A dearest friend got me this for Christmas last year, and although the best before date on the bottom indicates to use it by this December… I hope I’ll be using this a little longer. ♥
Today I had this in a teacup, hence the short steeping time, although really in my opinion this one doesn’t need a very long steep time as it doesn’t brew all that strongly. Previously I’ve used more than your average teaspoonful to achieve a darker brew just so I can put milk in it but this is best appreciated black and light usually! The leaves are fairly large, great quality, and they don’t open up so much that you need a larger strainer for extra leaves. They also smell dry quite similarly to how the tea tastes once brewed!
The first word that comes to mind is definitely “toasty” on the first sip of this; it’s more prominent as it gets cooler so I wonder if this might make a tasty iced tea? It’s certainly dry and astringent and the Darjeeling is rather prominent here too, muscat-y and oaky with a partial but not full smoothing-out of that astringency with the other black teas blended in.
As far as afternoon teas go, this is something I reserve for the guests who’ll appreciate a lighter brew and a delicate but powerful aftertaste. My favourite part is how strong the Darjeeling is— all too often that takes a backseat behind the Ceylon!
