Decaf Assam

On opening the tin the Assam leaves were mostly dark with few lighter tan leaves and small, broken and almost granular, similar to the type of Assam you might see in a Masala Chai. I couldn’t detect much Assam scent from the tin. After brewing the leaves still looked broken and granular, nothing like the open pieces of leaf you’d find in a pot of quality loose leaf Assam.

I used a teaspoon in a single cup pot and boiling water for 5 minutes as recommended on the tin. The liquor had a nice color and some tea scent and taste – but not an Assam scent or taste and had a somewhat bitter bottom taste.

Okay, I’m going to upgrade this tea a bit after a few more brewings. A bit more tea a bit less brewing time and it did produce a bit more Assam top note taste. It still lacks the malty bottom but it really is okay for a decaf.
I’ll probably finish the 4 oz tin I bought, just to see if I can get it to taste better, but I probably wouldn’t buy it again. If you’re looking for a decent decaf black tea, try the Harney’s Ceylon decaf instead.

Earlier today I wanted to stay away from caffeine so I selected Harney’s Decaf Assam. For a Decaf, it has a full bodied flavor.

The dry leaves are mostly dark chocolate brown with enough golden mixed in to make it appealing to the eye. The aroma from the tin is not that strong but definitely assam-like. I Infused the leaves for 4min 30sec in my Zojirushi travel mug and added a little agave and a T of coconut milk. As I have grown quite fond of assams, the smell is very enticing. The tea has a malty and slightly bitter taste as assam should. The touch of sweetener and milk allow a light caramel flavor to emerge.

I would be happy if I could drink regular black teas all day long but I cannot handle too much caffeine in any given day. This Harney Decaf Assam brew is a great choice on those days when caffeine is just not a good idea. I do not hesitate to recommend this tea for others to consider.

I really want to love this tea. I am hitting “like” at best right now. For the first pot I made I just scooped out three teaspoons of leaves for my 22 oz. Beehouse pot, not filling it to the top with water. The tea had a nice flavor but was VERY weak. I thought I might be the problem and I was! These leaves are large and light, so when I actually weighed the leaves, it took four teaspoons to equal standard testing weight. (That would be about the same weight as three dimes.) That made it stronger and the flavor is good, but still not quite strong and rich enough for me. I may be spoiled by original Irish Breakfast. I will try it again, and again…no doubt, until I get better results, but in the meantime I would say that if you want decaf tea, the best I have found so far is decaf Orange Pekoe by Southern Season or Decaffeinated by Harney and Sons. The best FLAVORED decaf black tea I have tried is…sigh….Vanilla Comoro. By the way, I added sugar but no milk. I will try again with even more leaves and see if that fixes it.

This tea works really well for making Massala Chai tea from scratch on the stove top at home. The decaf has been a great option while my wife was carrying our child. The floral notes of the tea are very pleasing and blend well with the Indian spices we throw in the pot with milk. Let it cook at least ten minutes if you’re making chai…

My first assam, not liking it at all. I suppose I’ll try a caffeinated one before I rule them out completely, but I found this one to be uninteresting.