor, then take it apart and wash all the bits, and put it away again. Come to think of it, I don’t think I even own a food processor anymore. I got my mandoline from Williams Sonoma at a big discount and with a coupon! :) it just does plain slices, not waffle fries and such.

K S

Googled and yep, I’ve seen them. Now I know what to call them. Yours would make julienne fries if you had got the model that came with the ginsu knives. (that’s a joke – I watch too much TV)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

drank Anniversary Blend by Harney & Sons
3225 tasting notes

Hooray! I have a whole tin of my own for my cupboard now! I had looked at this for years on the website, and other things kept bumping it out of my cart. Then Russel Allyn kindly agreed to send me a sample and I was taken with the cocoa notes that fool you into thinking you have sme Fujian black tea in the mix. The aroma of the leaves in the tin is soooo nice – rich and fruity.

Youngest steeped this one a little more aggressively than I like but it was still good. To protect the Ceylon Silver Tips, I like to go 205F for about four minutes.

mpierce87

I’ve also been considering this tea for awhile and it is now on my shopping list based on your recommendation. :)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.