Earl Grey

Works probably? Not the best I’ve ever tasted.

I purchased a tin of loose Twinings Earl Grey and am astounded at how mediocre the flavour is. I expected more bergamot and a little complexity or interesting twist to the flavour as you get with say David’s Teas Earl Grey.

Twinings was flat and lifeless. Not horrible but not impressive. Not bitterness, just no interesting flavour notes. Very straightforward, which I would not whine about had the price been lower.

Water: 8oz

Leaves: tea bag

Measuring Spoon: no

Steep: 4m

Aroma: Peppery,Sweet/floral?

Color: Deep reddish brown

Clarity: a faint cloudiness

Taste: This was my first Earl Grey experience, pouring the water over the tea bag i notices a slight peppery aroma. After steeping the aroma had changed to a more Sweet/floral one, it’s quite interesting since i don’t think I’ve come across a tea like this scent wise. The color was a deep reddish brown with a bit of cloudiness but i could still see threw my cup. As for taste i found it to be a bit bitter as for the overall flavor profile it was tough to pinpoint exactly & leaves a dry mouth feel. Overall not the worst or best tea I’ve tried, it’s just okay.

Saw this in store and decided it was worth a try. It is actually pretty good tasting. The bergamot oil is fairly strong but not overpowering. I think this would be good iced too.

I steeped this one time in a Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and boiling water for 3 min.

Date: 17.05.2016. – 06.06.2016.
Place of obtain: Konzum, Ulica Lavoslava Ružičke 32; Zagreb, Croatia
Price: 29,99kn – 1,20kn/teabag (4,41$ – 0,18$)
Teabags: 25 * 2g = 50g
Bergamont: 3%

According to price and prestige, I expected more! But it was ok Earl Grey tea.

It WOULD be nice if it didn’t taste like orange paper.

Having this tea at my parents place, since I have to stay over a couple nights to babysit my brother while they party in Vegas (not really, just get drunk and eat a lot of Bubba Gump shrimp. And while we’re on the topic, why don’t they have that in Canada, namely in Vancouver? If they had a location here, I’m 100% sure it would be insanely popular. Plus then it would mean I wouldn’t have to go on vacation to eat Bubba Gump ;_; )

I noticed this in the cupboard and decided I wanted to try it first, since we have the decaf version at home. Since my boyfriend and I found the decaf to be surprisingly heavy on the lemon/citrus, I wanted to compare with the regular version. Immediately after opening the packet I knew it was not the same. I mean, the lemon is still in there, but way more in the background, while the bergamot and the base black tea mix in more strongly. Quite nice tea, reminds me of a less citrusy Lady Grey. It’s smooth with bright flavours, and easy to drink.

I suppose the decaf versions might be really lemon flavoured because perhaps the decaffeination process causes the tea to lose a lot of flavour, and they add in more lemon it make up for it? Not sure why they wouldn’t opt for more bergamot too, considering it’s supposed to be an earl grey tea. I don’t know, but it’s quite interesting to note the large taste difference between the two versions of the same tea.

Actually, as I drink this one, it reminds me more and more of Lady Grey, albeit stronger In flavour but very similar. My lady grey obsession had recently died down somewhat, so I’m not going crazy over the similarities, but it still it an enjoyable, light and citrusy earl grey.

In other news, I got another Tea Sparrow box today! I’ve been on hold while I finish some of my stash so that it doesn’t get too out of hand, but yesterday I got it in the mail! I don’t know what it is about receiving mail, especially tea in the mail, but there is something profoundly exciting about it. I was delighted to see that I once again received Strawberry Mint from Herbal Republic, one I’ve been wanting to order but couldn’t justify the shipping price for one tea. I brought them all with to my parents’ place so that I can try them while I am here.

This is my first note so hopefully this goes well. Anyways I love black teas and this is one of my favorites. I usually drink this first thing in the morning before I pick up my students from bus wait. I like the wonderful aroma that the tea gives off, Bergamot. I know some people find this a little overwhelming, but i enjoy it. I let mine steep for awhile, instead of a light brown color, mine is very deep. Over all I enjoy this tea and I find it well worth the price.

Quick Review

This was a quick snatch and grab this morning. I think that mornings are best to revert to the oldies. Honestly, I’ve found myself disliking Earl Grey tea more and more as I convert to newer flavors. Despite that, I think that Twining’s makes a pretty solid Earl Grey, and it’s great to add sugar and cream to; therefore, I can see myself drinking this from time to time. There’s something about this E.G. that keeps me going for it now and again; however, it reminds me of the days when I thought E.G. was the only decent tea—which was before the time my friend had introduced me to anything but E.G. It’s almost nostalgic drinking this tea.

Side Note: The students were nearly sleep walking this morning, and didn’t want anything to do with me or school. However, I have that ONE student who loves mornings, and can function much better than any of us. She approached me and proceeded to tell me that her grandma drinks Earl Grey tea every day. Anyway, she decides to go on about drinking tea, when, as I’m listening, this is a child who can actually talk tea and drinks tea.

I give perks to her parents and grandma for introducing her to tea, and allowing my mind to wake up by having tea-talk with an eight-year-old at such an early time in the morning!

I really like this tea so much! Such a lovely flavour and one of my favourites!! I don’t drink this as often now as I am staying away from caffeine most of the time, but this is so pleasant!
I drink this with milk and sugar/sweetener.