Harney & Sons

I have this at work now, where I have a better setup. I don’t have a kettle or the workspace at home. Weird I know. About a spoon of leaf @ 4m w/boiling water.

Not using the microwave really changes the flavor of this. Bolder. My natural inclination with a tea like this is to chug, but slowly sipping brings out the layers of flavor. First, I taste tea. Next, a hot chocolate rush, and then the coconut. In the aftertaste you get a good blending of all three flavors. This doesn’t make me think Mounds so much as one of the little red and white coffee tins my wife would buy.

I don’t buy flavored tea much any more, as the teas I can buy locally are generally way overdone. This and the Hot Cinnamon Spice are causing me to rethink flavored teas. Both are well balanced and enjoyable cups. Harney does it right.

Just got home for the evening. The leaf was still in my press so I thought I would see if this one would go a third steep. It is a bit thin but the coconut is really shining through on this steep. I think this is my favorite cup of this yet. Glad I pushed this further.

Thank you SimplyJenW for this sample. The dry leaf aroma is milk chocolate. Steeped 4 minutes w/boiling water. The brew is muddy looking in the pot. In the cup, it looks like tea – with a bright and clean appearance. There is no escaping the chocolate scent before during or after sipping. The tea is present in the taste but in the background a bit. The coconut comes into play in the aftertaste. I don’t think I used enough leaf (1 tsp) on this, my first attempt. I still managed two cups and I think it might go a third. Next time I will up the leaf. This is a nice dessert cup with a pleasant lingering aftertaste that leaves you craving more.

The leaves are long and rather aesthetically interesting – a mixture of frosted green with lighter down-covered leaves populate the tin. As far as aroma of dry teas go, this is a clear favorite, it is simply delicious to smell. The leaves brighten as they brew, to a lively green-yellow that is slightly brighter than tea, which makes for an attractive setup. The aroma in the cup is rather pleasant as well. I find this tea to be very elegant, not at all buttery and just mildly earthy. The brewed color is a light pale translucent green – but be on guard, it steeps quickly and does not get darker. The body has the feel of a medium tea in the mouth, and is rather crisp and more mellow than some of the Japanese greens. This tea is a unique green and one I intend to have in constant supply.

This is plainly a very satisfying first cup of tea. It is extremely smooth with a subtle but declarative scent and a medium-full body taste in the mouth. While I prefer the Nahorhabi 2010, this is a very solid Assam. I have shared this with many coworkers, some of whom drink tea and others who are coffee drinkers, and they all enjoyed it. I suspect this tea will be enjoyed by many, not as an absolute favorite but certainly a reliable cup.

This tea is about equal in my opinion with my other experiences with Harney & Sons; which to say its pretty damn fantastic; its a very contradictory tea, the leaves them selves are well shredded and a deep shade of black brown with little bits of lemon, and bergamot mixed in, the smell of it is amazing, of fresh lemon and something sweet and implacable.

As it steeps that smell becomes permeable and doesn’t quite go away, I’ve actually taken to leaving the tea ball drying on my desk at work simply because it smells so good.

The tea it self steeps into the very dark chocolate brown; its very resistant to oversteep so you can very yourself from 4-8 minutes with little chance of bitterness at the end, the taste itself, especially if its brewed longer is nice and heavy almost English breakfast black with the notes of the lemon and bergamot floating nicely on top. It makes for a fantastic first tea of the day, its certainly replaced my English brekfest junk tea I usually drink.

I’ve noticed that Harney & Sons its very very good at mixing fruit and black tea, there cranberry autumn is probably my favorite evening tea, and now they’ve got me in the mornings too.

tl;dr – a good solid morning tea with some nice hints of lemon and bergamot; that easily as nice to steep as it is to drink. Best morning tea I’ve had.

The leaves are a very fine dark brown with just a few grays to represent the experience contained in this tea. At once one will recognize the unique scent of this tea – an unmistakable smokiness beckons your sip. My first reaction to this tea was strongly towards a similarity to some coffees, but after about a cup and thinking about why this connection rose into my consciousness, I realized this was so because the distinctive taste stays with you as you exhale, especially through the nose. Coffee has a similar effect, a lingering aftertaste. The taste, however, is not that of coffee, there is a cocoa note underwritten by the tea’s characteristic smokiness. I had not previously been fond of Keemun’s but this is rather an exception, the swift kick it gives has grown on me and I drink this tea when I need to concentrate or get moving.

I really cannot add anything that has not already been said. The lovely color, aroma, and taste transports me to an exotic part of the world and makes me crave a delicious Larb salad, crispy fresh spring rolls with peanut sauce, or anything with basil.

Robust and roasty with an earthy honey flavour and a tiny hint of remaining astringency to finish. Not my favourite oolong in the world – I tend towards the milkys and the oriental beautys and lots of the formosan teas, but a great experience. One of those teas you sometimes get in a definite mood for.

the perfect tea for ten hours in a thermos! brewed five min at 8 am, ran a team marathon relay race, and it’s still warm 3+ hrs after the finish. Putting my poor sore feet up and enjoying a cookie!

1 teabag + 1 tsp chai spice mix + Savory Spice Shop. Brewed 4 min. Then added a bit of honey and a splash of almond milk. Not bad for a lazy decaf chai!