Tea Reviews | It's All About The Leaf

Black tea

All Reviews for Black tea

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This tea has possibly one of the most well-described packages I have ever seen. The single teabag package reads: “Hamstead Tea, London. Organic Fairtrade Earl Grey with aromatic bergamot. 1 staple-free teabag.”…

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From the moment at which I remove the pyramid infuser from its cardboard cover, I know there is something different about this Earl Grey. The smell of bergamot is not very strong. In fact, it is hardly present at all. Popping the infuser into my Tea Forte Cafe

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Someone once said that this tea was a tea for all seasons. I agree with that statement, it is a gently spiced tea that is very satisfying. The absence of pepper + the presence of a green tea contribute to the overall mildness of this blend. I could see myself drinking this at night outside enjoying…

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This tastes purple. Very, very purple. Crayola Purple. Other than that, I’m at a bit of a loss to describe this one. British East India isn’t particularly forthcoming with their ingredient list, so the ability to match what I’m tasting with what the label says I’m supposed to be tasting is limited. The only other hint given on the packet is a strength of “4″ on a rating…

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Bai Lin Gong Fu – other than sounding like the name of a cheesy 70s martial arts flick – is a black tea hailing from Fujian province, China. The territory is best known for producing Wuyi oolongs and the ever-famous Bai Hao Yinzhen (or Silver Needle white tea). The only other black tea I know of made their is Golden Monkey, which is just AWESOME…

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A couple of months back, when the time came for me to select my IAATL samples, I squealed with delight when I found a new growing region listed. Portugal. There was tea. Grown. In PORTUGAL! I was stoked and immediately requested it. Alas, I was a hair to slow for the loose leaf Orange Pekoe, but the teabag version was still available. Silver…

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As I learn more and more about tea, I find so many types and varieties I would have never dreamed existed, and I love trying as many of them as possible. So, tea from Portugal, how could I pass this opportunity up? And I’m so glad I got to try this. Wow…

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My first experience with a British East India tea was highly positive, so it was with great anticipation I opened up my packet of what is advertised to be “a wonderful warming tea combining the spice of cinnamon and a subtle sweetness of apple.” Thus, it was with great deflation and dejection…

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I argued with myself for a few hours about this tea. I really, really wanted to like it. I grew up in Washington State, and had this tea growing up – as it’s blended in Seattle. And I’m a fan of the more “in your face” teas, which this tea has a reputation of being. But it just wasn’t sitting right with me. For starters…

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n previous reviews, I’ve made it no secret that I am a chocoholic, some stressful weeks more than others. Betty Crocker Double Fudge frosting eaten straight out of the tub with a spoon soothes a myriad of mental and emotional ailments. And if you’re having a similar “make-it-all-better-I-need-sweets” spells…

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The common stereotype of an Assam tea is a  heavy, hefty, malty breakfast beverage. With a little milk, a good Assam should stick to your ribs more effectively than a morning bowl of Raisin Bran. This particular Assam, tagged as a 2009 World Tea Champion, doesn’t fit the common…

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No beating around the bush with introductory comments here–this is an excellently blended and flavored dessert tea. In a blind smell test with a slice of Cheesecake Factory Fresh Strawberry (OK, the blind smell test I wish I could take), it would be hard to detect many aroma differences–NecessiTeas…

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So many not-so-great grocery-store brands of tea tout themselves as Orange Pekoe (it’s a tea grade, not a flavor) that some fine tea appreciators associate Orange Pekoe with bland or acidic brown water. Hot leaf juice. Nothing to get excited about. Therefore, I am pleased to report that TeaFrog has rescued…

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It doesn’t happen very often these days, but I would say about once every couple o’ months, something catches my eye in an “ooo shiny!” fashion. Okay, okay, I do that a lot…but not AS often with tea. I have a list saved as a Gmail draft that I call my “Tea WANT!” list. On it are several orthodox (and some plain out-there)…

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Hu Kwa is purported to be the top-notch Lapsang Souchong from Taiwan. Steeping one cup at a time, I use one teaspoon of leaves per cup, and I steep the tea for five and a half minutes in just-boiled water, as per Mark T. Wendell Tea Company’s website. The dry leaves have a very strong smokiness to them…

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It has been a while since I’ve been able to sit down and relax long enough to review some teas. I appreciate all types of tea but the tea that I’m having today is really special. It’s a Darjeeling and it is beautiful. It appears to be a second flush, dark brown, thin leaves with a sprinkling of tips. The dry leaves…

