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Halmari CTC BOP (TA27) from Upton Tea Imports

Steepster Score 5 Ratings Rate This Tea

73/100

Halmari CTC BOP (TA27)

Black Tea by Upton Tea Imports

A bold CTC style tea with rich flavor. The dark liquor will readily take milk. Especially suited as a bracing morning tea.
Origin:
India

9 Tasting Notes

TeaEqualsBliss
77
TeaEqualsBliss 2 tasting notes

Bold, Brash, Brisk, Bitter. The 4 B’s.
None are in a BAD way. But I might tinker with this one a bit more – so this rating might change. And I only infused for about a minute! Just a heads-up!

2nd attempt – completely different outcome…a bit cooler water temp and for less time. Also less loose leaf = MUCH better! Upping rating now that I had a nice attempt! I will still tinker.

Also…it’s Aloha Friday!
Check it out!
http://blissfulyogajourney.blogspot.com/
Let me know if you participate!

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Charles Thomas Draper
Charles Thomas Draper 2 tasting notes

This was the last of my black tea samples from Upton. It brewed up strong yet it was not too bold. It was eye-opening and invigorating. As far as CTC teas go, this was a pleasant suprise. Rich and malty and very flavorful.

I had this again today and upped the dosage and shortened the steep time and it was perfect. It was slightly numbing intially and very flavorful. I literally had this energy. This sense of purpose. A great tea buzz to say the least…. I am still buzzing hours later.

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Amy oh
66

Tea of the morning here, 2/4 of Upton’s assam sampler.

I don’t have a lot of experience with CTC’s aside from knowing they are produced in a different way than orthodox teas so here’s a short primer for the curious: http://t-buds.com/orthodox-vs-ctc-teas-body-vs-flavor/

I steeped this for 3 minutes but might try it for 2 next time. It is definitely a strong assam, bold and malty with a bit of a winey aftertaste and some bitterness too. Definitely a lot better with milk and sugar and very eye opening. Meh, maybe I’m a tea snob but I much prefer the traditional assam leaf.

I have read this is primarily what they use to make chai with in India but traditionally chai is made with a lot of milk.

Dan
85
Dan 2 tasting notes

This tea is in small little pellets like grapenuts. It is a bold, robust, and chewy tea with a caramel note at first sip. I was really surprised at this tea. There was no bitterness and a touch of astringency. I got more caramel notes as the tea cooled. Yes, this is a CTC tea but it just amazed me with the taste.

This is a nice bold, robust tea for breakfast. It has the nice malty, chewy taste that assam’s are supposed to have. A very tasty tea.
2.5g/8oz

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Solidaritea
85

Rich malty brew with a slight lemony backtaste. This is a really outstanding CTC.

Kitty
34

Tasted three Upton CTCs today. Compared to the Upton CTC BOP Estate Blend Organic (TA15) and Upton Irish Breakfast CTC teas, the granules were much smaller and finer, and darker than the Organic. I tasted all three teas with milk.

The Halmari CTC BOP was watery tasting on the first sip, but with good body. No bitterness. Also, no malt. The watery flavor remained as I sipped it.

(Between the three teas, the Irish Breakfast was my favorite)