This was the final tea served at tea party yesterday, and while I love it, I was too busy downing that huge pot of Formosa Oolong and didn’t get around to drinking this! My guest had one cup of it, then went back to drinking Anna’s by Tin Roof Tea because she was really in love with it.
I had planned to make some of my new samples today when I remembered the leftover pot of tea. I didn’t want to be wasteful so I reheated this and have been sipping away at it all morning.
When I heated it and the aroma began to float from the cup, I thought, now THAT is tea. This is a good quality cup of what you expect tea to be. This Keemun isn’t chocolate-y, I don’t pick up lots of cocoa, and it really isn’t smoky. It does have a Winey tang to it that is very pleasant, but it is not astringent or drying. I take it without milk and sugar.
This is listed as an English breakfast tea, but it is equally at home as an afternoon tea, sans additions and served with food or snacks. For tea party today it was served with brownies, strawberries, and blueberries, all topped with whipped cream, plus a cookie plate and Milka Toffee Bars.
This is a very smooth Keemun, so much so that I wonder if some would consider it too tame for mornings. I love it, but I almost exclusively drink it in the afternoon or evening. There are no strong chocolate or roasty aromas and flavors to this, it really is a bit Winey!
This was the second tea served at tea party today. The aroma grabbed up as soon as I poured. Delicious stuff! This is one of the least smokey Keemun teas I have ever had, and it does have that hint of wine. It is a pretty full bodied tea, not overly sweet but sweet and smooth enough to be enjoyed absolutely plain. Very nice!
Youngest chose Baker Street for today, and I chose this one! This was the first good loose tea I ever purchased, and it is still a favorite. (My early Harney purchases were all sachets.). This is excellent tea, a Keemun that has a little less of chocolate/smoky aroma and flavor, and a little more of the burgundy grape taste. So good! I had never heard of this tea and only bought it because the company has the same name as my tea loving daughter and the tin is beautiful! I display it with two others from Grace Rare Tea on a shelf in the living room. This one is a favorite with guests.
This was a tea time treat today! It amazes me how my tastes are changing. I used to think of this as one of my stronger teas, now it is one of my milder teas! And I still love it!
I am better at identifying the flavors and nuances in teas now, and I finally detect that muscatel flavor they mention. This is indeed a refined tea. They refer to it as an English Breakfast and indeed it is keemun, but it is milder than MY breakfast choices and I love it as an afternoon tea.