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One of the things I’ve been noticing over the years, as I’ve ordered tea from various merchants, is that common parameters aren’t always common. Almost every tea will have directions on the back of the packet, telling you how to brew a cup of tea. Too bad they can’t agree on the definition of the word ‘cup’. A standard…

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I think that one of the best things that ever happened to Earl Grey tea was meeting the vanilla bean.  It must have been movie magic.  I can see it now…

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This tea emits an earthy, malty smell from the dry leaves. 3 minutes at boiling yielded a bready-yeasty flavor. I attempted to add milk and sugar to get the Keeman experience I had grown to expect from china keemans, the result was a cup of milk and sugar. The tea completely disappeared with the…

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East Pacific Tea Co. are an op out of Maryland that specializes in bringing high-quality tea to the consumer. Their emphasis is not on creating the best deal for the drinker, but providing the best beverage experience. They know they supply top-of-the-line stuff, and they’re willing to put their money where their cup is…

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I may have mentioned this before, but one of my ever increasing number of hobbies* is researching and recreating Medieval cooking.  Much like today, medieval people were very into conspicious…

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These teabags are adorable; little bendy strings with the leaf, the pyramid shape leaving room for the leaves to dance, the packaging.  They’re highly engineered and very cute. However, it’s what’s inside that counts, and as a chai, it didn’t really stand out.  Chai should be bold and brave and spicy.  This is a delicate chai.  A demure chai.  Not quite a wall-flower…

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The initial scent I get from this tea reminds me of a darjeeling…light and a bit spicy. In fact, this almost seems light enough to be a bit reminiscent of some green teas that I have had. Steeping it for three minutes with just-boiled water, I’m greeted with creamy aromas from the golden-brown liquor. Despite being a little too eager…

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Hamstead Teas mentions that saffron was revered in ancient India as medicine sent from the gods. Other sources claim that saffron use actually dates back a staggering 50,000 years. Ancient Persians, Sumerians, and Assyrians cultivated it for pigments and for its apparent medicinal properties. The first documented botanical reference…

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At a venerable 104 years old, Mark T. Wendell Company has perfected the art and science of selecting and purveying fine estate-grown teas. This variety, according to the website, was a favorite of the founder himself. This is a great tea, but if you’re proficient enough to recognize…

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The smell of the dry tea bag is of a classic Earl Grey tea with bergamot oil. A three minute infusion and the tasting profile are of citrus. No perfume as some EG’s tend to lean. This one needs no milk or other additives. The tea base is smooth, no astringency. Overall…

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Earl Grey tea is one of the most popular and well-known kinds of tea in the Western world. It was named after the second Earl, Charles Grey, of Britain in the 1830s. Charles Grey was the prime minister at the time the act was passed to abolish slavery in the British Empire. This is quite an accomplishment…

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The leaves are rich black with a sweet waft of vanilla. Three minute infusion…first sip…ummm…the black base is not what I was expecting. It leaves me wanting a more robust black tea in its place. The vanilla while…

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My first attempts at this tea left me wishing that Ginger had not left the teabag. I was greatly disappointed that a tea with ginger in the name would not taste like ginger. Ginger is a flavor profile that is hard to forget once you have a good ginger tea, the bite on your tongue…

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Here at Its All About The Leaf, we were recently contacted by Adagio – asking if we were interested in reviewing their new line of gourmet tea bags. Now, I have been following Charles Cain of Adagio on twitter, and on the tearetailer.com website, and on several…

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The Darjeeling District of West Bengal, India has produced some of the most nuanced teas for well over 150 years.  Eighty-plus gardens in the district produce only 7% of India’s total tea. (Competing regions include Nilgiri and Assam.) The median flavor profile of Darjeeling…

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So, I’m a geek.  It took me a long time to accept it, but as I’ve been a medieval re-enactor since before I could drive, cut my teeth playing video games on my TRS-80 and used the campus role playing gaming groups as potential dating pools, it’s pretty clear…

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I have two tea bags with which to form a review of this tea. So, I will be sharing my thoughts on this tea as I progressed through both tea tastings…

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When I scanned the list of teas we had to choose from to review, this caught my eye – strawberry cheesecake, one of my favourite deserts. It tastes delicious as a food, how bad can it be as…

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Golden Monkey tea is, according to the good people at Tao of Tea, is a high-grade mountain grown tea. The “monkey” moniker comes from the fuzz on the long, lush leaves, not from being plucked by a primate. Monkey-picked tea is verifiable, but appears to be a whole ‘nother…

