English Afternoon Tea

Love our little neighborhood—-local constabulary stops to play basketball with the older kids and flash his lights for the younger ones, neighbors speak pleasantly, people drive carefully for around pedestrians and patrons of the ice cream truck, and when you find a tin of tea for a quarter at the citywide garage sale, you can be pretty sure nobody’s trying to poison you.

Actually, I paid the quarter for the tin—it’s adorable, a little red call booth. An ounce of looseleaf in good condition was just a bonus.

I don’t go seeking out tea with bergamot in it. But this, even though I can’t vouch for its age and freshness, is plumb tasty! There’s just enough bergamot to add a happy, lemony little bounce to each taste. Each variety of black tea makes its presence known; maybe a little heavier on the Darjeeling, but the Ceylon and Assam keep it from getting too astringent.

Best 25 cents I’ve spent in a while.

This tea is a blending of Assam, Darjeeling and high grown Ceylon. I bought this from…you might have never guessed it, but Winners! It’s a popular store in Canada that focuses on clothing, but sells a ton of other stuff as well including stuff like this! This is just like the Earl Grey from Twinings, but is slightly better because I get a flavor that is full and a bit heavier towards the Assam taste(which I prefer over the other teas in the blend). The bergamot is certainly there, but to a less extent than the Twinings, which I feel is the perfect amount of it I would like. As someone else has mentioned, the hexagonal shaped tea caddy is amazing to look at. Mine features a drawing called “Teachers Outing” by Peter Szumowski.

Add: This tea does get a pretty sharp and bitter taste when brewed for too long. 3 minutes or less steep time is ideal. After my initial taste note, I found that it is a bit too floral for my tastes, so I don’t drink it as often. I guess I can safely say that I’m not much of a fan of any bergamot flavor added teas, including Earl Grey of course.

Add: I now have a totally different thought about my initial verdict saying that this was better than the Twinings Earl Grey. The Twinings one somehow just has a more refreshing citrusy taste which is also more sweet while not getting bitter. I definitely prefer the Twinings now.

The dry scent of this tea is incredible, it’s fruity, flowery, and just lovely. Oh and it also tastes great! I’ve always been a big fan of black tea, and this just made me fall more in love… I also love how it says exclusive tea on the box.. :p.. Everyone should give this a try. I usually don’t add anything to my teas, but it’s pretty good with some agave.

Brilliant.

Definitely one of my favourites, ideal for breakfast, with a strong but fruity taste. It is a total classic in Iran, that is the place where I discovered this brand!

My favorite part is the cute tin it comes in.

I enjoy this with chocolate digestives or Marie biscuits – both soften well on dunking!