Morning Sun

Tea type
Black Tea
Ingredients
Not available
Flavors
Fruity, Bitter, Cherry, Malt, Tobacco, Chocolate, Honey, Walnut, Bread, Earth, Smoke, Smooth, Sweet, Smoked, Spices, Thick
Sold in
Not available
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by Jason
Average preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 2 min, 15 sec 3 g 10 oz / 310 ml

From Our Community

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22 Want it Want it

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13 Own it Own it

43 Tasting Notes View all

  • “It’s cloudy this morning and I did not sleep a wink last night, but must somehow get it together to go to work and toil away on a big, complicated project. Thanks to Mandala tea, I have my own...” Read full tasting note
    90
  • “This tea is beautiful to look upon, & brews into a rich & resinous cup of tea whose rustic flavor reminds me somewhat of masa harina & fire roasted green chili’s. Very savory, but also...” Read full tasting note
  • “The leaves of this tea are beautiful. Rolled and all golden and black, amazing to look at. I’m not educated enough to understand what is going on in this one. It has the right mouth feel of a...” Read full tasting note
  • “So i’m pretty sure my taste buds need a health check this morning. This came across as a smokey tea…more like a cross between a keemun and a lapsang. I don’t think it’s been contaminated but i’m...” Read full tasting note
    83

From Mandala Tea

Picked in the early spring, this black tea has been expertly crafted and processed by rolling the young leaf and bud sets into little pellets. Cast your eyes upon this tea and witness true tea art.
Rich and thick in aroma, this tea develops a sweet and smooth taste – strong and yet floral at once! What a way to start any day of your week. A real treasure!

About Mandala Tea View company

Company description not available.

43 Tasting Notes

90
2816 tasting notes

It’s cloudy this morning and I did not sleep a wink last night, but must somehow get it together to go to work and toil away on a big, complicated project.

Thanks to Mandala tea, I have my own Morning Sun today. :)

The wise man J. Krishnamurti once said, “One has to be a light to oneself”

Trying to stay positive and keeping on! what else can you do?

Thanks to all my Steepster friends for the supportive thoughts, it really means a lot to me.

Bonnie

You have some candles here too.

ScottTeaMan

Your welcome.

TeaBrat

Bonnie, you are awesome! Scott too! :D

Missy

I’m glad you are trying to stay positive. It can be pretty difficult especially in your type of situation. I’ll be your personal cheer squad as long as I don’t have to use pom poms. ;)

Doug F

Hopefully, the big, complicated project will take your mind off things. I’ve found that just getting out of bed and maintaining the routine can be the best medicine. Best wishes!

Scott B

Time moves so much faster when you are busy, that should help.

Azzrian

I need to get this in my next mandala order! It didn’t make the cut last time I ordered as I had to skim back but I really want to try it soon!

TeaBrat

Azzrian – I am planning out my next order from them soon, just waiting for payday! :)

Azzrian

Oh they have so much goodness to choose from! :)
I am getting a water treatment system on payday for sure!

ashmanra

I mailed you some tea this morning! You are a beautiful person. May happiness alight in your heart soon! :)

TeaBrat

Thank you ashmanra – right back at ya!

Cheryl

Oh gosh, sorry I missed your news Amy. But I have a feeling you are going to be fine and stronger when the sting/punch wears off some. Hang in there chicka, we all know you can :)

TeaBrat

Cheryl, thanks, It’s sad but I will be ok. ;-)

Bonnie

Tea people are like those fairy godmothers flying around you in Cinderella! (I think I have the right movie …) you get the picture though …

Mike G

Just read over your last note, sorry to hear what happened :(. But like you said, stay positive :)!

TeaBrat

Hi Mike – ayep, will do! thanks.

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3294 tasting notes

This tea is beautiful to look upon, & brews into a rich & resinous cup of tea whose rustic flavor reminds me somewhat of masa harina & fire roasted green chili’s. Very savory, but also sweet in it’s own way. Tasty.

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1040 tasting notes

The leaves of this tea are beautiful. Rolled and all golden and black, amazing to look at.
I’m not educated enough to understand what is going on in this one. It has the right mouth feel of a rich, thick black – but it also is lighter in flavor than I normally prefer. It’s smooth and gentle – zero astringency, but has a bit of the “dry mouth” thing that I’m not fond of. I’m not sure how to classify this. There is no doubt that this is a high end tea, but I don’t think it fits my favorite black notes.
Thank you so much ifjuly for sending me some of this. I feel like I don’t deserve to be “wasting” this beautiful tea.

caile

Just enjoy! :-)

ifjuly

yeah, what caile said. (:

Garret

What caile and ifjuly and stephanie said: :)

OMGsrsly

Hmm… I have to try mine still. I feel like I’m saving them for a treat once I drink some of these samples!

Dexter

I LOVE Mandala Tea, and as much as I think this is a special tea – it’s not really to my tastes. I think others would appreciate it more than I do – this tea deserves to be loved, and I don’t love it.
OMGsrsly – I have lots that I’m saving for the right day…

mrmopar

I don’t think you wasted it. Trust me it will “grow” on you.

OMGsrsly

I got an ounce with MissB. :) So excited. I got some of the cones as well! Once my sample box doesn’t spill onto the floor when I look at it, I will indulge.