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A rose by any other name…  Oh, the lovely scent of roses.  As a child, many of the important older women in my life all seemed to use a particular brand of rose lotion, giving me a definite sense memory of strong older, rose scented women  who made me feel safe…

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Indian tea estate names are fun to say and to think about: Goomtee, Moondakotee, Namring, Tumsong. In the case of Thurbo Tea Estate, the name evolved from “tumboo,” the Nepalese word for “tent.” Evidently, British troops set up camp there in the early 19th century…

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Usually I shy away from packaged tea. However, the word “Organic” on the front of the Mighty Leaf package got my attention. I’m also a fan of Earl Grey. I was curious about the “artisan whole leaf pouch”. The contents were just that – artisanal silk tea bag with fancy unbleached…

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East India Tea Company’s Director’s Blend came in a very attractive lavender tea tin with the picture of East India House on the front. The East India Tea Company held auctions in London, a grand tradition that lasted 300 years and controlled the monopoly for the import…

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I’m easily confused.  Especially when two conflicting rules butt up against each other.  So blends of black and green tea *definitely* confuse me.  Do I brew at high temps or low?  Risk scalding the green to get the black to brew up fully?  Or should you brew at the low…

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In the interest of full disclosure, I didn’t mean to select this tea. I saw the Mark T. Wendell name (which generally means really good stuff) and didn’t link the name “Hu-Kwa” to lapsang souchong–which it is. My first experience with pure lapsang souchong…

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The first thing I noticed about this tea was the teeny size of the broken leaves. Dark brown with lighter mocha tones throughout. The smell is sweet…

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I just love the silken pyramids-so fancy! The smell is of spices: cinnamon and cloves. A 3 min brew time yields red tones emitting from the pyramid. It looks like a sunset in my cup. Two dunks and now the color is dark reddish brown. The smell is comforting, the smell of…

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Smell in bag is of vanilla and cream-Whoa-I can’t get the water boiled fast enough! A 3 minute infusion releases the cream notes. This tea is perfectly balanced, the bergamot is present but not over the top. No need for sweeteners, I did add a splash of milk to bring out the vanilla …

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The smell from the bag is of perfume. I almost shunned away from this blend, but decided to forge ahead. I am so glad that I did…

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Madagascar mixes rich black tea with slices of real vanilla bean to produce a deep flavor that incorporates notes of dark rum, sweet earth and tropical flowers. Both smooth and exotic, this loose leaf tea is great served with buttered toast as a special morning treat…

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The Rani Tea Estate was once a picturesque garden known for distributing orthodox Assam teas to many parts of Europe. The estate adhered to biodynamic farming practices, meaning an emphasis on the symbiotic relationship between soil, plant, and animal. I have often sneered…

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Dry appearance: leaves are large and coal black in color, smell is sweet like honey (hence the name)
Boiling water and 3:30 minute infusion yields a champagne colored tea. This is hard to believe that this is an unflavored black tea! The taste is more of oolong than black…

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This Grace tea is called Winey Keemun and gets its name from sharing an affinity to wine, at least in using similar descriptors such as body and colour. This tea is a blend of teas from 3 continents: China, Formosa and Indian teas, similar to an English Breakfast Tea..

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I have tried to write this review for something like 3-4 months. Every time I get excited about drinking this tea, get excited about brewing up tea, and then as I start drinking the tea I lose focus and end up working on something…

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Some days–okay, some weeks—you just need chocolate. In copious amounts. And after multiples of those Reeses’ peanut-butter-cup-snarfing, Oreo-bingeing weeks, one finally reaches the conclusion that one must find a more healthful alternative. Tea Forte’s Hazelnut…

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I like big chunky tea leaves and the Mark T. Wendell Formosa Keemun fits the bill. A fully oxidized black tea from Formosa (aka Taiwan) is unusual as Formosa typically produces the famously large-leaf fragrant oolong, a green tea. Taiwan is known for its superb tea industry and its workers handle tea with care and appreciation. Mark Wendell referred to this tea as…

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Lapsang Souchong is also known as Wuyi Yunwu. The name Lapsang Souchong came from Tibet which once lay on the route of tea trade to Europe. In Tibetan language, Lapsang Souchong means “perfectly made by hands.” The Fukienese word “Souchong” literally means little variety or subvariety…

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Dry smell of the leaves brings forward a “sweet” wafting. Dry appearance of leaves: At first glance, it appears to be just broken tea leaves, but upon further inspection you notice the small black pellets known as Gunpowder. Gunpowder is made up of leaves hand-rolled into…

