Scott B

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Yes, I bought this because it is supposed to be one of the teas thrown into Boston Harbor. Why not-the sample was only a dollar or so.

This is really nice. It tastes like a cross between Keemun and Lapsang. The aroma is unusual, I smell perhaps pine, but also something else that I cannot identify-I’ll have to work on that. Smooth, flavorful and pleasant.

I wish I liked more tea.

I wish I could be like many of you here who seem to like pretty much any quality tea, no matter what type it is-but it is not to be. I’ve been expanding a bit more beyond the teas that I am used to and I have found that I have definite preferences-new things I like and new things I don’t. I enter the process open-minded, but there are just some things my senses don’t care for and Laoshan black is one of them. It’s kinda disheartening to hear people rave about a tea that I just don’t care for. I’d like to join the club exalting various great teas and have people think I know a lot about tea because I agree with them. But no words-no matter how cogent-can convince my senses that they enjoy something when they just don’t.

I KNEW this was not your typical breakfast tea when I ordered it. Still, it seemed worth a shot. However, by the time I got around to trying this tea, I have already discovered that I was less than enthralled with 2 of its components (Laoshan Black and Big Red Robe). So this puts a lot of pressure on Yunnan Golden Buds and Xingyang 2007 Imperial Pu’er. Considering I’ve never had Pu’er before (and that there’s probably not much in it), it’s mostly up to the Golden Buds-those poor buds never stood a chance.

The best thing about this tea is how striking all those golden buds look mixed in with the Laoshan Black leaves-very nice. Sadly, the black overwhelms those buds and I can’t really taste them. I taste the chocolate notes in the black, but it’s not remotely sweet. I eat 72% dark chocolate (not sweet enough for most) and I taste enough sweetness. The chocolate notes in the black are bland. Thick, heavy and bland. At least they are NOT bitter, like unsweetened chocolate. Not sure whether I can taste the pu-er. I catch a glimpse of mineral now and then from the oolong. Even if I enjoyed this more, I can’t imagine wanting this as my first cup in the morning. For that, I guess I prefer your typical Assam/Yunnans straight or in blends. But, even as an afternoon tea, this just doesn’t work for me.

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I HATE the heat.

Although I love hot sauces and spicy food, hot weather and I do not get along. Cold Miser? I’m more hard-core than him-I’d be happy to never have a day above freezing.

Anyhow, living in the States usually guarantees hot summers and for some reason I love Lapsang in the summer. When it gets really hot (like today) I can be sure to sit outside and drink a cup or two. It’s like I’m saying to the heat “Bring it on!”

This is a good solid Lapsang. Campfire smoky. Not tarry. If you absolutely must be so overwhelmed with smoke as to require a respirator, this is probably too mild for you-it’s more of a middle-of-the-road smoky.

Right now, I’m starting to think Lapsangs are like local Chinese take-out/away restaurants in the States. Sure, the restaurant/tea company name is different wherever you go, but the menus/flavors are all pretty much the same. Maybe some minor variations, but not enough to be noteworthy. It’s reliable, inexpensive, and predictable. Now, sometimes predictable is a good thing-very reassuring. However, I’m hoping to find something that keeps the essence of Lapsang but is a little more unique in its flavor. I really like Lapsang, so I don’t mind trying different ones in hopes of finding something distinctive. Only bought an ounce of this, so I’ll try something new soon.

l’ve been wanting this for six weeks, but I was waiting for RtR to get in a couple of FF Darjeelings so I could do just one order. Well, RtR had a free shipping promo this week and, alas, they never got the Darjeeling I wanted so I just placed my order. I’ve got a problem with the way RtR gives out free samples, but I’ll deal with that in another review. Otherwise, their shipping is very fast, packing is good and no complaints with my order. The tea is packed in re-sealable pouches that are foil/mylar on the inside and brown kraft paper on the outside. BTW, RtR is a division of RoT-they even ship from the exact same address.

This is my first Kenyan tea-I’ve heard they are very high in caffeine, so I’ll probably only have one cup today. Dry leaves are very dark brown with a couple light-medium brown leaves (tips?). They are short-medium in length, and tightly rolled. I do smell the cedar in the dry leaves that RtR promises, but little else specific. Something fruity. Maybe the dried plum they mentioned. It’s a pleasant aroma.

