Gylxtea black tea 2017

As of August 2017, this is not yet listed on their website. I received it as a sample promotion.

Let me start out by saying this is wonderfully tasty and complex black tea. It reminds me of a few Taiwanese black teas I had a while back. It has the expected malt and nut notes, but there is another layer of flavor – itself very complex, tasty, and balanced – a layer of flavor I’ll call “Christmas candle.”

Stay with me… Have you smelled the kind of scented candles that they market for the holidays – the kind with some frosty-looking red berries and a sprig of holly? That’s the one! This Christmas candle flavor has a waxy, bittersweet berry note to it with some sharp green notes cutting through it – sort of a resiny/piney note.

In a previous review of a Taiwanese black tea from BTTC, I had a similar experience. I picked up on this note and related to some mulberry-scented soap I purchased a while ago – floral, fragrant, sweet, waxy berry notes. So, take your pick – mulberry or Christmas candle. I can’t think of anything else to call it.

In any event, it works wonderfully well with the rest of the flavors in this black tea, and, as you can see, it adds a totally new complexity to the whole experience.

Tons of flavor, wholly engaging. Definitely recommend for those seeking a unique black tea experience. Unfortunately, I can’t give it a numerical rating since I don’t know how much it costs. But it certainly is worth spending a little extra on.
*
Leaf – mulberry, red currant, pollen, tangy fruity floral; heat – roasted pecan, caramel arrives

smell – roasted pecan, toasted marshmallow, pine wood, hints of wood smoke, mulberry

taste – toasted marshmallow, roasted pecan, notes of wood smoke; aftertaste of pine wood, red currant, mulberry, slight creaminess