60

I got a sample of this one on my Teavivre order a month or two back and am finally taking a moment to enjoy it. I am using the whole packet which is a bit much for my tastes but not nearly enough to split into two cups at work. Ho hum.

The dry aroma is light and sweet, seems floral and with some fruity notes but once steeped it comes across as astringent and bitter in aroma. Very reminiscent of standard bagged black tea. Darn you slightly too large sample!! I even decreased the temp and time to account for it. We’ll see how it tastes.

Luckily I don’t get any astringency in the sip, but neither am I getting a whole lot else. It’s black tea. Maybe some light floral behind it all, but nothing impressive. I am getting a lot of Red Rose associations here. It is drying my mouth a bit so I guess it is astringent, but at least it isn’t bitter.

I was hoping this might be a replacement for Keemun Mao Feng from Harneys which I loved but this didn’t do it for me at all. Oh well!

EDIT to add: Wow, am I the lone dissenter or what? I love black tea but this was a disappointment. I wonder if it was mislabelled or maybe a weird batch as there was no cocoa and nothing I typically associate with keemun. Weird. I know the sample wasn’t very old either.

Kittenna

One always has to wonder when they’re pretty much the only person who doesn’t like something… but sometimes it happens!

looseTman

did you follow TeaVivre’s recommendations?
- Gaiwan 3oz Tea: 5g 6 steeps: rinse,15s,30s,45s,1m10s,1m40s,2m10s 90ºC/194ºF
- Teapot 8oz 1-2tsp(7g) 3 steeps:1m,2m,3m 90ºC/194ºF
http://www.teavivre.com/keemun-fragrant-black-tea/

kOmpir

It was good to me, but not worth the price (IMHO).

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Comments

Kittenna

One always has to wonder when they’re pretty much the only person who doesn’t like something… but sometimes it happens!

looseTman

did you follow TeaVivre’s recommendations?
- Gaiwan 3oz Tea: 5g 6 steeps: rinse,15s,30s,45s,1m10s,1m40s,2m10s 90ºC/194ºF
- Teapot 8oz 1-2tsp(7g) 3 steeps:1m,2m,3m 90ºC/194ºF
http://www.teavivre.com/keemun-fragrant-black-tea/

kOmpir

It was good to me, but not worth the price (IMHO).

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Bio

I’ve been drinking loose tea since 2010 and my tastes have changed a lot over those years. For the last few, I’ve been a fan of unflavoured Chinese blacks and shu puerh. I still drink other things, but that’s where I am.

I live in a rural area with my husband, cat, and soon to be firstborn. I love tea, reading, doctor who, knitting, crosswords, board games, the marvel universe, and lots of other things.

I’m not often rating teas numerically any more but I want to leave this to explain my past ratings:
I try to only log teas once or twice because I drink a lot of the same ones repeatedly. My rating is based on my perception of the tea at first tasting and is adjusted if anything notable occurs in subsequent cups. I may also factor in the price and customer service but try to note that when I can.

81 – 100: These are great teas, I love them, regularly stock them or savour them as unique treats.
71 – 80: These are solid. I drink them, I like them, I may or may not keep them on hand regularly. This is still good stuff.
61 – 70: Just okay. I can drink it, but it doesn’t stand out to me. Might be lower quality, not to my taste, or outside my comfort zone.
41 – 60: Not likely to keep drinking…hoping hubby will enjoy!
0 – 40: No thank you, please. Take it away and don’t make me finish the cup.

Location

Canada

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