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This is one of those amazing quality teas that sends you straight to the package, squinting at the fine print to find evidence of flavoring above and beyond the tea itself. Nope. Nothing but great tea. The dry leaves have the farmy burlap…

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“A perfectly balanced blend of superb Assam teas steeps a great cup, morning, noon or evening. Enjoy with milk and a touch of sugar.” This description from Tea Forte sums up what I said when I first took a sniff of the dry pyramid and then my first sip…

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One of the famous signature teas from the Mark Wendell Tea Company since 1904 has been the Hu-Kwa Lapsang Souchong. This black large leaf tea from Formosa (Taiwan) is distinctly smoky, taking flavours from the smoke of pine fires used in the tea processing. The history

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My uneducated acronym for Assam is A Specially Strong Awakening Morning tea, and this selection from Tea Forte’ fits perfectly. You’ll find it in Tea Forte’s organic filterbag selections, although my sample was loose, which gave me the opportunity to really enjoy the bready…

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I’ve been working on this review for a month. Or more specifically, I’ve been trying to start writing this review for over a month, but never get as far as getting anything written down. I’ll open the tin, smell…

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I really like grapefruit. As a small child, I always wanted my mother to get me those sweet smelling grapefruit bath products from the overpriced but immensely-fascinating-to-children bath product shoppes (whose quality could be told with the extra, pretentious “e”). And as an…

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Irish breakfast tea should need no mollycoddlin’; it should be a tea that will allow you to stagger into the kitchen on a weekday morning with your eyes half closed and throw an indiscriminate amount of leaf into the cleanest cup you can find in the sink, dump in water…

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In 1875, a failed civil servant traveled from his home in Anhui Province, China to Fujian Province. The goal was to learn the secrets to black tea production. While Fujian was mainly known for its white teas and oolongs, the region also had Golden Monkey to brag about…

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My first experience with lapsang souchong was pretty disastrous—reminiscent of sucking pork rinds—so when I first opened this tea packet and the first whiff that hit my nose was souchong-like “smoke,” I was very apprehensive…

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I have been on a Black/Green Kick lately!  There are just some blacks and greens that do go good together and when you add something link mint to it – I’m always game!  For this particular one, I think you can taste the Gunpowder Green more than the black tea but the Mint…

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The first time I tried this, it was so smoky, bitter, and strong I couldn’t finish the glass. So I threw the sample into a drawer and tried to forget about it. Then, a few months later I found the sample again, and decided to brave trying it again…

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Keemun, Assam, Ceylon, and Darjeeling teas each have their own personalities: grainy, stout, brisk, and wine-y. Thus, you’d expect a blending of these personalities to be the tea equivalent of a cheerful and intellectual morning conversation…

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I discovered upon opening the package that the leaves of this tea were considerably larger and more ‘whole’ than the leaves of the First Flush from Goomtee Estate that I also sampled from this same company. These leaves were an interesting and attractive-looking mix of…

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Category: Black Tea Company: Golden Moon Tea (website) Ingredients: High Quality Black Tea, Bergamot and Lavender Vendor Suggested Preparation: One small spoon of leaves, 3-5 minutes in freshly boiled water. I’ve had a long and pleasurable relationship with Earl Grey so I was excited to taste this tea.   I opened the package and was [...]

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Grace Tea Company’s product line is not large, but it is clear from their offerings that they prefer to highlight the quality and complexity of the various teas themselves—not multiple flavorings and blend-ins. In the case of Grace’s Connoisseur Master Blend…

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I found myself in the mood for some Chinese red tea and reached for this one. The loose leaves are full and black, mixed with bits of ginger. The smell of apricot was the first to hit me when I opened this bag, then came the scent of peach, then ginger. Perfect scents…

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I’ve said in the past I have enjoyed Mark T. Wendell’s H-Kwa and have found that to be one of the best smoky teas out there!  Well, this one is like Hu-Kwa’s younger, prettier sister!  It’s a great pick-me-up and has an oh-so-slightly smoky flavor. If you are scared…

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Hattaialli Golden Lion 1st Flush 2010, Assam from Lochan Tea is a nice bold semi-strong black.  It ‘steeps up’ fairly dark and pretty fast. If you are looking for a good old standby black tea – plain and simple – try this one!  It’s perfect for mid mornings, midday…

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Forget Yankee Candles and Glade Plug-Ins: I want my house to smell like this tea. The dry leaves, dark with gold-tip highlights, smell like a cross between wet maple leaves on a rainy fall day and freshly baked wheat bread. Yum! Lochan Tea’s website doesn’t provide much detail…

