The Earl of Harlem

Tea of the afternoon…..

I am a lucky girl. Russel at the Harney Tea shop graciously sent me some teas to try….a couple of the new Ambessa teas and some iced tea sachets. It is funny on the iced tea sachets…I have always given them as gifts and never kept any for myself to try. Reviews of those will be up within the next week, as what else is there better to drink in this abnormally hot Summer we are having?

I have to admit, I was most excited about this tea, though. I love the subtlety in Harney’s Earl Grey blends….the perfect level of bergamot with the particular tea base of choice. I was very much drawn in by the mention of this being a smokey version of Earl Grey. Can we just say it is love at first sip? I wish I had tried more smokey Earls to compare this one, but then again, this will probably be the standard to which I compare all others. For comparing to other more standard Earls, the tea base is just heftier and more dark. I would even call it more mysterious and, of course, very lightly smokey. For some reason, I think this tea would be the perfect complement to a period mystery….. I definitely need some, but I think the tea base will lend itself better to cooler temps. Who am I kidding?….I bet I can’t hold off for more than a month.

Thank you, again, Russel for your generosity!

Usual mug method.

Have I mentioned how perfectly the Harney logo mugs go with my Forlife Curve teaware? They are the same mug as the tall infuser mugs! And it is a good way for me to have a few more cups to go with my infusers. Life is good.

When I first saw the name of this one, I came up short. Whaaaaat? That’s an odd name for tea, thought I. Then….oh! Old World Haarlem! So Dutch tea which means probably a little smoky with bergamot added! This made my mouth water, because honestly I have become a little disenchanted with some of my Earls and just don’t enjoy bergamot as much as I used to. The thought of bergamot with smoke, though….now I was drooling!

These are sachets, so I used my biggest mug, which isn’t very big by big mug standards but was about the right size for this. There MUST be some oolong in this (is that right, Russel?) because I have never seen black tea alone swell this much in a sachet. This is one DARK cup of tea! And oh joy, joy! This is a nice, fresh take on Earl that is definitely worth having on shelf.

The black tea base makes itself known very well, and it is a good base, too! I passed the cup around for all the teens to sniff. “Honeysuckle? Bread! Maybe a little chocolate? A little grain!”

I gave it a good, solid slurp like Michael talks about in his book. Is that the bergamot, or is there a little lemony Ceylon in this, too?

I drank mine plain, but this could easily handle milk and sugar if that was your bent. Don’t overlook this as just another Earl Grey. If you like Earl Grey tea, I think this one is with trying. I bet it would be great iced, too!

Edited to add: I decided to try it with sugar since that is how my daughter’s bf will probably drink it and I plan to send him some. I don’t usually add sugar, and personally I liked this better without it. The citrus and floral flavors are enough!

Then I iced the remaining sweet tea and…..OH YES! Very nice!

Further edited to add! – so I was wrong! I said the name perplexed me because I couldn’t think of a flavor that would be identified with Harlem in New York, so I decided it must be Haarlem and the famous smoky Dutch tea this was referring to. Well, it is probably both! The chef who designed this blend has a restaurant in Harlem! Definitely look up his bio. He seems like an amazing young man with an amazing life. Born in Ethiopa, contracted tuberculosis along with his sister and mother, adopted (his sister, too) after his mother died of the disease and raised in Sweden, taught to cook by what must have been an amazing grandmother, studied culinary arts in Sweden and France, and now has a restaurant in New York. These blends are even more special to me now, seeing all the things that each flavor encompasses for him! Bravo to your blends and your spirit! How inspiring!

A brand new set of teas in the shop! Chef Marcus Samuelsson cultivated this dark and mysterious tea with a touch of classic bergamot. Floral notes peak through the deep richness of the black tea.
-RA

I had a Matcha Fruit Smoothie this morning to get me going.
Then made some nice hot black tea to take with me on my super crazy morning.
Of course, I left it on the counter by the door.
I promptly grabbed a glass and filled it with ice and poured in my poor forgotten room temp. tea and drank it mere minutes after I got back home.
But, this is my first hot cup of tea today.
And a huge thank you goes out to Ashmanra for sharing this tea with me!
When I opened the envelope she sent it in, I could smell BERGAMOT!
Yummmmmmm….
But, after I opened the little baggy and grabbed out a sachet and schmushed it up to my nose (ahem, I promise if any of you ever come to my house, this IS NOT how I prepare tea for guests, Just wanted to clarify:) I could smell something else…spicy and a little hint of smoke.
A Spicy Exotic Earl…well, hell-O!
It sort of calms down, scent wise, when brewing.
Taste is not overly strong, a small citrus bergamot bite and a small amount of the smoke, but it is very faint.
I might not even notice it if I had not read the description before I tasted it.
Personally, I could handle a bit more bergamot and smoke in the tea, but overall a very nice cuppa for the afternoon.
Very happy you shared, Ashmanra!
Next time I do order from H&S, I just might have to pick me up a tin of this.

I couldn’t resist picking up this smokey version of Earl Grey.

The dry tea sachet smells very strongly of Earl Gray/Bergamot. Very similar to Harney and Sons Earl Grey Supreme.

