English Breakfast Tea

Taste-wise, it is okay.

It’s funny though, how a non-decaf tea made me feel so relaxed :)

Can be used to make chai.

A 5 min steep at 205F produced an opaque cup with a beautiful red-brown color, with a fair bit of tea oil on the surface. The aroma above the cup was a bright rose aroma with a faint hint of wet bark.

Each sip gives a very strong bitter flavor, a bright, side of the tongue bitter, and also a powdery bitter in back, and not much else. There is a faint sweet aftertaste that is overpowered by bitter aftertaste. Astringency is there, but hard to notice because the bitter is so strong.

I like bitter, but in balance. This seems very out of balance for my taste. One dimensional.

A splash of milk knocks down the bitter to a more pleasant level, and allows some faint floral and evergreen notes to squeak out, but only squeak.

For a large box under $3, this is a really great tea. It is moderately flavorful, dark, and balanced if brewed properly: 3.5 minutes at 205F. I like my tea strong and usually brew at least 4 minutes, but with this tea anything past 3.5 mins and it gets very bitter. Brew 3-3.5 and it’s actually got some sweet notes, in addition to the classic English Breakfast flavor and “brightness”, but not much maltiness (TJ’s Irish Breakfast has that in spades, though). It’s got a beautiful dark red color and a nice nose. I actually own much better and more expensive black tea than this, but I find myself coming back to it on a regular basis. It’s a keeper.

This was the tea that first got me into tea, but as time goes on I seem to find it a bit bitter, but maybe I’m steeping for to long?

This is a really nice and strong black tea. Definitely drink it with milk and sugar, especially if you steep it for a long time. It’s a great morning-time tea, perfect to wake up to.

Cheap. Easy. Quick. Strong.
Can’t complain.

I really hope this is decaf…

This is good for when I’m running late and don’t have time to go looseleaf. With Milk and honey, it’s noms.

I love it as ice tea with milk and sweetener

This is the one my best friend keeps around her house for me to drink, so I have a soft spot for it. It’s a decent tea, not terribly strong, not terribly interesting.