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Most tea estates have a utilitarian-only online presence, so it’s surprising that the first search result for Glenburn Tea Estate brings up a rich, multi-layered website touting their luxury hotel, bungalows, and vacation tours. Need to relax? Make a cuppa, put your feet up and just bask…

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One of the perks of being married 25 years come September is the marital right to stick just about anything under your spouse’s nose and say, “Smell that!” without getting clobbered. In the case of nice tea from India, the response was “Wow! There’s something clove-y…

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like this one a lot better than I thought I would. Even tho it has 4 floral type ingredients it’s not overly flower-like.  It’s not that bitter/floral type taste that I sometimes get and am worried about.  The Black tea and the green tea along with the flavors all make sense…

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The smell from the package reminds me of Christmas: Cinnamon and spice fill my nostrils. I can hardly wait to follow the directions on the package: bring 1.5 cups of water and 1 cup milk to boil. Reduce heat. Add contents of package. Let simmer 3-5 minutes…

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I’ve had Tea forte before and consider it a premium tea. This whole leaf organic tea comes from a single estate Assam. Assam tea from India is known for its exceptional malt flavours. The packaging indicated that the bergamot oil used in the manufacturing is a 1st pressed Italian…

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Love the vintage feel of Blue Q products, they always make me smile. This tea is designed to help you function at family functions (clearly the creator has attended one of mine). It’s a spicy blend with a Darjeeling base and I love spicy teas in the colder months…

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Inside my sample I find small, broken leaves with a few yellow marigold petals. The dry smell reminds me of black tea with a hint of something sweet. Two teaspoons in boiling water with a three minute infusion produces a rich brownish red tea. The taste…

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Steeping these leaves in a small, ceramic teapot, I would love to say that the smell conjured up old memories of camping trips and the like…but it did not. It was, however, a delightful aroma that wafted from my teapot to my nose. I steeped the leaves for 2 minutes and 30 seconds…

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English breakfast labels are slapped on such a wide variety of teas–from blecchy generic bagged leaf clippings to good quality full-leaf Ceylons and Assams–that you never really know what to expect when you try one. Even the commonly accepted definition of English breakfast…

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Hand processed black tea with a needle like appearance. Per Tao of Tea, the aroma is nutty, honeyed sweetness. I tried to find another way to say that in my own words, but honestly their description is spot…

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Dry leaves are brown with green specks and slender brown twig like pieces. 3 minute infusion produces a light brown brew that smells of mint. The first sip reveals the perfectly balanced vanilla undertones. Most vanilla tea that I have sampled are fake tasting, the vanilla in this blend is mild and smooth…

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The most distinctive feature of the exotic Lapsang Souchong from Fujian Province in China is the sharp smoky scent of pine or cypress wood. You might ask “why create a tea that’s all smoky”? People like it as a flavour in tea, people with an open mind, that is..

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When I was contacted and asked to try the Celestial Seasonings Fast Lane Black Tea, I readily agreed. Celestial Seasonings was the very first company to respond to our inquiries when we started IAATL, and sent our very first batch of teas for review, something for which I…

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Recently we received a bunch of samples from Tao Tea Leaf for reviewing. Taos is an online shop, but also has a physical presence in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada…

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The cold weather always makes me reach from stronger blends so today I’m trying a nice black tea blend from SpecialTea Brew. It’s called Pink Grapefruit and you can see pieces of citrus mixed in with the dark leaves. The dry leaves smell amazingly rich and fresh…

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I’ve been saving this particular blend for just the right day. I love the smell and taste of vanilla – in everything. The dry leaves are dark yet shiny fresh, I can’t see the vanilla pieces in the blend but I can definitely smell them…

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Today I decided to review a herbal tea from Distinctly Tea, a new tea shop in Stratford, Ontario, Canada. The tea is Ginger-peach Supreme. To the eye, the tea contains black leaf tea with white tea buds, sunflower petals and some other white flower petal that I could not identify. Upon reading the ingredients I found out that the black leaf is Ceylon tea and the white flower petal…

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The color of this is GREAT and as described in the product description. It smells delightful!  A bready-toasty type black tea scent….

