Scottish Caramel Toffee Pu-erh

Thank you to Azzrian for the lovely sample.

So after I researched for a bit how long to properly brew this, I’m not sure how long I steeped this for since I was doing other things at the time and forgot to time it. Oops. My guess is around 4 minutes.

It’s not bad for a type of tea I normally don’t like. Not quite as flavorful as the puerh cafe I had a little bit ago, but I’m going to try and steep it again for longer to see if I can taste the flavor more. It’s definitely drinkable, and it’s not too bad as an iced tea, either. In fact, I might like it better iced. It’s a LOT like coffee.

This smells delicious dry. Not really caramel though. The flavour is toffee like, without being overly sweet. Will have to try this as a cold brew.

Thanks to Lazey for this.

Wow…. This is another one from Traveling Teabox B From Amanda and MAN this is GOOOD!!! i Saw Scottish and Caramel and was set on having it and im So glad i did Fav tea From the box!! the caramel just Sings in this tea!! What a Wonderful tea!! this is my desert tea!!

I can smell this tea even through its package. Opening the package, the smell of toffee wafts to my nose, plus notes of pu’erh a bit of…mint? How odd…mint… According to the English Tea Store, the pu’erh is accompanied by butterscotch pieces and almond. Putting aside the difference between butterscotch and toffee, I rinse the leaves, then begin my first steep. While waiting, I think how fitting it would be, if I was writing this review with Montblanc Toffee Brown ink.

I think that the slight mint aroma came from the pu’erh mixed with the almond, as it is still present in the wet leaves, yet carries more earthy tones. But how does it taste? “Like dessert in a cup.” One can still taste the pu’erh, right down the middle of this tea, but the edges are more than heavily laced with a sugary-but-not-overly-sweet combination of toffee- and caramel-like flavors. From a traditional Chinese sense, I would not expect that pu’erh would ever be mixed with any sort of sweet, but the English Tea Store has found a good combination in the mixing of pu’erh with butterscotch and almond.

The flavors of this blend are smooth, and the pu’erh is bold enough to stand out among the sweet tones. I recommend steeping this tea longer than you might a normal pu’erh for the sake of fully drawing out the notes of toffee and earthy pu’erh tastes. I was able to resteep it several times in my gaiwan.

I really, really like this pu-erh. It has the full musty body of a pu-erh without being too harsh. I can usually only do a small cup of the straight stuff, but add some toffee and caramel and I break out the giant Disney Goofy mug! It’s lovely. I take it black but it would hold up well to milk and even a little sugar.
My ONLY complaint – and this is only going to affect those who decaffienate by pre-steeping – is the toffee melts quickly and is pretty much gone by the second steeping. Not an issue if you’re only going to steep it once, and still very yummy.

I’m not quite a fan of flavoured blends, but this one is a great experience. The caramel/toffee gives a nice twist to the pu-erh base

Mastress Alita’s sipdown challenge – Tuesday, March 30th: National Virtual Vacation Day Tea #2

Another fun vacation choice: Scotland of course.  I had to pick at least one tea with the country in the name of the tea.  I stocked up on this one a while ago.  I’ve had variations of it from other tea shops, which is why I haven’t written a note for this particular one until now!  It’s a little less like “toffee” than past variations but I still enjoy this one.  Deep tasty puerh with a bit of sweetness.  No off-putting puerh flavors here.  I’m glad I bought more!
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons for full mug // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 15 minutes after boiling // 2-3 min
Steep #3 // just boiled // ? min

Picked this up mainly for now odd the combination sounded. Very enjoyable tea, though. Very creamy with a bit of milk and sugar. The toffee flavor is in the forefront, with the woody mustiness of the pu-erh trailing behind.

If you like bolder dessert teas (more along the lines of coffee) I would give this a try.