Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Oollo Tea
Tea Description:
A perfect marriage between Burma Ashamu and Taiwanese wild tea. The long twisted whole leaves give distinct smooth raisin, date and cinnamon infusions with traces of peppermint.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Red Jade Black Tea from Oollo Tea is one of those teas that after taking my first sip, the sound that I uttered was “Mmm.” Not a lot of teas elicit that response from me. This one did.
The dry leaves are dark, chocolaty brown. They’ve been rolled lengthwise, producing a very long and wiry shape. Because of the long, curly composure of these leaves, it’s difficult to actually measure a bamboo scoop of the leaves into the basket of my Kati tumbler. So instead, I eyeballed it. Then I added 12 ounces of boiling water and let the tea steep for 3 minutes.
Now I have a cup of perfection!
I enjoy most tea types: Green, White, Black and if I’m going to be totally honest, I even enjoy most of the Pu-erh that I’ve encountered. I’ve enjoyed some of the variations and even the new varietal Purple teas. Oolong teas and Yellow teas are my favorites. But the tea type that I drink the most is Black tea. So, I guess I could amend my previous statement to say that black teas are my favorite, followed closely by Yellows and Oolongs.
And this tea from Oollo is a perfect example of why I love black tea so much. It has a rich, invigorating flavor but it doesn’t get all aggressive on me. Instead, it’s smooth and sweet. The description above is spot on with its comparison to raisin and date. That sugary sweetness that I’d taste if I were to bite into a raisin or a date, that’s the kind of sweetness I taste when I sip this tea. 
There are notes of gently warm spice and hints of rich malt. There is a slight intonation of cacao and a whisper of caramel. And the aftertaste delivers just a hint of minty taste, especially if I draw a breath of air over my palate just after I’ve finished a sip.
The tea is so wonderfully sweet but not so sweet that it becomes all about the sweet. There is a nice complexity to this. Lots of depth to the flavor. Those sugary sweet notes from the dried fruit are top notes, with a mid-note of warm spice. Undertones of caramel that mingle with notes of cacao. Every once in a while, I pick up on a hint of leather. A subtle note of plum comes in here and there. And every once in a while, I even pick up on a floral tone. It’s a wonderful cup with lots of layers of flavor to explore!
This tea is an absolute DELIGHT to sip. If you haven’t had the opportunity to try anything from Oollo Tea yet, I urge you to get to their website immediately and try some of their fantastic teas. And be sure to put this tea in your cart while you’re shopping. You’ll thank me later!
Lemon, Ginger & Ginseng Herbal Tisane from Rington’s Premium English Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Rington’s Premium English Teas
Tea Description:
Naturally caffeine free, the Lemon, Ginger & Ginseng Herbal Tea is a refreshing and invigorating infusion that balances the lemon and ginger flavours.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Do you ever go through that moment when – as you’re brewing a cup of tea – you think to yourself: what was I thinking, choosing this tea? I actually go through that sort of moment more than I care to admit to.
And I experienced that moment as I was brewing this Lemon, Ginger & Ginseng Herbal Tisane from Rington’s Premium English Teas. I mean, I like lemon and I like ginger and I actually enjoy the two together quite a bit. But ginseng? I think I’ve mentioned more than once here on this blog that I’m not a fan of it. So, what possessed me to grab this tea to try it?
I don’t know. But, now that it’s brewed, I might as well try it, right?
I brewed one bag in 6 ounces of hot water (195°F) for 5 minutes.
The aroma offers a strong lemony note with hints of ginger. I also detect an earthy ginseng aroma. Ugh.
Fortunately, the ginseng smells stronger than it tastes! Happy day!
The lemon is the strongest flavor of the cup and it’s bright and invigorating. It’s not overly tart, it’s more of a sweet lemon note with hints of tangy. But I’m not puckering here.
The ginger is somewhat subdued, it’s not an overly peppered flavor from the spice of the ginger. It’s warm enough to offer some contrast to the zesty flavor of the lemon but not so spicy that it distracts from the lemon. This cup is really all about the lemon!
I can also taste the slightest hint of a cinnamon-y flavor to this. It’s very slight and it complements the ginger in a very enjoyable way.
What I don’t taste a lot of – thankfully – is ginseng. Even when I attempt to focus on the ginseng flavor to determine how much of it I actually do taste, I don’t taste a lot. A slight earthiness – that’s it! And the earthy notes meld favorably with the earthy notes of the ginger and cinnamon.
It really is as I said earlier, this tea is really all about the lemon. This would be something nice to keep on hand for those times when you’re feeling a bit under the weather and want something lively to sip. It would go nicely with a dollop of honey and would be soothing on a sore throat.
It’d also be nice if you’re cold-brewing some basic black tea – add one of these tea bags in along with the black tea and you’ll have a pleasant lemony flavor to your iced tea.
Overall, I’m pleasantly surprised by this tea!
Windsor Castle Black Tea Blend from Queen’s Pantry
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Queen’s Pantry
Tea Description:
Full bodied flavoury tea with toast notes from Darjeeling, maltiness from Assam and lively flavour from Ceylon. Worthy of royal households.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about the MidWest Tea Fest here.
Taster’s Review:
This is another tea that I was sent by one of the organizers of the MidWest Tea Fest! Queen’s Pantry Tea is one of the vendors that will be featured at the Tea Festival, and I’m so happy to be tasting their Windsor Castle Black Tea Blend today!
