Lavender Earl Grey (TE12)

Updated to add the number of this tea in Upton’s catalog as I was confused initially. In the Upton Earl Grey sampler it is named “Organic Earl Grey Lavender” but it has the same catalog number as Lavender Earl Grey (which also has a mark showing it is organic). So mystery solved, at least to my satisfaction.

This blend smells great dry. I love the smell of lavender, and that is the main thing I smell. It’s a deep, full lavender smell, which may be somewhat intensified by citrus. But I don’t smell bergamot here, or tea, really, for that matter. The addition of water tones down the lavender in the aroma, and seems to bring out a mild citrus note and a sweet black tea one.

The flavor is very nice, not too strong on the bergamot (which is how I like it) and the lavender is nicely balanced. The tea base is mild and unobtrusive.

It’s something I’d definitely drink again, though given the choice of a single Lavender Earl Grey, I’d pick the Samovar. The main reason is the tea base. The Samovar’s is delicious with a lot of character and depth. It’s far more present, but not in a distracting way; the lavender and bergamot are still clearly there. The Samovar is built more like a three-legged stool, where each of the three main components is equally important to the flavor. In the Upton the tea plays more of a foundation role, and the stars are two non-tea flavorings.

I just noticed that this was labeled no. 2 in the Upton Earl Grey sampler. Eeek, I’d better backtrack and taste no. 1!

Apparently, I am not done with caffeine today! (Thankfully the fine tremors from earlier teas have stopped.) At the husband’s request, I’ve made one of the new EGs for us to try out. He’s had a tough day, he deserves some happy tea.

The dry leaf smells very whoosh menthol of lavender. My sinuses are a little stuffy but this stuff has got to help that.

I’m going to attempt to go additive-less on this one (because the last thing I need is caffeine and sugar). The liquid smells both bergamot-y and lightly menthol-lavender… which oddly combines in my nose to make me think of the smell of fake crab, but maybe sweeter?

The taste, thankfully, doesn’t remind me of fake crab. It seems to be evenly bergamot and lavender – if one pushes forward more I can’t tell which one it is – but the aftertaste is more lavender. There’s not a whole lot of tea base taste here – it’s fairly mild – but it’s also smooth and the overall feeling and taste is very easy so I’m okay with that. There’s no real astringency or bitterness, even after a 4minute steep, so I don’t feel like it needs additives at all.

Probably not the smartest move, having a caffeinated tea at 10pm, but hopefully it will work out just fine as this tea is fairly smooth and relaxing, not bold and energetic. I find it nicely enjoyable.

LiberTEAs sent me a bit of this one as well and I thank her very much! :)

This smells like a very Lavendered-Up Earl Grey but the taste isn’t overly so. I can taste more Lavender than Earl Grey but even the Lavender isn’t over-done which I do like that about it….by this being mellower it doesn’t taste chemically like some can taste if to intensely flavored. This is a nice HAPPY MEDIUM type flavored Earl Grey. Pretty good, indeed!

I got this as a sample some time ago, but haven’t tried it until today.

The aroma is very lavender, but, I like how the bergamot comes through. It has a really pleasing fragrance – more enjoyable to me than lavender or bergamot would be on their own.

The flavor is very nice. The bergamot and lavender are paired nicely here. Sweet, floral, sharp, citrusy… very nice!

When I opened this bag, the aroma that hit me was intense lavender. It was very perfume-like which might concern some, but I wasn’t all that bothered by it. Perfume-y is better than medicinal haha.

The tea once it steeped was a deep amber color & the overly perfume-y aroma had lightened to a nice black tea aroma with whisps of lavender and bergamot. For the intense lavender smell in the bag, this tea was really not heavy on the lavender at all. It came across as a lightly bergamot scented black tea with a delicate lavender flavor, rather than the uber lavender tea you’d expect after sniffing the bag. Not bad at all. I am getting some (slightly unpleasant) bitterness towards the end of each sip, I think next time I make this tea I will brew it for a shorter time than recommended on the bag.