The brewed leaves actually brighten up a touch to a dark olive green and medium brown. The liquor was copper before I finished putting water in the cup and turns mahogany brown when fully steeped.

Taste is brisk with some bitterness in the aftertaste. I detect some sort of floral note, which is definitely unwelcome in a breakfast tea. Makes me think someone dumped a few oolong leaves in this-but it’s not a blend. The floral taste is not dominant, but it’s off-putting. The flavor overall is kind of unusual and I’m not sure how much I like. it. Bitterness is really increasing as this starts to cool, so don’t let it cool too much because it will become undrinkable.

I’ll give this a preliminary score-subject to change after further cuppings.

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So, the tea shop I bought this at last weekend had this spicy smell which I could not identify. I’ve smelled something similar at my local health food store and I assumed it was a combination of spices or maybe incense. The tea shop had no spices, and I don’t imagine them using incense. I could picture the owner using a pipe, though. Whatever it was, it didn’t smell like tea.

The point of this is when I got back home after visiting my parents was that I noticed that the exterior of every single container of tea I bought was awash in this aroma. Worried that the aroma might be on the inside as well (he boxed my teas there) I scurried to find alternate storage for all my teas. I ran out of storage before I could put the Paris away. I figured its own aroma was strong enough to overpower this other odor and went to bed.

It’s been busy and I forgot about this tea being in that container. When I went to brew this yesterday, the dry leaf smell was pleasant enough-no hint of the offending odor. However, the brewed leaf aroma had something odd in it I felt seemed out of place. Perhaps the Paris had absorbed this other odor? Glad I only bought an ounce of this tea. I decided not to drink it just yet and I finally found a new container for this tea.

Coincidentally, a local coffee shop opened nearby this week and the newspaper article mentioned they had tea as well. So, I decided to check them out yesterday (and probably mock them for having crappy bagged tea). When I asked about the tea, I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they had a dozen or so Harney and Sons. I thought it was loose-leaf, but just a bag. Still, for $2 a cup I tried this-I wanted to compare it to mine that had been in the odorous storage container for 96 hours. At least they poured the water over the bag. Flavor was okay, but promising-they put 16 ounces of water for just one tea bag so I was hoping for fuller flavor when I used an 8 ounce cup at home.

Today, I brewed this again. The dry leaves smell fine and the vanilla tempers what would otherwise be too much bergamot. Again, there is something in the brewed leaf that seems out of place. However, I failed to smell the brewed tea bag at the coffee shop, so maybe it does belong. Anyhow, the flavor of the brewed loose tea is pretty much the same as the bags (nothing that feels out of place) but it’s actually a little weaker. I put a teaspoon of sugar in this today, which I did not feel necessary yesterday. It’s good, but I feel it can probably be better. Maybe I’ll put in a little extra leaf next time. If that doesn’t help, maybe I’ll order a loose sample if Harney ever does a free shipping promo.

I’ve never done First Flush Darjeeling sampling when the crop was fresh before. In fact, I’ve only had two FF Darjeelings ever. They tasted decent, and so I decided to buy several samples from Upton. BTW-Upton ships so fast with standard shipping!

The white and silver tips in the dry leaves are beautiful. Dry leaf aroma is more floral than I expected, but not unpleasant. Indeed, there was a lot of foam as this tea steeped. The brewed leaves were mostly a pungent floral with maybe a vegetal note stuck in.

At this point, I am tending to agree this has oolong characteristics. The liquor is more yellowish with orange mixed in. The floral notes in the flavor remind me of a green oolong-not my favorite. There is one floral note that reminds me of a specific flower-unfortunately I cannot recall what that is just yet. I do detect a hint of pineapple which is nice.

I don’t think I liked this much on the first sip, but was starting to get used to the flavor before it cooled too much and became overwhelmingly floral. Not sure just yet how I feel about this. I’ll try this at least once more before giving it a numerical rating.

Wow-this is strong tea!

I consumed this straight as I usually do with most teas.

