A few days ago I glanced through some of the oldest bits of my tea log and noticed this blend. It had been so long since I’ve had it that I couldn’t remember it well. I knew I liked it and that I enjoyed mixing it with Rose Scented by Harney. I thought I might order it again sometime, and then…there it was on shelf at The Fresh Market today!
Our Fresh Market is a bit small and the tea selection not quite like the bigger ones in bigger, more affluent cities. But they have new tea! They even had Tower of London in loose leaf and they had four Kusmi teas in sachets! I should have waited and purchased it with a discount through Harney directly, but I was too excited.
I made it to go with Easter lunch and set out a cup for hubby to try it thinking he would take a sip and pass. He usually doesn’t like black tea except with milk and sugar, but he drank a whole cup plain and said he liked it.
Later we had chocolate cake and made a second pot and he drank several cups of it again. Plain! Yet he adds milk and sugar to Queen Catherine! I don’t understand. Ha ha!
I like it best with food. To be 100% honest, this is on the verge of being too harsh for me, which is why I was shocked that my husband liked it. The Keemun is A-Okay, of course…you know I love Keemun! And the Ceylon is great, as is the Formosa oolong. But the Assam…it is pretty prominent here and I just have trouble with how strong Assam is sometimes. It really is a milk and sugar tea to me, and I try not to add anything to my tea.
I think I will be softening it sometimes with Rose Scented as I drink it, and definitely serving it with food. It was really good with the chocolate cake I made for Easter and cut through the sweetness of the chocolate buttercream frosting.
For breakfast tea lovers, I think this would be nearly perfect, and I really truly mainly bought this because I am going to a women’s Bible study now and the teacher is super nice and loves strong tea, so I wanted some teas to share with her and to serve when she comes over, because she is really nice and I want to show my appreciation for all she does.
I will review this again after she drinks it, and let you know what an Assam lover thinks of it!