This is a very pleasant blend of three black teas: Assam, Ceylon and Darjeeling. I like that I can taste elements from all three teas. I’m tasting a rich, malty character from the Assam, a brisk note from the Ceylon as well as a note of citrus which is a typical Ceylon trait, and a crisp lightness and notes of grape from the Darjeeling.
The combination of these three teas produces a tea that is well-rounded with a medium body. It’s not too heavy or aggressive. I’m not getting any bitterness from the tea – although I would still caution you not to oversteep it and because Darjeeling is in the mix, I went with a slightly lower temperature (200°F) to steep the tea. While there is some astringency to this, it’s rather slight.
This would make a really nice mid-morning or mid-day tea. It’s got a really lively, brisk flavor to it that will give you that perk-me-up that you might need as the day wears on, but it isn’t so stimulating that you’ll be bouncing off the walls!
And with the nicely round flavor that this tea offers, it would be a very nice choice to serve to guests. It’d make a great iced tea too, try serving with a thin slice of lemon or a mint sprig!
Hey! Don’t forget about the MidWest Tea Fest! It’s a great event that will offer you the opportunity to try some amazing teas from Queen’s Pantry as well as other tea companies and you’ll also have the opportunity to attend demonstrations and classes from experts in the tea industry! Sounds like an amazing weekend!
Perles de Antilles Rooibos Blend from Camellia Sinensis
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Roiboos
This tea is available from Amoda Tea.
Tea Description:
What makes this extra good? One, it’s organic. Two, the coconut is subtle, rather than being the main note. Three… is that banana I taste? How unusual, but very pleasant. Together with the green rooibos, this is a fantastic combo. Soft, sweet and creamy. You can try it hot or iced.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Rooibos blends just aren’t my favorite. They just aren’t. But I do enjoy green rooibos more than I do red rooibos – I find that light, fruity note of the green rooibos to be appealing, especially when it’s part of a fruit flavored blend like this Perles de Antilles Rooibos Blend from Camellia Sinensis.
I think that the above description from Amoda Tea to be pretty spot on: the coconut notes are soft and unassuming, and the banana adds a pleasant flavor to this delightful tropical fruit flavored tisane. The overall flavor is indeed “soft, sweet and creamy.”
The creaminess is kind of a surprise for me, because I haven’t had a lot of green rooibos blends that have been what I’d categorize as “creamy.” Usually, they’re light and crisp and have almost a ‘bubbly’ type of character to them. I suspect the coconut and banana flavors brings a bit of creaminess to the party.
The pineapple adds a little bit of brightness to the cup. The apple is not particularly distinguishable, but I do note a little bit of apple-like sweetness that enhances the overall cup.
I really like this: it’s a soothing, gentle kind of flavor, the kind of tisane you want to curl up to late at night. And because it’s naturally caffeine-free, you can do just that. It’s sweet and it’s fruity without tasting like a cloying fruit punch concoction. It’s quite tasty, really.
Hua Xiang Rougui Oolong Tea from Nan Nuo Shan
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Nan Nuo Shan
Tea Description:
Mineral, slightly roasted, with clear floral hints. Hua Xiang Rougui is a well-balanced tea with a brisk, full and clean flavor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm … this Hua Xiang Rougui Oolong Tea from Nan Nuo Shan is so nice! It’s one of those Oolong teas that I just want to curl up to and enjoy. It’s one of those types of teas that make you feel all warm and fuzzy and cozy when you drink it.
I brewed this the way I’d brew most Oolongs: in my gaiwan. I heat the kettle to 180°F and let the tea steep for 15 seconds. Then I strained the liquid and discarded it – this is called the rinse. Need to awaken those leaves! I resteeped the leaves, this time for 45 seconds and strained the liquid into my teacup. For each subsequent infusion, I added 15 seconds. My first cup is the combination of infusions 1 and 2, while my second cup is infusions 3 and 4 … you get the idea, right?
This first cup is warm and wonderful. I taste notes of mineral and a sweet, roasted fruit note, reminiscent of what a roasted peach might taste like. Notes of flower weave their way throughout the sip. I taste a very subtle note of what I want to call cinnamon, although it’s not as warm/spicy as a cinnamon note would be. This is a subdued cinnamon flavor that i’m tasting.
The second cup was even nicer than the first – with intense, sweet fruit notes that taste like the aforementioned roasted peach along with the sweetness of dried fruit. Like the sweetness of a dried apricot and raisins. The spice notes are still there – still warm yet subdued. The mineral notes have softened somewhat. This cup seems more intently focused on the delectable sweetness of the fruit. The flavors were more intense but the overall cup was smoother.
With my third cup, I noticed the flavors starting to wane a little bit so I decided that I’d make this my last cup. I’m tasting the mineral notes again, almost to the same level that I tasted them in the first cup. It was kind of odd to me that I barely noticed them at all with the second cup but now they seem to be as pronounced as they were in the first cup. Still sweet, still fruity, but with a little less of the dried fruit notes. This time, I’m picking up on more floral flavors, notes of what I want to describe as gardenia with hints of orchid. I’m even picking up on notes of honey!
A truly remarkable tea – this is one that you definitely want to take through the different infusions – because there are so many layers of flavor to be discovered.