I had two new-to-me Earl Grey blends this morning. This one is a gift from Superanna and the other is a gift from Ashman.
Reading reviews and even the Lupicia website, I was unsure as to whether this contained longan AND bergamot or longan INSTEAD OF bergamot. Since the ingredient list both online and on the bag say it contains black tea, longan pieces, and essential oil, I was still none the wiser. What oils? Just longan or bergamot or both?
Taste told me that either there was a whole lot of bergamot in this or longan tastes an awful lot like bergamot. I noticed there was a warning that the essential oils in this tea may stain plastics so be aware for the sake of your teaware. I looked up their plain Earl Grey and there was the same warning, so I have my answer.
This was a powerful tea, very flavorful, and I think it could be polarizing. If you don’t like bergamot, you are not going to like this tea – something I do not say about some blends with bergamot. The base is strong enough to stand with the scents, otherwise this woukd be a very poor cup of tea indeed.
Ashman dislikes Earl Grey but likes both Paris and Parker’s Blend, which have bergamot. I don’t think he would drink this.I, however, like it! It is very unusual and there is a strong perfume taste, and a good twenty minutes after I drank this I noticed that I still tasted the perfume. (The longan mainly. Perhaps some bergamot as well.)
Neat tea!
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I miss the days when Earl Gray tasted perfumey — I assume it’s my palate that has been wrecked by my consumption over the years, but maybe I’ll give this version a go!
I had to look out what longan is and first result was a Vietnamese restaurant in Prague, but then it showed me also fruit.
So interesting that you describe it as perfumey, a word that I have a bit of a visceral reaction to ha ha, and yet I love this tea! The smoke-bergamot-longan combination is so interesting.
@Martin – it’s very similar to lychee, if you’re familiar with that.
I miss the days when Earl Gray tasted perfumey — I assume it’s my palate that has been wrecked by my consumption over the years, but maybe I’ll give this version a go!
I had to look out what longan is and first result was a Vietnamese restaurant in Prague, but then it showed me also fruit.
So interesting that you describe it as perfumey, a word that I have a bit of a visceral reaction to ha ha, and yet I love this tea! The smoke-bergamot-longan combination is so interesting.
@Martin – it’s very similar to lychee, if you’re familiar with that.