Devonshire Earl Grey TE19

The ratings are somewhat low on this one but I didn’t find anything wrong with it.

It’s not overly powerful. It’s not overly EG. The lemon is nice, tho. Maybe it’s because it’s not too intense or because it’s an EG with additional flavor(s) in it…not sure.

But it’s really not bad!

Oooh, great aroma. The dry leaves smell very sweet – like candied citrus. Once brewed, the smell citrus comes through stronger but it’s still very sweet smelling.

And wow at the taste. Very citrusy. But not harsh. Again, I’m going to go with candied citrus, possibly because it is and possibly because I’ve been up for only 15 minutes and my brain is merely limping along so I can’t think of anything else. I can’t really say, “Oh, this is the bergamot, this is the lemon”, it’s just all citrusy-fresh and sweet in a way that makes me think of my favorite heirloom navel oranges – they are very sweet with just a slight tang of citrusy sharpness, and so is this tea. The citrus isn’t refreshingly tangy or anything. It’s just sweet. (That’s okay, I like sweet.)

There is a hint of astringency on the end of some sips. Also, the flavoring starts to feel a little strong/perfume-y as it floats up the back of my throat into my sinuses, but it’s a wet, sweet perfume-y instead of a dry, floral perfume-y so I’m okay with it. I do feel the flavoring almost needs a little taming, but I think sugar would make it too sweet and milk might kill the flavors too much.

The aftertaste is a little tart as it builds in my mouth and there isn’t a whole lot of the tea base flavor coming through. But it’s not a rough nor harsh tea so I suppose I will forgive it these little quirks.

Finally got around to trying this today, I had picked up a few samples of EGs from Upton when I ordered the British Blend sampler tins. I’m not usually a big fan of Earl Grey, as I think most EG blends available in American groceries are far too heavy on the bergamot. Add to that, I was “traumatized” back in college by someone brewing up Republic’s Earl Greyer – except the person used about 3 times as much tea leaves as necessary and let it steep for about 10 minutes. No wonder I was turned off EGs for so long!

The sampler bags from Upton are cute, if impractical for storage after opening. A nice compact little silver bag, blocks light and nearly all odor from escaping or intruding; but there is no way to seal it back up after opening. I folded down the top several times and placed a binder clip on it.

In the tin/bag: The scent was very much what I expected of an Earl Grey – bergamot blast. The leaves are nice and long (whole, I suppose) and dark.

In the cup: I steeped this for only a little over 3 minutes, in case it was too bergamot heavy, and had a pale brown/dark gold. The scent of bergamot remained. The flavor of bergaot (or what I equate with EGs) was present, but not overwhelmingly. I did add two small spoonfuls of sugar, since I just can not seem to drink tea straight. Maybe one day I’ll get there. I never add milk to an EG (except Cara/Adagio’s Reichenbach Recovery, but that’s a special case).
I did not taste the lemon in the blend until I was about halfway done with the cup and then it was a fight to see which flavor was stronger – sometimes it was the lemon and sometimes it was the bergamot.

I did get out my fancy-pants little “tea for one” set, just to use it. You know what I’m talking about – a tiny little 8-9 ounce teapot with a 6-8 ounce cup that it sits inside of in the cabinet. More hassle to warm before brewing and clean up after drinking the tea than I want to deal with most days, but for a tester cup, it worked (though for the rest of my samples from Upton, I’m using my Teavana TeaMaker).

Really good for no doctoring, definitely no additives needed. I enjoy it – it might be close to perfect. Doesn’t zing with bergamot as much as I would expect, but very good. I will give this tea an 80 rating with room for growth.

Upton Tea Sample Buying Spree Tea #8:
More than halfway done with the Earl Grey’s – Hurrah! Specifically, all I’ve got left of the Earl Greys is the Premium, Green, and Sacher Blend – which is technically a “flavored Darjeeling,” but, since it was in the Earl Grey section at Upton, I will assume that one of the flavors is, in fact, bergamot or something bergamot-like.
This leaves are quite aromatic, probably on the level of the Blue Flower, although different in nature, of course. It smells properly Earl Greyish with a bit of extra…something thrown in.
It brewed up quite light, and on my first few sips tasted almost creamy, although that faded as I got further into the cup, to be replaced with a general floweriness that I’m not certain I approve of, although the base ceylon is VERY tasty. It leaves a rather weird taste at the back of the throat – possibly the result of too much acidity from the double citrus punch of the lemon and bergamot? I’m not really sure what I think about it, I started out quite enjoying it but that feeling faded the more I drank, until I just wanted some water by the time I was finished.

A sweet, strong, floral EG, excellent