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This Assam Reserve tea was a World Tea Champion in 2009 and was manufactured for SpecialTea Brew of Redmond, Washington. The 5.6 gram sample shows a golden tippy, beautifully curled and twisted loose leaf Assam. For a black tea, the leaf is large and typical…

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Today I decided that I could not resist the call of the Tea Forte Sweet Orange Spice. Tea Forte sent us 2 of their pyramid grande – Sweet Orange Spice, and Hazelnut Truffle. I have had the Hazelnut Truffle before (yummy!) but the Sweet Orange Spice…

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My first impression is that this tea smells awesome; dark and sweet and tangy. And upon the first sip, the taste lives up to the smell. I brewed this up in my zarafina tea maker at work, and added half a packet of sweetener and the first cup disappeared…

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The leaves of the Castleton Darjeeling are very green and twisted. When I first tried one of these 1st flush Darjeelings a few days ago, I was thrown off by how similar the 1st flushes are to green teas. I don’t have any prior experience with Darjeelings…

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Upon opening the package, you are hit with the most incredible, rich, fresh scent of blood orange that smells it has been freshly squeezed. The dry leaves are thin…

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This is the second tea blend I have tried with Formosan and Indian teas. I am wondering about Formosa teas are. They are from Taiwan. From what I can gather, Formosa teas are oolongs. So, I am supposing that the one in this particular blend is on the black side of things…

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I was so excited to sample Adagio’s version of Chocolate Chai, which is one of my favorite blends. I just cannot resist the classic pairing of chocolate and peppery spice, as celebrated in movies like “Chocolat”…

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he sample of Sunrise in Tibet from TSalon came in a two-part clear plastic package. The lower compartment sealed in 25 grams of loose tea from the upper compartment that contained 2-10 gram servings of loose tea in organic fold-type…

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The dry leaves are black, small and wiry. The smell of the dry leaves…smoke. This is my first experience with a smoky tea. The smell from the bag reminds me of cigars….

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I’ve never had a plain Assam before. The closest I’ve come is the Irish Breakfast by Twinings which is a blend of Ceylon and Assam. I’m always fascinated by the string of letters found in the names of many teas, but I really have no clue what they were supposed to mean for me. I did a bit of research and apparently STGFOP stands for…

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The dry leaves of this tea are very thin, medium in length, and consist of both dark and golden hay colored leaves. The scent of the dry leaf is very earthy with only a slight hint of malt. When brewed, this tea is very red in color for a black tea…

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Black tea with Madagascar vanilla and coconut slivers? hmm, hmm, hmm. Now we’re talking. The dry tea pyramid smells fantastic, can’t really make out the coconut smell, reminds me more of hazelnut for some reason…

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This smells like black tea, fruit, and floral. It’s a nice Reddish-dark brown. Taste-wise it is really good… a sugary-sweet tasting flavored black. It reminds me of Rose Marzipan from Teavana without the Rose…

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Dry leaf appearance: black wiry leaves with bright orange and goldenrod shavings mixed throughout…

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he China Yunnan Silver Tip Choice Tea from Grace Tea is a tea that anyone can enjoy. Yunnan tea is grown at high altitudes in the mountains in the south of China. Yunnan tea is one of the oldest style of tea, known for its intense black tight-wired leaf…

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I really feel this is a good go-to black bagged tea and would classify it towards the beginning of the “strong strength” spectrum…

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I love tea. I love wine. So it goes to reason that when I saw this tea, I really just had to try it. The dry leaf is various sizes of black and brown leaves and smells rich. There is another aspect of the scent that is familiar, but I can’t place it. I brewed 2tsp in boiling water…

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TeaFrog’s Assam Rani SFTGFOP is an exceptional tea.   The very best Assam teas are versatile and yield many aromatic and flavorful treats.   This is one of the very best I’ve experienced…

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Boston Tea Company says this is “hearty, strong and flavorful”…and this is true!

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Due to user error, my first experimental pot of Lochan’s Harmutty Golden Paw was a declawed version of what a good Assam should be. At a scant teaspoon per cup and 3:45 brewing time (what I thought was a fair middle range)…

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The smell of the tea leaves (dry and wet) is musty. Oh, I see pollen pieces on the ingredient list. That would explain the slight musty…

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Much to my delight, I recently received a shipment of 3 teas from Davids Tea. I have been looking forward to sampling and reviewing tea from Davids ever since a store opened close to me here. They are truly a Canadian company (unlike the mistake I made with Mighty Leaf, Davids really was started, and is run, in Canada ), and I have been itching

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Tea Forte supplies whole loose leaf tea in these clever pyramid shaped infusers, which give room for the tea to expand as it steeps. It is a great brand for novice tea drinkers to try higher quality teas than typically offered at the supermarket and for tea snobs to drink at work without having to use a messy tea infuser at the office. Personally, Tea Forte was my…

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Category: Black Tea Company: Leaf Spa Tea (website) Ingredients: Organic Ceylon Tea Vendor Suggested Preparation: Brew Temperature: 205 deg F / Brew Time: 5 minutes The Product Description from LeafSpa certainly describes the color and origin perfectly. As for the taste… I found that it’s fairly basic… a medium strength Ceylon… yet very clean and [...]