Brewed the tea smells of a very blunted Earl Grey, only slightly citrousy. The taste of the tea is slight Earl Grey with a smokey finish. This is a good tea, not too strong, but also not too weak. The smokey flavour works well with the citrous bergamot.

I had the pleasure of trying this out yesterday at the shop in Millerton. It was indeed a smokey take on the classic. I loved the hint of smoke and the light flavor of the bergamot, def. different and really nice to sip on while the rain came down in buckets outside! While I enjoyed it I didn’t pick any up to take home. No real reason for it, ok maybe the other 3 tins and lunch I bought was the reason…

Used one of the sachets with about 16 oz of water. The dry tea smelled like a strong Earl Grey. However after I steeped it the smokiness overpowered the bergamot. I added some sugar and as the tea cooled I could taste a hint of bergamot. Next time I might try this mixed with another Earl Grey to help fight the smoke.

Not a bad tea but not one I would buy. Glad I got to sample it.

When I opened the tin, I got fresh, crips bergamot. Brewed this up, and the bergamot is warmer now, mixed with tea and jasmine. Not getting much smoke in the scent.

First sip is bergamot first followed by jasmine. Not particularly smoky, though the base seems solid. I thought I smelt smoke when I walked into the kitchen to pick this up, but it was just my toast popping.

I think I’m getting a nuance of smoke in the aftertaste, though it might be a bite from the other flavours in the tea. It is a bit disappointing, I was hoping for a smokier blend (hmm, if not a lapsang or caravan base, why not keemun and bergamot…?). But it’s still a solid earl grey (even if I’m not a huge fan of jasmine in my earl).

I broke my promise not to buy any new teas until I’d slimmed down my cupboard. I picked up this after I’d crashed a new teashop that opened nearby (about 4-5 months ago) but which I hadn’t heard about until now (makes me feel out of the loop). It’s actually a very incredible little teashop (a lot of teashops have been popping up after Davids came to town—I like to refer to it as the “DavidsTEA Boom”—but this was a very modern-with-traditional-values shop. Gaiwans and yixings as far as the eye can see (which isn’t far because it’s a rather small space, but).

Both myself and the guy working the counter at the time were excited for this encounter. I guess more on that once I get around to reviewing the teas I picked up there.

As for this one. Harney and Sons likes to be deliciously subtle, they’re good at balance, and this is balanced, and definitely fills the craving for earl grey that I’ve been having recently. Fills that void in my earl greyless cupboard.

But I do wish it were a tad smokier. Maybe it’s there and the jasmine’s covering it. Hm.

Also’d like to try more earls with China bases.

Edit: As it’s cooled, I’ve been picking up a more prominent smoke in the base. Once it reached room temperature it was considerably more smoky; wish I could have enjoyed it more, but I had to rush out the door to class.

I must admit, before you read the rest of my review, that I am currently at work enjoying this tea. However, in the process of brewing, I could not acquire boiling water, so I am not sure how this has affected the outcome. If I have an addendum to this note when I try it at home, I will certainly add it.

First, I was elated to see Chef Samuelsson’s name on a tea blend. Having just had my first experience of brunch at Red Rooster (highly, highly recommend!), and having followed his work on TV for some time now, I was encouraged that I would enjoy this tea. If you have read my previous note, you will know that I really don’t like smokey flavors added to my food, but the concept and sensation is growing on me. In the end, my appreciation for Samuelsson’s work and taste palate won the best of my curiosity and I plopped this tin in my basket. Figuring my love of Earl Grey and my boyfriend’s love of smokey flavors, someone would enjoy this tea (even if it wasn’t me).

So I cracked this bad boy open at home and was greeted with a bizarre, yet enjoyable combination of aromas. Familiarly, bergamot citrus was very obvious, but the camp fire back notes were quick to catch up. Not as intense as a Lapsang, nor as obvious as a pure Keemun, yet a definitive addition to this blend.

This morning, when I was packing up my lunch, I decided to throw a tea bag in with my cookies to be enjoyed in the afternoon. When 3pm came around, the post lunch coma was setting in so I decided to make myself a cup. I used the hot water from the water cooler, while being hot, was not boiling; I guesstimated about 185F, but it conceivably could be a bit less. I like the tea a bit strong so I left it for a full 5 minutes (despite my fear of tasting like someone lit a fire in my cup).

The smell you get from this brewed tea is nearly pure Earl Grey, but it has more foundation and body that any other I have had. The smokey that comes with simply the first whiff is much relaxed from the dry leaves, and that same idea translates to the liquor as well. While I get the obvious notes of citrus and body in this tea, the smoke quality lends a great balance. Its a very ‘dry’ undertone balanced by the sweet orange notes on both the nose and tongue. The tea itself is very balanced, with a very typical mix of body and acidity one experiences with Earl Grey proper.

I don’t know if its my tastes maturing or if it is just properly balanced, but this smoke flavor added to tea is really starting to grow on me. It adds a great, and in this case subtle, nuance to an already established taste palate. It counters the sometimes cloying citrus and floral tastes of Earl Grey with a woodsy, earthy feel. I really recommend this to someone who drinks Earl Grey, has every been scared away from the style, or simply wants to try an interesting combination of two styles. Samuelsson has done it again, and I really appreciate him venturing into a realm of taste creation rarely explored by seasoned chefs.