The kickback on my first sip was so strong, I though I might not finish the cup. However, it was tempered a bit as the tea cooled just a couple of degrees and continued as the cup cooled further. It’s bold, malty, brisk and full-bodied as you would expect. The taste is actually pretty enjoyable after it cools down just a bit. With reflux issues, this is not an everyday tea for me. However, for occasions when I need a flavorful kick to get me going, this will do just fine.

I was just saying last week how I’d love to try a good chili-mango tea, and the tea shop I went to last week had this. Actually, my dad bought it-he likes spicy too-but I took a couple tea bags back home for myself.

So, this is my first green rooibos and I was curious how this would taste-I have only liked a couple red rooibos blends. The bag smells pleasant enough-kinda mango-peachy and buttery.

The brewed aroma is more of the same mango-peachy-buttery. Very warm and pleasant-almost golden. The liquor itself is kinda a golden-orange color. The flavor is more of the same mango-peach-butter troika. It is really enjoyable. Sadly, there is no chili to speak of in my cup. So, the quest for a good mango-chili continues. Also, not having had green rooibos before, I can’t say for sure that I actually tasted it here-it may have just been the flavoring. Still, it’s tasty, so no penalties. I might buy it at some point.

I bought this sample to have another lighter tea for the summer, and for the pomegranate (doctor recommended it could help with joint stress). Of course, in my enthusiasm I failed to noticed there was no actual pomegranate in the tea-just natural flavoring (which may or may not be pomegranate).

Anyhow-Dry leaves are broken into large pieces. Something red is making this tea very colorful-the rosehips, I guess? Dry leaf aroma is mild and pleasant, smelling mostly of pomegranate. Brewed leaf smells strong and floral-kind of un-pleasant. Glad I took a sip before smelling this.

It has a pale yellow liquor. This tea is sweet, but not cloying. Light. Mellow. Smooth. Not too tart. Consumed straight in a mug. Might be nice iced. I don’t know that I would buy a regular size amount of this tea, but I think I’ll enjoy finishing my sample size.

Last backlog to review.

Oh, I am liking this.

Never had a Scottish Blend before, but I love the idea of Yunnan added to Ceylon and Assam. I have a tendency to think Yunnan always means Dian Hong. Of course, this is probably just the generic Yunnan black (not sure if it has a specific name) which is used in lots of breakfast blends-which is fine, because I like it a lot. Anyhow, it’s a nice touch.

Dry leaves are small-assuming a ctc. Very dark brown with some golden tips. Dry aroma is a pleasant, general black tea aroma-sorry. Liquor is mahogany. Brisk and robust. Full-bodied, not bitter.This is better than the Irish Breakfast teas I have been trying lately. This would be a good first thing in the morning tea.

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Dry leaves are dark brown with a few medium brown. Tightly rolled. No golden tips or pine needle-type leaves like their Black Dragon Lapsang. Aroma is smoky with perhaps a burnt rubber note. Liquor is light copper.

I thought this was going to be much smokier than the Black Dragon-especially after inhaling the brewed leaf. It smelled strongly of very pungent peat moss and campfires and I was wondering if I had gone too far. But, never fear, this tea tastes quite a bit like the Black Dragon, except a little smokier. Again very smooth-if you think smoky means bitter, I have not found that to be the case at all. I am enjoying this and would probably choose this over the Black Dragon-but you can’t really go wrong either way. Now I am craving a really smoky Lapsang.

Lapsang is not normally something I drink first thing in the morning. It’s more of a thing I like during the heat of the day, but backlogs to clear, so I forge ahead.

I can’t believe I’ve been thinking I love Lapsang in general, when I have only tried one the past 3 years-TG’s. Well, 2 if you count the Russian Caravan from Loose Leaf Tea Lounge in Chicago that tasted like it was 100% Lapsang. So, I am trying some more this summer-starting with a couple from Upton’s.

Anyhow, a lot of people think this is moderate smokiness at best and a good intro level Lapsang. If that’s the case, I am going to ask my adviser to get me in the upper-level courses because I want to learn more.

The dry leaf aroma is, of course, smoky-kinda resembling a campfire. Dry leaves are medium length with some moderate curls and twists. Some golden buds mixed with very dark brown leaves and an occasional really long piece that looks a lot like a pine needle-but not sure. When brewed, the leaf begins to take on an aroma much like a peat moss. Liquor is light copper.

