41 Tasting Notes

75

I ordered a couple of Harney teabag and sachet samplers when I first started out with tea, to help me figure out what kinds of teas I liked. So now, months later, I am down to the samples that least appealed to me from each pack. This is the bagged version of this tea blend, and fortunately for me, it is actually very good.

It took me a little while to get into Earl Grey teas in general, but now that I am, this tea seems to be a nice example of one. It’s actually reminiscent of Twinings, but with a better tea base. I would not have known it was decaf, which is paying it a high compliment. The bergamot isn’t overwhelming, as I find it can be in other EG’s, and the base tea is smooth and light-bodied. If you are looking for a decaf EG, this would be a good choice, even in teabag form.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 30 sec

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60

I ordered a sample of this tea months ago, when I first started drinking loose leaf tea. I made a couple of cups back then, and always felt there was something slightly off about the taste of the tea. But now that I am a more seasoned tea maker (and at the end of my sample) the tea tastes better! Go figure. ;)

The positives: The flavors of the tea mesh together well for a light, fruity taste, and the base tea is very bright. The spices and fruit flavors are at their peak when the tea has cooled off a bit. I sipped at it for a bit when it was still very hot, and then started gulping when it hit the sweet spot temperature-wise.

The negatives: The cobbler effect is slight, and the tea is definitely drying. I don’t like it iced at all; some flavor quality about it does not ice well, and it tastes kind of soapy.

Bottom line: I wouldn’t turn a cup of this down in the future, but I wouldn’t order it again.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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81

I ordered a sample of this months ago and just now got around to trying it… and I’m glad I did! I have been a fan of every Harney fruit tea I have tried thus far aside from apricot, my favorite being black currant, and this is similar but different.

The dry leaf smells intensely of passion fruit, but the taste of the tea doesn’t reflect that strong scent. Instead, it’s a rich black tea with a vert slightly tangy and ambiguously fruity flavor. Passion fruit? I suppose, though I would not have guessed that in a blind taste test. It’s a summery, fruity tea that is very enjoyable plain and hot; I imagine it might be even better iced, and will have to give that a try.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 30 sec

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drank Bangkok by Harney & Sons
41 tasting notes

I prefer black teas to green most of the time, but this blend makes a green tea that I can enjoy a great deal. I originally tried it when I ordered a Harney sampler sachet pack, and liked it so much that I ordered a 4oz tin. The prominent tastes of lemongrass and coconut are complemented by a hint of ginger at the end of each sip. The green tea base isn’t too grassy or vegetal, but still has a distinctive taste among the other ingredients. I’m drinking this tea hot at the moment, but I love it as an iced tea as well. As others have pointed out, it would go fabulously with the Asian foods that share similar flavor profiles.

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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89
drank Caribe by Harney & Sons
41 tasting notes

I absolutely love this tropical green & black tea blend. Just opening the tin smells amazing, and it keeps that scent as it is steeping. The tart, fruity tastes of guava and pineapple come through the tea quite vividly, and it tastes great hot or iced. I treat it like a green tea to get all of the fruit flavors to emerge.

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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93
drank Boston by Harney & Sons
41 tasting notes

I’ve just finished up my sample pack, and am already debating when I will be ordering some more of this tea. It is a perfect evening cup, and I would have been drinking it much more often over the past couple months if it wasn’t so hot outside. It’s tart, and sweet, but not too much of either – just enough to make it different in a good way. This is a great tea for any time, but it’s absolutely perfect for fall. It’s definitely one of my favorite Harney & Sons blends, and as with most blends, it does not resteep well, but I can’t hold that against it.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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93
drank Boston by Harney & Sons
41 tasting notes

This tea brewed up lighter than I expected, and the taste is lighter than I was expecting as well. But that isn’t a bad thing in this case. The cranberry aspect of this blend has a very distinctive scent and taste, but it isn’t bitter or tart as you might expect a cranberry flavored tea to be. I wouldn’t have guessed the specific nuts in the blend, but almonds make sense. There is a definite nuttiness after you get the initial cranberry notes, and it is a complimentary blend of flavors. Someone else mentioned granola in their review, and that reminded me of a trail mix granola bar that I have had before. This tea is the liquid version of that – nutty, fruity, and sweet.

I generally don’t sweeten tea, but even left plain, this tea has a sweet finish. I only have a sample size of this, but I will definitely be trying some of it iced. This is a tea I will definitely consider getting some more of in the future.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 45 sec

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Going against popular opinion here, but I am not a fan of this iced tea. I prepared it as suggested, and on the plus side, it really does taste like Neapolitan Ice Cream. I can pick out each flavor in the tea, and there is still a strong black tea base. All of that makes for a great iced tea.

However, there is a starkly artificial, sickly sweet aftertaste with every sip of the tea, and that really ruins it for me. It sticks in my mouth to the point where I had to go brush my teeth to be rid of it. Because the ingredients list is so vague, I unfortunately have no idea what is creating that taste, so I can’t even avoid it in future teas. Maybe I got a bad batch, or maybe I am just sensitive to one of the flavorings, but I wouldn’t get this one again.

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