Assam Mangalam Second Flush FTGFOP1

Oh yum. A plain and simple and delicious assam.

Yay!

I do like this tea. I added a bit of honey and did a shorter steep than usual. I think the last time I had this tea I was still loading everything up with milk and sugar. How things change. :)

It’s light and malty, with that touch of astringency assams have.

I’ll probably end up picking up more of this one when I replenish my herbals. Zen Tea’s prices are generally pretty good, and their shipping is super fast because they’re so close to me.

Drinking this one right after the Earl Grey definitely shows me that I’m not loving earl grey teas so much anymore. :( They were what I used to drink ALL the time! Earl grey with milk and honey. A GIANT mug. I’d either guzzle it or reheat it throughout the day.

Maybe I should pick up some Twinings, just to see?

200 g. Sipdown: 1 tsp. (3g) / 8 oz. / 203F / 3 min.
I thoroughly enjoyed this robust, malty, full-bodied, creamy smooth Assam. A great “Good Morning” tea. Please see my original review: http://steepster.com/looseTman/posts/164482.
I won’t promptly restock as I’m currently well stocked, there are a few Chinese teas i enjoy more, & there are so many other black & pu’er teas I want to experience!

Tea tea. I have a lot of this tea.

It’s funny how my taste in teas has changed over time. I find that now I am more drawn towards straight teas, but somehow most of the ones I own are flavoured. I am so happy that I ordered this as one of my samples! It is naturally sweet and actually reminds me of my favourite aspects of Nepal Black.

I steeped this one twice, and I think it would be good with or without a bit of milk. It doesn’t really need sweetener but my boyfriend put some sugar in his and it was definitely tasty!

I’ll keep this one in stock!

Oh my god. This smells so damn good. Assam, cocoa, berries, faint hint of all spice, honey – but the mild light kind.

Plain – Oh my gosh, this is good. If I were having it plain, I’d reduce the steeping time as there’s a bit too much astringency for my liking. Rich cocoa notes and honey, still getting a hint of red berries. Gorgeous.
w/ Milk – Wow. What a delicious creamy cup. So so good. I must get more of this. Permanent addition to the house.
w/ Sugar – cuts the astringency that was too much for me, nicely. Delicious!
w/ Milk & Sugar – MMmmmMMmmmm! So good.

This. This is the type of black tea I love having in my house. One that is versatile and tastes fantastic any which way, for whatever mood I’m in, and so that I can serve it to guests who adjust to their preference – knowing that it will come out great.
Just making a note that this is the organic version, just in case this title comes in both organic and non-organic.

LooseTman generously provided a sample of this in our swap – thank you!

I had the first cup of this earlier this morning, but didn’t write down any notes, but I remember thinking it was smooth, creamy and tasted golden (if that makes any sense). And to be honest, I don’t remember very much of the second steep. I also realized that I had been using too much water per the instructions provided, so decided to try again with fresh leaves a couple of hours after.

Third cup, with fresh leaves and less water produced a stronger, maltier cup, but I also detected some bitterness at the end of the sip as the cup cooled. I tried a second time with the same parameters, but still found a little bitterness, so I added a tad more water. Back to the creamy maltiness that I enjoyed this morning.

This is also a sample sipdown.

Butiki Educational Box #2

Someone added this sample to the box. Since I loved the Butiki Caramel Vanilla Assam from last night, I thought I’d start with this.

Not for me.

I don’t know what it is. Too…something. It’s heavy. It’s malty. It’s a touch bitter feeling. Astringent.

Not for me.

that said, the smell alone is beautiful, and then I part my lips and the aroma is smooth, sweet, malty. I really like that. I could sit and smell it for hours. I just don’t like it.

Well, I tried.

I figure I’ll try a few of the black teas from the box, and a few of the Darjeelings.

That’s what this box is for, right? To try things and maybe like or not like them.

This is another tea I’ve had to a while.

The dry leaf has brown, black and grey leaves , with scattered golden tips.

I used one heaping TSP/225ml.

After 3 min the tea brews up to deep mahogany brew.

The tea smells comfortingly of biscuit, light sweet red fruits, tempered by plum, honey, spice with a slight presence of vanilla and honey, with the deeper tones of malt underneath.

First impressions are of a smooth, sweet and light Assam. Light fruit and honey are in the first sip, with biscuit notes deepening into a malty slightly deeper fruit tone base. Spice and vanilla are underneath. There is a slight light floral tone in the lighter top notes. Pleasant and probably a nice Assam for those who have difficulty with heavy tannins and astringency as this tea is lighter in both of these for an Assam but has enough texture to have a nice density in the mouth. Despite honey being quite present in the initial sips, this tea does not have as sweet an aftertaste as some of my Assam’s. A citrousy malt note becomes more present as the tea cools and a sharper tone develops in the tea. I think when I first had this I used less leaf as I remembered feeling that this tea was too light in flavour, but with a heaping spoonful this is quite a pleasant tea.

A solid assam! The dry leaves are wirey with hints of gold. The flavor is slightly malty, sweet and it doesn’t really get astringent. It reminds me of one of my favorite teas from another tea company that went out of business… a nice replacement! I like this one, but to me, it should be more robust. It doesn’t have enough body to it, but I guess that would mean trying Zen’s CTC teas. I’ll try more leaves next time. Both steeps tasted the similar no matter how I steeped it. If you’re interested in trying a sweeter, more mild assam, try this one!
Steep #1 // 10 mins after boiling // 3 min steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 4 min steep

I was looking for something that would taste a little like Irish breakfast tea. it has a dense smooth flavor with hints of malt. taste good with a dash of honey. its is a good tea warm up in the morning. if zen tea ever decides to produce an Irish breakfast blend it should include this tea.