Haven’t had Lapsang in 7-8 months, but this tastes very similar to TG’s version. It’s, well, moderately smoky. If you’ve never had it before, it will be very unique. If you are kinda scared of smoke, it’s not spicy hot and it’s smooth-not bitter at all. It’s somewhat subtle and not overpowering. This is medium-bodied and very tasty. However, I am anxious to move on to Upton’s China Imperial Grade Lapsang.

Getting caught up on reviews. I consider this my 50th review since 2 of my 52 notes are still backlogged.

Decaff for my reflux and just to have more tea drinking options later in the day.

I agree with the other review-this seems like just a regular caffeinated tea. Actually, every quality tea I’ve had decaffeinated by the carbon dioxide process has tasted normal to me. I love that it’s organic. I also like that all the spices have purported health benefits.

I brewed this by adding boiling water from my tea boiler into a pre-warmed cup with an infuser basket in it. Almond milk was added after steeping. I know it’s not “proper”, but I did buy a boiler for convenience-not to always be “proper”.

So, this cupping is tasting a little different than last time. Previously, I used soy milk and sugar. Tonight I am using vanilla almond milk with sugar. Not normally a huge vanilla fan but it is working very well here. The spices seem to be drawing out the vanilla. This is supposed to have extra pepper, but I don’t taste an inordinate amount-perhaps because of the vanilla. This is really good with the vanilla almond, but it does change the character of the tea-so I’ll probably have to review it using unflavored soy next time.

Otherwise, it’s a pretty standard quality masala chai. Like the addition of cloves though, as that is not always in masala chais. I can add this to Upton’s Rooibos Chai as another very good dessert/evening tea option.

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It’s in the water.

So many times I read how important quality water is for good tea. My parents neighbor-who knows less about tea than me-was going on about it this weekend. Myself, I have been using filtered water for so long, I can’t remember drinking tea made with straight tap water. So there I am at my parents house making this new tea for dessert last night and something was not quite right.

It was the water.

Unfiltered tap water that I had grown up on and thought tasted pretty good was overpowering this wonderfully aromatic and sweet tea I had just bought earlier in the afternoon. I could taste the potential here, but rather than enjoying the tea, I couldn’t wait to get home and try it with better water.

I’ve been looking for a dessert tea to have besides masala chai (which I enjoy, but not every night) and mint chocolate tea-which doesn’t go with everything and I get tired of anyway.

This is one of those teas that I knew as soon as I smelled the dry leaf, I would love it. It smells just like you would expect-of hazelnut and chocolate. This tea tastes almost like coffee to me. At least what I think I remember coffee tastes like as I have never really been a coffee drinker. It’s smooth and kind of heavy, it’s hard to believe it’s straight and translucent. Zero bitterness. Liquor is a nice shade of chestnut. As advertised, it tastes like chocolate and hazelnut. The flavoring is so natural. It’s really sweet and rich with nothing added. I imagine it would be exceedingly decadent with soy milk/cream and sugar added-which I will have to try soon. Water problem solved

Masala chai has some serious competition here.

Brewing temp-208 to be exact.

I’ve TRIED to get my mom and dad to go with loose tea and to brew their tea properly. I’ve given them loose tea, which they profess to like, but take forever to drink (if they finish at all). We wound up talking a little tea with their neighbor over the weekend and she was impressing the importance of good water too. My dad DID buy a mesh infuser basket for himself at the tea shop yesterday. However, I think they are still probably committed unfiltered tap, boiling water in microwave, tea bag users. The only tea they bought yesterday was bagged. Granted, some of it looked interesting and I gave them some of my loose leaf in exchange for a few bags.

This was the first pumpkin chai-type tea I’ve come across that looked vegan, so bags, the fact it was still on a store shelf in May, and nearly summer weather be damned, I’m trying it!

I added almond milk and a tsp of sugar to this tea.

