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“A huuuuuuuuge clump of cranberry fell into the thermos when I went to steep this last night! I was actually surprised to find as many as they were floating around in the leaf. But! I finally got...” Read full tasting note
“Tea #28 from the Here’s Hoping TTB This tea wasn’t what I expected at all, but then again the only thing I’ve had before with elderberry was wine, so I really have no idea what it tastes like. This...” Read full tasting note
Country of Origin: Sri Lanka
Region: Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula or Uva districts
Shipping Port: Colombo
Grade: OP Orange Pekoe
Altitude: 4800 – 7600 feet above sea level
Manufacture Type: Orthodox
Cup Characteristics: A fresh clean taste this is delightful and intensely berry. As and iced tea – savor the flavor!
Infusion: Bright and Coppery.
Ingredients: Luxury black tea, Sweetened cranberries, Safflower petals, Blackberry + lime leaves, Natural flavors.
Information:
This little round, blackish-purple berries are usually harvested in late August and early September. When most people think of Elderberries, more often than not they think of jams, jellies and pies, even wine. Besides being delicious however, Elderberries have had many other traditional uses. Some early recorded instances of the consumption of the berries date to ancient Greece. Texts from that period record that the berry was thought to be effective in boosting the respiratory and immune systems. More recently, early North American pioneers prized the Elderberry for its perceived ability to ease ailments such as the common cold. We prize the Elderberry for its ability to flavor our Ceylon tea with an intense berry character. Delicious when served piping hot, this tea is also divine over ice. Berrylicious!
What type of tea do we use, how do we flavor the tea and why do we use natural flavors?
Firstly… we only use high grown teas from the top 3 tea growing regions of Sri Lanka – Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula and Uva. These three high-grown districts produce flavorful teas that have classic ‘Ceylon’ tea character which is noted by floral bouquet and flavor notes, touches of mild astringency, bright coppery color and, most importantly – perfect for use as the base tea of our flavored teas. (We have tested teas from various other origins around the world as base stock for our flavored teas, but none of these teas made the grade.) Dimbula and the western estates of Nuwara Eliya have a major quality peak during Jan/Feb, whereas Uva and the eastern estates of Nuwara Eliya have their peak in July/Aug. This ‘dual peak period’ allow us to buy the best for our flavored tea blends several times during the year, ensuring top quality and freshness.
Secondly… we use flavoring oils not crystals to give the tea drinker an olfactory holiday before indulging in a liquid tea treat.
Thirdly… we specify natural flavors. High quality tea tastes good and natural flavors do not mask the natural taste of the high grown Ceylon tea. (The norm for many making flavored tea is to use overpowering artificial flavors, which can be used to hide lower quality tea). Natural flavors do not leave an aftertaste giving the tea a clean and true character. It should be noted that natural flavors tend to be somewhat ‘soft ‘ and the flavors slightly muted, but for many this is a refreshing change and one of the desired attributes of our naturally flavored teas.
Hot tea brewing method: Bring freshly drawn cold water to a rolling boil. Place 1 teaspoon of tea for each cup into the teapot. Pour the boiling water into the teapot. Cover and let steep for 3-7 minutes according to taste (the longer the steeping time the stronger the tea). Even though milk and a dash of sugar help enhance the flavor character on this tea, it is perfectly acceptable to consume this tea ‘straight-up’
Iced tea brewing method: (to make 1 liter/quart): Place 6 teaspoons of tea into a teapot or heat resistant pitcher. Pour 1 1/4 cups of freshly boiled water over the tea. Steep for 5 minutes. Quarter fill a serving pitcher with cold water. Pour the tea into your serving pitcher straining the leaves. Add ice and top-up the pitcher with cold water. Garnish and sweeten to taste. [A rule of thumb when preparing fresh brewed iced tea is to double the strength of hot tea since it will be poured over ice and diluted with cold water]. Please note that this tea may tend to go cloudy or ‘milky’ when poured over ice; a perfectly normal characteristic of some high quality black teas and nothing to worry about!
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A huuuuuuuuge clump of cranberry fell into the thermos when I went to steep this last night! I was actually surprised to find as many as they were floating around in the leaf.
But!
I finally got around to cold steeping this guy!
And I think I like it better hot.
There’s a weird soapy floral note that feels really out of place when it’s cold brewed. The soapiness goes away with a little sugar, but the floral sticks around and hits my tongue before the sweet-tart berry that I actually expected (and looked forward to!). There’s a depth of flavor I hadn’t expected and the sip ends on a sweet blackberry note which is nice, though.
I’ll try an extra strong normal brewing over ice before I change my rating, but I am so bummed this isn’t what I thought I was going to get.
Tea #28 from the Here’s Hoping TTB
This tea wasn’t what I expected at all, but then again the only thing I’ve had before with elderberry was wine, so I really have no idea what it tastes like. This was surprisingly floral, almost rose flavored. I was expecting more of a sweet/tart berry flavor, rather than floral. I the background notes there were hints of sweetness and tartness which somewhat confused the senses. It really runs the gamut as far as flavors go and because of this I can’t quite figure out if I like it or not. I’m edging more towards not because the more I drink of it the more it reminds me of potpourri. I will say that it was much better hot than at room temperature.
