Someone asked me...

The following list is based on only having reviewed < 100 teas to date.

Organic Black:
Seeyok Autumn Darjeeling – Alvin’s of San Francisco
Organic Golden Yunnan Black Tea – Arbor Teas
Organic Greenfield Estate Ceylon Black Tea – Arbor Teas
Organic Singampatti Oothu Estate Black Tea – Arbor Teas
Organic Morning’s Journey – Hugo Tea
China Breakfast – Rishi
Ancient Forest Black – Shanti Tea
Premium Keemun Hao Ya Black – Teavivre

Black:
Mi Xian Black – Butiki
Premium Taiwanese Assam – Butiki
Assam Reserve – Teas Etc
Golden Monkey Black – Teavivre
Laoshan Black – Verdant Tea
Assam Mangalam Second Flush FTGFOP1 – Zen Tea Life

There are many other black teas I’m looking forward to tasting from: Joseph Wesley Black, Hugo, Mandala, Shang, Steven Smith Teamaker, TTC, Tea Palace, TeaVivre, The Tao of Tea, Yunnan Sourcing, & Zhi Tea. Please see: http://steepster.com/looseTman/wishlist

This is a great thread! I was hoping to get some of that Golden Fleece so many people liked, but Verdant doesn’t have it any more. But the Ji Hong Men is in stock…http://www.innteas.com/black-tea.php

A winemaker told me once (this was actually at Mondavi in Napa) that “the best wine is the one that you enjoy most, not the one everyone else likes or the one that is expensive.” Tea should be enjoyed.
I’ve had so many cups, so many brands and seasons that I can no longer make a short list. Which season of Laoshan Black as an example has been my favorite?
What has changed the most for me is the preference for unflavored tea over flavored. That change took about 18 months from my first stumble onto Steepster. What a blessing the people here have been!

Golden Fleece Verdant
Black Beauty Mandala
Laoshan Black Verdant
Gong Fu Black Zhi
Golden Needle Mandala

I still have quite a few unflavored blacks to taste but these are desert island teas for sure

My top ten unflavoured black teas:
- Thunderbolt Tea › Turzum SFTGFOP1 Himalayan Mystic (DJ-32)
- Tea Palace › Golden Needles
- Yuuki-cha › Organic Makurazaki Black Tea Hime Fuki
- Dragon Tea House › Premium Dian Hong
- Teavivre › Yun Nan Dian Hong Black Tea – Golden Tip
- Teavivre › Fengqing Dragon Pearl Black Tea
- Dragon Tea House › Organic China Fujian Bohea Wild Black Tea
- Teavivre › Organic Superfine Keemun Fragrant Black Tea
- Canton Tea Co › Dan Cong Black
- Verdant Tea › Laoshan Black

I recently joined the Verdant Tea Club with the hope of tasting more of their black teas as they are very popular. I’m also finding myself really liking some Japanese black teas too and am currently experimenting with a few. My list may change but at this moment in time those are my top ten unflavoured black teas from my ratings list.