I was expecting this was to taste like liquid pumpkin pie-I mean, I assume that’s what they are aiming for here. That’s not a bad aim either-I love pumpkin pie. I taste all the spices and even the pumpkin flavoring, but it’s not fusing together properly as a whole. It’s like they combined all the ingredients for pumpkin pie in a bowl but didn’t mix them together. Pumpkin pie is so good because the spices are fused together-not tasted separately. I think there’s too much of the nutmeg, too. One bag left, I might try it plain, although this is one tea where I think drinking straight is not the intent.

It’s not bad, but I can’t see me ever buying a box of this. I’ll look more seriously for a good pumpkin spice chai this fall.

Brewing temperature was 208, to be exact.

Ugh, trying to get caught up on reviews with new Harney’s at home and two more shipments of tea on the way.

Another sample from Upton’s.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this unusual blend. It got some good reviews here and the samples are ridiculously cheap, so I took a flyer on this.

Dry leaves a mixture of dark brown, medium brown and olive green and are tightly rolled. I mostly smell the Keemun in the dry leaves. Liquor is copper.

This is my second cupping of this tea. I wished I had some notes saved from the first time, because I don’t remember it tasting like this. The only difference in brewing would be 208 water instead of boiling. Could it make that much difference? I can’t taste the Keemun or the Lapsang at all. The only thing I am tasting here is some 2nd Flush Darjeeling and I don’t like second flush at all-it’s dominant. I thought good old Sherlock liked Lapsang? I taste not a note of smoke. What happened to the Keemun from the dry leaf? This is just not to my liking at all. Oh, well it’s only a sample.

Hope all the mothers out there had a great weekend!

So, we traveled to see my parents this past weekend but they had a surprise for me-they took me on a short trip to a mom and pop tea shop they recently discovered. There are zero teashops anywhere near where I live, so getting to go to one is kinda a big deal.

The shop is in an historic building built before the Civil War. It had an unusual but not unpleasant aroma inside-like a mélange of spices that I smell when I go into the health food store-more about the aroma later.

Anyhow, the shop is all Republic of Tea, Stash, and Harney and Sons. RoT was in tins only and Stash was just bags. Harney was the big attraction since I have never tried any of their teas before and the only tea sold in bulk. Armed with notes from Steepster reviews, I began checking out the tea. This is just a shop-no food or drinks are served, but they brewed a cup of tea for my parents the last time they visited. Today (Mother’s Day), it was just pop there and he said no, they don’t offer samples. Fortunately, he sells tea in amounts as small as one ounce and the prices are about the same as Harney’s web site-so it’s no big deal if I don’t like any one tea. Disappointment right off the bat as they don’t carry Golden Monkey. They had most of the others I was interested in. The teas were in 1 or 2 pound zip-locked foil-lined sacks which were then placed inside giant Harney tea tins. I was at least able to smell the teas before purchasing. I’m not convinced the owner was that passionate about tea-he knew enough to suggest Lapsang if I liked smoky teas, but he had never actually brewed a cup for himself. He also didn’t have any First Flush Darjeelings. I think maybe a financial planner recommended the tea shop as a business for them to run when they retired. Still, I was comfortable enough with my own knowledge and the collected wisdom of Steepsterites to buy 7 teas.

First up-Queen Catherine tea. All dark and a few medium brown leaves. Maybe one or two golden tips. I wish Harney’s wasn’t so mysterioso about what is in their blends, but I did catch a whiff of what I think is Fujian black in the dry and brewed leaf. I also thought I smelled a bit of malty Assam in the dry leaf-that should not be possible as this is supposed to be all Chinese teas. Maybe it’s a Yunnan black. This is smooth and lively. I taste a bit of chocolate. Body is medium-full. Maybe a touch tannic in the aftertaste. This is very enjoyable. Maybe I can come up with better descriptions after a second cup. I could definitely drink this as a breakfast tea-probably always cupped plain, though.

This reminds me of the Vietnamese tea I had from TG. Dry leaves are tightly rolled, dark brown with some golden tips. Dry aroma-somewhat malty, with a note of orange citrus. Didn’t notice how much the leaves unfurled the first steep, but upon second steep they are completely unfurled. Brewed aroma is fairly malty. Liquor is nice and coppery. Tastes much like an Assam. Malty. Maybe a touch of citrus. Getting just the faintest note of cinnamon on occasion-wonder if cinnamon is grown nearby? Strong, but not bitter or astringent. Definitely a good solid morning tea.