Though I tend to prefer my Lavender EG teas to be a little heavier on the lavender, I enjoy this one quite a bit :)

The last week has not been stress free by any means.
So, when I got up this morning, I remembered this tea from my Upton order.
I have tried a lavender earl in the past (by Revolution Tea) and liked it.
But, when I opened the little sample tin of this, I grew frightened.
I like lavender, don’t get me wrong, but that was all I could smell.
I cried out “Earl, honey? You even in there”
No response, so I poured over the hot water and waited…the lavender is not nearly as strong(thank goodness) as the dry leaf.
It mellowed out some and I can smell the bergamot.
Lavender does hit your tongue first.
The bergamot takes the back seat in this brew, but is still there.
You have to like lavender to like this tea.
Right now, it is hitting the spot for me though.
I can feel the tension leaving my temples.
This tea would be lovely for a afternoon tea break at work.
Come at me, world. I am ready.

Why I would drink a cup of heavily caffeinated, super perfume-y Earl Grey at 10pm is a mystery. Perhaps it was because I spent the afternoon with a friend in her garden that has some new lavender growing. Perhaps it was because I’m obviously nuts to drink something like this late at night. I really don’t know.

That said, this is delicious. Some reviewers have mentioned it reminds them of drinking perfume. Ok. I get that. The lavender and bergamot both come on like gang-busters.

I cook with lavender (Herbes de Provence) on a regular basis. I like lavender in my food. If you don’t, seriously, don’t drink this.

This tea is meant to be drunk in the garden. It would likely be lovely with a splash of cream, if you’re into that kind of thing.

If you want a full throttle Earl Grey that isn’t shy on the lavender, this is it. This is another one I could bathe in. For now, I’ll stick to drinking it. Yum.

This is such a pleasant tea. Not perfumey, more of an herbal, almost minty. A good tea base with just enough of it’s flavors and oils. A good balance.

With milk and sugar. I can taste the lavender mainly in the aftertaste. It’s got some bitter endnotes which I assume is the lavender. A bit sharp. The bitter taste makes it not as pleasing. Dry aftertaste, lack of aftertaste… disappointing because the lavender with it smells good. After tasting some of the wife’s, I think it is better without additives.

Ka-blammo!!!!!!!!!!

If you’ve always wondered what a Lavender-flavoured punch in the face smells like, then smell this tea. But buckle yourself in first.

This was pretty insanely overpowering and while I can’t say I’m a hater for lavender, this was really really intense. Once you make the tea it was much more subdued, thankfully. I think I messed this up a bit though, I used lukewarm water instead of boiling. So I need to try this again. But on first taste, this is not my favourite of the Upton Earl Grey sampler pack. I like the other ones (eg Earl Grey Creme Vanilla) much better.

I like how balanced this Earl Grey is—it’s not super bold but it’s not flimsy or thin either, just right. As others have mentioned, the lavender is far more overpowering aroma-wise dry before brewing, and is just right in the cup—which totally works for me, as I love the smell but wouldn’t want to get that soapy feeling one gets consuming too much lavender.

It can hold up to some milk and a bit of sugar, but tastes good alone too—again, versatile and easy-going.

This is a great everyday afternoon pick-me-up tea, not hugely distracting/busy but still delicious. It’s a regular for me because it doesn’t ask for too much of my attention (it doesn’t haunt me like some more dessert-y rich flavored blends) but always offers a welcome break in the day.

While this tea was steeping, it certainly smelled like perfume. No surprises, then, when it turned out to taste like perfume. None of the bergmont flavor from the earl grey was present. As far as I could taste, I was drinking lavender tea and not lavender earl grey. Not really what I expected…

This tea reminds me of my experience with rosewater-flavored Turkish Delight. Despite knowing that it’s meant to be ingested, I keep getting twinges of “Why am I drinking perfume? Is this safe?” in the back of my mind. It’s not unpleasant enough that I won’t finish off the sample tin that I purchased, but I’m unlikely to buy any more of this. I guess I am too conditioned to think of lavender as a cosmetic rather than a foodstuff.

Upton Tea Sample Buying Spree Tea #6:
Chosen because my brother, with whom I have been jointly doing these tastings, is not here and this is the tea that made him make the most grossed out face. Honestly, his worries were completely baseless since (and I freely admit that this COULD be the result of congestion – although I am at least able to breath through my nose this morning so it’s not THAT bad) I couldn’t get ANYTHING out of this tea.
Seriously, it just tasted like tea. Tea-flavored tea. Perhaps lavender has the magic property of canceling out bergamot! Maybe if you made a tisane that was JUST lavender and bergamot you would get something that tasted like water! Somebody must do this…FOR SCIENCE! (I volunteer someone who is not me)
I did start to get some citrusy hints toward the end of the cup, and it certainly brewed up nice and fragrant – although fairly light colored. Definitely need to do another tasting of this one.