Azores Shade-Grown Orange Pekoe ‘Ponta Branca’ Black Tea from What-Cha Tea

AzoresShadeGrownBlackTea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  What-Cha Tea

Tea Description:

Azores Shade-Grown Orange Pekoe is a unique tea with an equally complex taste; a light and smooth start with a brisk full finish.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

When I first opened the pouch of this tea, I noticed the aroma.  It is a strong scent and is reminiscent of leather.  A very masculine scent.

To brew this tea, I put a scoop of the leaves into my small (warmed) teapot and added 12 ounces of boiling water to the teapot and allowed the tea to steep for 3 minutes and then strained the liquid into my favorite tea mug.  The color is dark and the fragrance is softer than that of the dry leaf, smelling vaguely of leather, perhaps, but more like sweet fruit – almost like a sweet, sugary date.

AzoresShadeGrownBlack1My first sip I took as I was looking at the description above that says “a light and smooth start with a brisk full finish.”  Yeah, I agree with that.  It starts out light with a delicate citrus note but smoother, not quite as astringent as citrus fruit but with the sweetness of an a sweet orange.  It is a bright yet smooth note.  As the sip progresses, I pick up on more of a sweeter, denser type of fruit.  Like a combination of a ripe plum and a ripe peach – all the sweetness of those two fruits but none of the tartness.  As I near the finish, I pick up on some of the sweet caramel-y undertones.

This has a bracing flavor that is very rich and rewarding.  It’s a bold tasting tea, maybe not quite as invigorating as I would want my first cup of tea for the day to be, but this would be an excellent choice for late morning or mid-day.  A great “tea-time” type of tea:  perhaps with some scones or shortbread?  It has that rich, freshly baked type of flavor that I like:  somewhat bready and very satisfying.   It would probably take the additions of milk and honey well, but, I rather like it straight up.  The flavor is sweet and smooth and additions may just overwhelm the tea.  Try this one before you add anything to it.

Another winning tea from What-Cha!  I think that’s all they sell there, because I’ve tried a lot of teas from them and haven’t come across anything disappointing yet!

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