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83
14991 tasting notes

So i’m pretty sure my taste buds need a health check this morning. This came across as a smokey tea…more like a cross between a keemun and a lapsang. I don’t think it’s been contaminated but i’m going to have to hold off on rating this until i can make another few cups heh

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89
286 tasting notes

I haven’t seen AureliaFish on site for some time, but this is who I got this amazing sample from – so if you do ever see this AureliaFish – thank you!

Leather and smoke. That’s what this tea tastes like to me. I like it a lot. I will definitely be ordering this in the near future.

Garret

I really appreciate you taking the time to write a little bit about your experience with this tea. Fitness freak? Me too!!

scribbles

I like this so much, it will probably become part of my permanent stash.

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612 tasting notes

A great sample from Mandala—super generous!

My up-and-at-‘em pick this morning. This one funny enough has qualities like those I just described for the Tanyang Gongfu, where it’s thick and starchy-sweet and smooth but also floral, but I appreciate that it’s not quite straightforward sweet potato this time, that there’s other elements like fire (Terri is so right that it’s kind of like roasted green chiles!). There’s a quality to it where the taste evokes more astringent, dry-woody teas like Darjeeling or Zhu Rong in flavor but not actual astringency (there’s pretty much none; this is as smooth as any of the popular Teavivre black teas). A neat trick. Good morning tea and strikes that smooth-vs.-woody, Chinese-vs.-legacy-type balance in the same way I appreciate with Zhu Rong. I really, really like this. I think I’ve figured out teas that don’t tidily fit into either of those vague categories but sort of take the best of both worlds and throw in some unusual unclassifiable characteristics (that smoked chile heat!) are my favorite discoveries right now. Jerks a jaded tea palate awake in the nicest way.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 1 min, 0 sec
K S

This sounds awesome.

Dexter

I really want to order some of the black teas from Mandala….

Garret

Great to read this review!!! Thank you!! This was my pre-run tea this morning. And what an appropriate tea for today… it was a chilly morning here in MN and the smell and vibe of this tea blended nicely with the wood smoke issuing forth from a farmers chimney near the trail head this morning.

Your line “Jerks a jaded tea palate awake in the nicest way” is perfect! I read that to my teabiz partner, Jamie, this morning and we both enjoyed it! I am grateful.

ifjuly

Ha, I’m glad you got something out of it. I am grateful you sent me some—it was really generous of you! I’ve really enjoyed the teas I’ve tried so far (I’m pretty sure Loose and Luscious Lincang altered my state of mind the other night…what a whopper of an experience). Feel very lucky to be able to taste such special tea!

ifjuly

K S, just to clarify, it’s definitely not spicy like, say, Butiki Winter Fire spicy. It’s subtler than that. The smoky spice is not the defining characteristic so much as a wonderful surprise dancing around the edges. Terri’s right—it’s combined with a sweetness kind of like corn (masa harina), so that it evokes savory Mexican-type dishes in a way.

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89
142 tasting notes

Another reviewer noted this tea is between a legacy blend and smoother Chinese black tea, and I agree. In fact, if it were presented to me as a mix of the two, I’d have believed it. It seems to hit all of those notes in a really wonderful way. The dry leaf color gave me the impression it would be a lighter flavor, but it just goes to show that’s a really silly way to judge tea. I’ll keep this one around for guests looking for English Breakfast. It’s way better than anything I’ve found in that category, and I don’t think they’ll be disappointed!

Stephanie

I’m glad to see all these Mandala black tea reviews! I’m thinking of placing an order soon and trying to decide what to get :)

Flowery

Glad to hear it! Pure Bud and GABA Black will be coming tomorrow. :) Followed soon after by my Verdant black tea binge…

Stephanie

Yes! I’m super curious about the GABA!

AnnaEA

If you’re looking for a good breakfast blend, upton tea has a variety that I would consider well worth trying. I’m particularly fond of their Scottish Breakfast Blend. Food for the macguffin!

Flowery

Ha, yes! And that is going on the shopping list. Thank you!

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95
134 tasting notes

On the rare occasion when I have a guest for tea, this seems to be the one most gravitate toward. I have to admit, it is one of my favorites as well, from the gorgeous little pellets of rolled leaves, to the heady aroma (both dry and brewed), to the amber brew with flavors of malt, honey and fields of grain and wildflowers. Had to add this to my shopping list since there was barely enough left in my stash for a mug this morning…

Preparation
1 min, 45 sec

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87
493 tasting notes

Free sample with the purchase. Thank you Garrett !
Steeped gong fu 1,2, 3 and 5min
I like it a lot. It’s bold sweet, smoky and spicy. I have to agree with Terri it smells and taste like roasted poblano . I do like this smokiness and spice. It’s welcoming , makes you feel warm and toasty on a wet and chilly winter morning. This tea is not flat and boring. It changes as it cools. I prefer it hot.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 1 min, 0 sec
Terri HarpLady

I enjoyed this one. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one that got poblano :)

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75
20 tasting notes

I keep losing tasting notes! Man this sucks :(

Tea #2 in my birthday tea adventure!

The smell and flavor I get is a lot more intense than the black pearl I just had. That peppery flavor I mentioned is much more prominent and there’s this almost smoky aftertaste I’m picking up that settles on my tongue. Along with being less smooth, this tea just tastes like barbeque to me! Totally tasty but I’d have to be in the mood for it. As it cools down it reminds me of the cedar pine chips my dad uses when he makes ribs.

Second and third steeps become even more smoky! This bbq taste is really unexpected. For some reason I was expecting it to be more like a dian hong.

Overall a good tea but I’d really have to be in the mood to drink it.

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 45 sec

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