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I began by preparing this tea (in my Tea Forte Cafe Cup), following the directions given on the Tea Forte (steep 3-5 minutes using just-boiled water)…

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Keemun Hao Ya B is one of the very best grades of  Keemun teas from China, so I brewed Vicony’s import with great anticipation.  I was not a bit disappointed–indeed, I felt rapturous.  A good Keemun tea opens up a universe of surprising and complexly melded taste treats…

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I’ll start off by saying I wasn’t exactly sure how to brew this tea. The sample packaging had no steeping parameters on it, so I tried the website and didn’t find any suggestions. I decided to brew this a little on the safe side and stick to…

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I recently received this from a friend. Apparently she lives near the Tea House where this came from. The Pre-Infusion/Dry Loose Leaf smell is like Vanilla, Apricot, and a hint of chocolate…which is interesting because I don’t think 2 out of those 3 are even in there…

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This dark loose leaf tea has become my favorite tea. I drink it morning, noon and night. What makes it different from all the other teas that I have had the privilege of tasting? Sinharaja tastes like tea. The way tea should taste, not with a bunch of other flavors crowding out the tea taste…

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Noticing that the last tea I drank that had “Mao Feng” in the title was a green tea, this made me curious, so I first went and looked up what “Mao Feng” meant. According to the “wonderful source of all knowledge,” Wikipedia…

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Ginger Peach is a popular flavor combination. It’s also a very difficult one to pull off. Too much ginger and the peach will disappear. Too much peach and any discernible ginger is gone. Sometimes popular dessert combinations do not translate well to tea blends…

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I didn’t know what to expect from a 1st Flush Darjeeling, but I could have sworn it was a black tea. I did a bit of research and it turns out that the 1st flush is more like a green tea, so now that I knew a bit of what to expect I went ahead and brewed up some of this…

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A blend of China and Sri Lankan teas. Dry leaf appearance: teeny black leaves with a brown leaves intermingled throughout the blend. The smell of the dry leaves reminds me of grapes that are over ripe…

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This is my first tea from Harney & Sons and I must say that I have heard a lot of amazing things about Florence. I truly hope to not be disappointed…

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Keemun is a variety of Chinese black tea, possibly China’s most famous. The region centered around the town of Qimen, between the Yangtze and the Yellow mountains, produces mostly black tea. Keemun used to be a component leaf in many traditional English Breakfast blends…

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leaves are small and black. The dry leaf smell is of tea, a really good quality Ceylon tea. I can smell the tiniest hint of green? Can this be possible in a Ceylon black tea?

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I received this tea from a friend and had only HEARD about it prior. Because I LOVE the fact Frank from 52 Teas ‘thinks outside the box…or in this case, the bag”…I like to try as many blends of his that I can…

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I love Earl Grey. I used to drink it quite often, but a couple of months ago I came across a couple of EG variations that were bad. They gave Earl Grey a really horrible, perfume filled name. It used to be my favorite variety of tea, so I was excited to try this version from Mighty Leaf in hopes of renewing my faith in Earl Grey…

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Category: Green Tea Company: The Simple Leaf (website) Ingredients: Black Tea Vendor Suggested Preparation: 1 tsp. / 6oz cup 190 – 208 deg boiling water 5 minute infusion These are some of the most beautiful leaves I’ve ever seen with a black tea. Usually black teas are all short pieces, small and fairly boring looking. [...]

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The fancy teabag/pyramid/thing had a wonderful fragrance when I took it out of its packaging. The vanilla was deliciously fragrant and smelled like actual vanilla bean rather than some random perfume or extract. I could smell the tea base underneath which had an oddly lightly spiced sort of scent. I had to concentrate for my nose to pick up the coconut, but I think I detected it up. There’s something about coconut that just seems to blend really well with vanilla.

