Paris

I pulled this tin out of the back of my tea cupboard today. It isn’t a good as I remember. It was bitter even after adding milk and sugar. It did, however, make my house smell lovely. I think it deserves another chance, so I’ll try again tomorrow with a shorter steep time.

This tea has been on my amazon wish list for about a year, and I was lucky enough to receive 2 tins of them for christmas last year (thanks, Mickey & Devon)! This a hugely popular tea among tea drinkers, and one of Harney’s best sellers. According to their website : “This tea smells like an early grey with black currant and vanilla aromas and a hint of caramel.” I can’t say I smell the same things. This tea is definitely different – it’s like nothing I’ve ever had. Somewhat floral (I don’t like floral teas) somewhat fruity, somewhat … tea? It’s a taste and aroma I can’t quite put my finger on. It’s somewhat reminiscent, somewhat new. Do I like it? Yes, but it’s not something I would drink all day long, but it IS something I would reach for on a regular basis. I’m over the moon I have back up supplies!! One can never have enough tea. Another bonus is that whenever I drink this, I think of a scene from “Father Ted” when Father Ted starts singing “I love Paris …. in the springtime….” HA

This tea is popular for a reason! Try it!

This reminds me of a sweet Earl Grey. The bergamot comes through the strongest; the currant and caramel were more subtle. I reused the sachet a second time and the same flavors came through with just a slightly longer steep, although the color was much lighter.

I drank this with breakfast this morning and am so in love! I can totally see why this is a bestseller. I drank it without any sweetener or milk and loved it but I will add some next time to see if it enhances it any more. I’m officially hooked to H&S!

I normally do not buy tea when I’m out because I always bring teabags of my looseleaf with me. This time I was at a nice cafe with the BEST cinnamon buns I have ever tasted (lots if caramel and raisins!). I bought a caffeinated tea to enjoy with it and it was an excellent combination.

I was actually very impressed, considering this is a bagged tea from a company I have not tried before. I will probably try their other teas when I have a chance. “Paris” lives up to its name be being wonderful fruity, floral, and smooth. It has the pronounced black tea flavours I would expect to drink in a Parisian cafe.

I reviewed this tea on my YouTube channel over the weekend as it was a request from a fellow subscriber. I was told that this tea is very popular among the Harney and Sons brand and I had to give it a whirl. I was very pleasantly surprised when I did the blind tasting. I normally brew my teas at only 3 minutes instead of 5 to make it less bitter for me and I found the sweet spot for this one! No bitterness detected, but a smooth vanilla finish with notes of citrus and bergamot lingering on my tongue afterwards. I will definitely keep this one around and make it one of my to-go black teas.

Following the cleaning out of my sample hoard and the reorganization of my tea cabinets, I set about going through some of the many samples that I have accumulated in recent months. I ended up with a free sample of this tea in an order from Harney and Sons a couple months back, but was not all that excited to try it since I ended up with a tea bag rather than a sachet, and boy do I ever loathe tea bags.

I prepared this tea by steeping the bag (I’m guessing there was about a teaspoon in there) in 8 ounces of 212 F water for 5 minutes. That’s all there was to that. Naturally, I did not attempt additional infusions.

In the cup, the infused liquor was a surprisingly light, clear amber. On the nose, I picked up delicate scents of caramel, cream, vanilla, black currant, and bergamot. In the mouth, I mostly just detected notes of caramel, cream, vanilla, black currant, and bergamot. I also got a mild toastiness, but that was about it. I could only imagine how much more robust, complex, and lively this tea would have been in loose leaf or sachet form.

As far as bagged teas go, this could have been a lot worse. I did not get the usual grittiness or pronounced astringency I get from bagged teas. I could still tell, however, that this was likely a big step down from the other formats in which this tea is offered. I know that several individuals whose reviews I read fairly regularly and whose taste I trust are big on this tea, so I can’t wait to try this in a form that is more appealing to me. Until then, I can only say that this is semi-decent for a bagged tea, though I highly doubt I would try this tea in this form again.

I suppose I am missing that thing that makes up the palate allowing one to taste “notes.” That being said, what I tasted was vanilla and peach. This is peaches and cream tea. And it is delicious.

The best. Absolute best.

I first experienced the delicious smell of this tea at a friend’s house. She called it her “fancy Sunday morning tea.” Boy, was she ever right.

The smell of this tea kept coming back to haunt me so I ordered a tin from Harney & Sons. (the TINS though! They’re so cute, I keep all of them for planters for succulents.) And then I ordered some for my best friend. And then I ordered a box of 50 for myself because I no longer wanted it as a treat yoself tea. I wanted to have it all the time!

My buddy Mookit knows me really well. She recommended this tea, and lo and behold, it was in my samples. AND I LOVE IT.

This is a rich sweet berry concoction. Leading the way is a super-strong berry. Then you’ve got some sweet caramel/vanilla traipsing behind.

This tea is like the end of a movie, where everyone’s dancing. The camera slowly rises up, pointed below at our victorious protagonists. They twirl. The camera lifts, lifts, lifts, until everything is a blur. Cue credits.

This tea is ALSO notable because I broke in my Brand New Mug with it:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BH4yGOshZyI/
I saw the mug and I gasped because it was everything I needed. I didn’t even realize a new mug was in order until I saw this mug. Then I realized everything about my current situation was shabby and bad, and only the new mug would rectify the situation.

I will now be posting from a happier, better-mug state of mind.