I’m not going to lie to you-I bought this tea because it was Korean.

I’ve never had a Korean tea and this has good Steepster reviews, so I bought it.

This is the last of 3 teas that I purchased from David’s tea. Overall, I am happy with my experience buying from them. The $5 flat shipping to the States is great and it was fast. Tea was wrapped in brown paper and then white tissue paper with a sticker on top-nice touch. However, I ordered some colored tins and there was nothing underneath them but the bottom of the box-could have used a layer of brown paper there too. Tins are okay. Not as high quality as Teavana branded tins-but cheaper and colorful (sorry they were out of 2 other colors I wanted). Davids also included stickers for each tea I ordered so I could slap them on the tins. I would definitely order from them again if they had something I wanted to try. They did include 3 free samples, but I think they just grab them out of a basket because they certainly weren’t tailored to what I had purchased.

ANYHOW, Back to the tea. As others have noted, the dry leaves are various shapes and sizes. Some leaves are rolled and other look like broken unrolled leaves. Dry leaf aroma is not particularly fragrant. I detect perhaps of faint note of canned spinach. The brewed leaf contains slight vegetal and floral characteristics. Liquor is a very pale greenish yellow.

The flavor is light and delicate. Both slightly vegetal and floral at the same time. More floral than I would like, but not enough to significantly impair my enjoyment.

I was hoping for something truly unique with this Korean tea, but I don’t think it tastes that much different than some of the Chinese greens I’ve been trying lately. It’s good and I’ll finish it-but probably not that quickly.

Gah-I REALLY don’t like this! Giving this a lower rating. I dumped the mug and have decided that I won’t finish this tea. The artificial flavoring is overwhelming and nasty. There is very little tea in this “tea”. The dominant ingredient in this tea is cranberry, and I can’t taste it at all thanks to the artificial flavoring. I deleted my old review so as not to bury a tea with multiple poor ratings but you can read it below:

“Actual steep temp 208, to be precise.

My first order from DAVIdS and I had high hopes for this one-good Steepster reviews and a great flavor pairing with Cranberry and Pear. And it’s just, meh.

First off, the photo on here for this tea is misleading-I have hardly any tea at all in this. Basically, I had to look for stray strands of tea leaves. It’s maybe 10% tea. I would call this a glorified tisane, really. It’s not a huge deal, because then it means less caffeine and I could always use less caffeine, but I was expecting more TEA. Perhaps there is more tea on the bottom of the bag if I transfer to a tin and shake it around. However, I am not doing that because I imagine the oily and strong artificial aroma would be really difficult to remove from a tin. I only bought 50 grams in a quality, re-sealable foil pouch, so that is where it stays.

So, in the brewed aroma I smell some pear and the artificial flavoring (wondering if it is alchohol-based? Sure seems like it.) I don’t smell or taste much cranberry at all. The artificial flavor is really strong-shame there’s no cranberry in it. I taste some pear and apple. Had one cup with sugar, one without. Sugared cup is better. It’s not bad or bitter, but it’s kinda dull. The artificial flavoring is predominant and I don’t care for that. I’ll probably finish this-especially on days where I want lower caffeine. But I will do it without any enthusiasm. Won’t be buying this again. I am not big on flavoring added to tea, but after this, I think I am banning any tea with artificial flavors from my cabinet."

This is my first Nilgiri.

Dry leaves are dark brown and twisted. Dry leaf aroma is a little malty and similar to an Assam. Liquor is lightly copper-maybe just a bit darker than a Darjeeling.

I really didn’t know what to expect from this tea-I bought it because I had never had a Nilgiri. I like most Indian blacks, so it seemed to be a reasonable choice. I agree there is a resemblance to a Ceylon tea-in fact, until I’m more experienced with Nilgiris, I’m not sure that I could tell this apart from a Ceylon in a blind taste test. I don’t taste the Assam notes I detected in the dry leaf. I don’t taste the floral notes that Arbor promises-which is fine, because I’m not big on floral. I also disagree in Arbor describing this tea as “delicate”-when I think delicate, I think of a white tea. I think it’s rather full-bodied and brisk. It’s fairly smooth, however-is it possible for tea to have characteristics of both briskness and smoothness?

