No. 1 Tippy Orthodox GFOP Darjeeling (TD50) Tea by Upton Tea Imports

80

So i have to say that I’m really glad that this darjeeling is a decent cup of tea. I was a little worried that I was not going to love them, since the first few that i’ve tried, I haven’t liked. This one though, is a pretty tasty cup! It’s not my favourite black tea but this is still an enjoyable cup. I’d love a bit more robustness from this but the tea is smooth and tasty.

2013-01-21 12:46:03 -0500

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82

Jessie

I love the format of Upton’s samplers, and grabbed the black tea one as I would like to get more familiar with my straight blacks.

This Darjeeling was really pleasant before breakfast today. It was nice and smooth but with a little bit of a bite. It’s flavourful but relatively light.

2011-03-14 18:12:45 -0400

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JoonSusanna 4 tasting notes

So, I’ve decided that I am familiar with my green teas, and I really like my dessert teas. But I don’t know very much about black teas – like at all. I mean, I know I like the flavor, but I don’t know much about specific regions and that just cannot stand.

So I placed an Upton order and am working through my black tea samples, cold brewed for right now because it’s STILL August (I mean, really? Where the heck are you November?) and therefore still too hot to think about hot tea.

After one day of brewing 3 tsp. leaf in 3 cups of water, this was the first tea I tried. I was surprised at how light the color of the steeped liquid was – but then I read that Darjeelings are technically oolongs because they don’t get fully oxidized and that lighter color made sense. Still, the aroma of the tea definitely smells like a black tea should – earthy and strong. Despite the fact that cold brews seem able to smooth out most teas, this one is still somewhat astringent – not unpleasantly so, but I’m sure that I’ll have to be careful not to oversteep when I finally do try it hot.

Also, I think I get the muscatel note – something in it does remind me of grapes toward the end of the sip, but it also seems kind of perfumey too. I am drinking this unsweetened and it is fabulous – I’ve gone through all three cups with dinner. I’m super glad to know this one works as a cold brew though – I think this will be something I bring along with me to class this semester…

2011-08-21 20:46:34 -0400

Iced

8 min or more

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2 heaping tsp. leaf to 500ml. in my Breville.

Last time I had this I steeped it at 3:30 and thought that the taste could be developed a bit more. So tonight I went with an extra 30 seconds, taking it up to 4 minutes, which is my usual steep time for black teas.

I think that this time the flavor of the tea came through even when hot – with the trade-off being that there was more astringency too.

Bottom line: I think it’s a more of an everyday black tea – the taste and smell are wonderful but there’s nothing overly complex about it.

2011-11-30 19:50:14 -0500

Boiling

4 min 0 sec

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Using up the last of my Upton sample this morning with breakfast – 3 tsp. (a little over) to 500 (-ish, this was also a little over) ml. water at below parameters.

The last time I tried this I used boiling water and a longer steep time and got…black tea. Kind of flat in the sense that there was nothing else there – none of the typical darjeeling extras, so to speak. Several people offered steeping recommendations so I thought I may as well try them to see if the tea could be improved upon.

The tea this time is significantly more complex. There is astringency in the taste (mildly pleasant) and a more layered scent and taste (there’s the muscatel/grape-ish note!). It’s quite earthy and that is the most dominant feature of the tea by far, but it’s not the only thing I’m getting, like last time.

The only thing I would change now is to back off even a little more on steep time – 2:30 would likely ease off on the astringency that much more. I don’t know that there will be a next time, however – there are plenty more darjeelings to try.

I’m open to suggestions if anyone has them!

2011-12-20 11:01:10 -0500

195 °F / 90 °C

3 min 0 sec

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2.5 tsp. to 20 oz. (-ish) water in my Breville.

I am always a little gun shy around black teas for some reason – I love them so much but I don’t want to make them bitter so I tend to be overcautious with my steep times, especially if it’s my first time trying it hot. All that is to say that 4 minutes (an extra 30 seconds) might make the flavor just a bit stronger next time.

Well, at 3:30, I successfully managed to avoid that dreaded bitterness/astringency. This tea is palatable with no additives, and the smell – that comforting earthy smell – adds even more to the experience. Plus, as it cools I get more of a ‘tea’ taste. I haven’t really had much experience with Darjeelings before but this leads me to think I may like them.

In any case, I know I like this one enough to keep it around when I’m in the mood for a lighter black tea.

2011-10-20 20:41:46 -0400

Boiling

3 min 30 sec

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75

I had some of this in the morning and am working from memory, so I might come back and update this when I drink it again.
The leaves looked pretty good – not very broken, brownish-greenish.
Astringency was minimal and the tea is nice and round and mellow. The mouthfeel is moderate.

There’s definitely some of that typical floral flavor I expect from a Darjeeling. There are also more mellow malty notes. I presume the more mellow, robust notes are coming from the second flush leaves. There’s a hint of this brothy taste that I notice in some Chinese blacks and Japanese greens that I don’t care for. It really bothers my girlfriend, but it’s not the end of the world in my view. Overall, I prefer a first flush Darjeeling, but this is good too.

2013-03-01 18:00:52 -0500

190 °F / 87 °C

3 min 30 sec

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