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With much fanfare, Rishi Tea has reintroduced its Chai concentrate – it is now available with new packaging, a high profile association with Jane Goodall’s Roots and Shoots program, and a change in the recipe. The ingredients listed are filtered water, black tea, cinnamon, cardamon, black pepper, cloves, ginger, dried cane syrup, blackstrap molasses, vanilla extract and lemon juice – all organic, and the tea is also organic as well as fair trade certified…

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You know, I don’t think I’ve ever drank a First Flush Darjeeling before, so this will be a first for me. The scent of the tea was quite unusual, very green and vegetale and not as much of the basic ‘tea’ scent as I was expecting. The leaves are surprisingly green-looking too and after I steeped them they looked more like the leaves of a green tea – brightly green and vibrant-looking. The liquor is a warm, amber-gold shade and very clear-looking, unlike some teas that have a cloudy appearance…

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I’ve heard such rave reviews of this tea that when I had the opportunity to try it for myself, I jumped on it. Opening the bag you are hit with the smell of rich, dark baking cocoa. The dry leaves are extremely beautiful, long, twisted, and dark in color…

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First off, I am a sucker for clever packaging, and the little pyramid single-serve boxes from Tea Forte just scream “adorable.”. I pried mine open very gingerly so I could preserve the pattern—I work with fifth graders at my church, and I’m seeing triangular game pieces…

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I start each day with at least 1 black or black flavored tea…my day “tea day” progresses from there…each day a new tea adventure. BUT…I always HAVE to have some good, solid Black or Black Flavored Tea Favorites or Standby’s nearby…

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The dry leaf smells like cinnamon and star anise, though predominately of star anise. Through the bag I could distinguish long black tea leaves mixed with small bits of what appeared to be the ginger and cloves….

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For those of you that know me, the fact that I am reviewing an Earl Grey tea may seem a bit… strange. For those of you that do NOT know me, you should know that I do not like Earl Grey. I have tasted teas from all over the world, different cultures, countries and hundreds of different blended and flavoured tea, and I could just never get my head around one of the most well known teas, Earl Grey – until now…

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Dawn, by Simple Leaf Co, is one of my favorite orthodox black teas for its distinct chocolate taste making it a perfect treat in the afternoon. Dawn has no added flavorings (no cocoa nibs or chocolate chips) and is sourced from a single plantation estate that expertly coaxes the tea’s inherent chocolate flavors via the farm’s cultivation methods, processing, and geographic location. So, I say “Bravo!”…

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According to the Vicony Teas website, Keemun tea is the result of an embarrassed civil servant who lost his job in the 1870′s. His father advised him to pick up a “real trade,” which he did-tea farming…

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When this tea arrived, I didn’t recognize the name and the only red tea that I’d tried was rooibos (I love rooibos). Seemed a curious name for an African ‘tea’ though hmm. Yes, this grasshopper has a lot to learn….

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On a shopping trip the other day I saw a box labeled Chinese Red tea. Chinese *red* tea? I’ve never heard of that, I’ve heard of white, green, black, herbal, oolong, honeybush and rooibos teas, but not Chinese Red. I’ve heard rooibos called red…

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Real chocolate draws your eye. The scent of exotic spices pulls you closer. By the time you taste this rich and complex black tea, you’ve already fallen in love….

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When I poured the contents of the sample bag into the filter I noticed that there were a surprising amount of fannings in the as well. A certain amount would be expected in a full bag, but having them in a sample does not give a promising preview of the tea on sale.

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On the Mighty Leaf website this description is given: Bombay Chai with a melange of spicy notes conjures the steamy, aromatic delights of an Indian street market. Black tea leaves with subtle hints of Pepper, Orange, Cinnamon, Cardamom, and Clove make up our chai, the Indian word for tea. Bombay Chai is delicious when brewed fresh and blended with heated milk and sugar to taste…

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Starting my day with a taste of India, closing my eyes, allowing myself to be taken away to northern India with this charming, malty, CTC Assam from 52teas…

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Let me start by saying, I am not a coffee drinker. For me, the tea I choose to drink throughout the day will be dependent on my mood. This tea would be one that I would use to start my day, as I think it has the ability to give you that initial morning burst that many people claim to get from that first pot of java…

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On a recent trip to Banff, we passed this quaint little tea store. There was no resisting, you just never know what you are going to find, and I wasn’t disappointed. They offered a whole wall of teas from Maple to Almond and even an ice wine tea…

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Tea from the Darjeeling region of India is known as the “Champagne” of tea. While I have always known that, I have yet to taste the definition of such a tea. I think after drinking the TeaGschwender Darjeeling Phuguri FTGFOP1, I have a clearer idea of why that is.

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The Mighty Leaf Organic Earl Grey tea is quite a delight. Opening the package to find a silk tea bag is very impressive and allows the customer to use the loose leaf tea without the usual mess and effort. I definitely love the tea pouch style….

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I truly enjoy this cup of Tea, from the moment you open the container you can smell the warm aroma of superior loose leaf tea. Black teas are one of my favourites and this one certainly fits the bill…

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