Although I disagree with Arbor’s descriptions, I did enjoy this cup and look forward to drinking more of it.

I’ve never had straight gunpowder tea before-always mixed in a Moroccan Mint blend. Since I bought the mint and the tea separately this time, thought I would try the tea straight.

The dry leaves unfurl very nicely (although I did not watch). The liquor is a golden yellow. The brewed aroma is slightly vegetal and slightly floral. The flavor is pretty similar. The floral taste is not that strong, but strong enough (meaning too strong). Reminds me a bit of a green oolong-which I don’t really care for. Straight, this tea is not for me. Fortunately, I have a giant bag of spearmint to blend with it and I would not hesitate to buy this tea again as long as I was blending it.

I’ve always been big on variety. When my grandmother took us to the doughnut shop as a kid, while my sister was always getting the same doughnut, I was looking to try another one of their 50 varieties. Of course, I developed my favorites and rejected what I didn’t like, but if I thought there was a reasonable chance I would like something new, I would try it.

This attitude has continued into my adult life and has expanded geographically in my areas of interest. Ethiopian food? Iranian films? Hot sauce from Trinidad? I’M IN!

Of course this applies to tea as well.

I’ve been wanting to try some African teas (other than Rooibus tisanes) for a bit now. Of course, I do prioritize quality-which is why I could never get excited about trying this GIANT, very cheap, bag of Kenyan CTC I bought in Chicago almost 2 years ago. Besides, it had zero brewing instructions and I was not brave enough to experiment with brewing techniques back then.

Anyhow, Upton had a few African teas and this tea from Malawi intrigued me. Different country? Check. Good reviews? Pretty good on Upton. NOT CTC? Says it’s Broken Orange Pekoe-good enough.

There was a personal reason for picking a tea from Malawi as well. I had a great college professor whose husband was from Malawi. He wasn’t really a refugee, but I think the government at the time was happy to send him off to the States and get him out of the way-those intellectuals can be so pesky. Anyway, I had just read about a positive resolution of a political crisis in Malawi last month. I also learned that they are trying to increase their tea exports. So, I figured it was definitely something to try.

I’ve been having issues with caffeine and reflux lately, and a BOP promised more caffeine than a whole leaf, but I figured it’s better than dust or fannings, right? I opened the package and to my dismay, the broken leaves were pretty much dust and fannings-easily tea baggable (fortunately, my Finum strainer kept my cup completely clean).

So, now I’m worried about max caffeine, but others on Upton mentioned low tannins and I hope that will cancel each other out and I plunge forward. The “leaves” are a mix of light brown and dark brown. The aroma is a pleasant, but rather generic black tea smell. Liquor brews mahogany brown. I wish I could describe the taste better-it is very good. It’s strong, (brisk?) but pretty smooth-no bitterness and I didn’t notice any astringency either. Basically, a general black flavor-but very good quality. Sorry I can’t taste lots of exotic notes. To me, this would be a good breakfast tea-but I would always drink it straight. I have only done one steep. Might try a second one later-caffeine!

I’d love to have this in a full leaf, but there is a good chance I will buy this tea soon again anyway.

I am not remotely a person who blends teas at all, but I bought this to try to mix in some greens to make Moroccan Mint at home. I was expecting a coarse cut to have much bigger pieces, but they are fairly small in my opinion-however, they won’t fall through an infuser. The aroma is amazing-so light and fresh and minty.

First up to mix this with was Upton’s Special Grade Temple of Heaven Gunpowder Green. I did a one to one blend courtesy of Amy oh’s suggestion (one teaspoon each infused in an 8 ounce mug). Brewed at 180 for 3 minutes it came out perfect. It smelled great and tasted just like TG’s Moroccan Mint that I like so much-although TG adds natural flavoring to it. Why? It tastes the same without it. Silly. I had this without sugar because it is very sweet and does not need it. It probably wouldn’t hurt to add it though.

I’ll definitely be looking to ice some of this over the weekend. And I might try this as an herbal blend just to see how it goes. I am very happy about this purchase.