Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Brooklyn Tea Blends Co.
Tea Description:
BROOKLYN TEA BLENDS CARAVAN TRIAD is a perfect marriage of three black teas. Blended together to achieve a memorizing complex but smooth taste. Richly and malty yet with great harmony of spices, fruits and wealth of smolderingly smoky aroma.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was excited when I heard about Caravan Triad Tea from Brooklyn Tea Blends Co. Not necessarily because it’s a caravan tea which to me means ‘smoky’ and I’ve mentioned more than once that I’m not a huge fan of smoky teas, but because it was a new to me tea crafted by a new to me tea company!
So I contacted them immediately and they sent me a sample. You can also get a sample (a very generous sized sample!) of this tea for a limited time (the website says that the samples will be available through May 2015).
And while this is indeed a smoky tea that is composed of 60% Lapsang Souchong, I like that when I opened the pouch, I wasn’t overwhelmed with smoke. And now that I sit here with a cup of the brewed tea in front of me, I’m not being overwhelmed with a smoky aroma wafting out of the cup. There are some smoky notes, yes, but they don’t overpower the cup. I also smell some really lovely fruit notes to this cup and I like the way those notes mingle with the smoke.
I’m loving the flavor of this tea! Yes, the smoke is a dominant flavor profile, but, there are so many lovely layers to this Caravan Triad! It doesn’t impart a heavy smoky taste on the palate and I don’t experience a residual smoky aftertaste, which I really like.
I am picking up on a strong fruity essence to this. Notes of plum! And just as I enjoyed how the aroma of smoke and fruit mingled, I am also enjoying how the smoky flavor mingles with the plum notes. It evokes thoughts of a plum that’s been smoked over a plank of pine wood.
Unlike some other ‘smoky’ teas, I appreciate that the pine notes don’t taste ‘burnt’ or ‘charcoal-y.’ The pine adds a certain crispness that is similar to a minty crispness but without the mint overtones. This is nicely round with sweet and savory notes.
This is a tea I’d recommend for late morning or afternoon sipping. This isn’t the kind of tea that I’d want to reach for first thing in the morning. It doesn’t have that same ‘gusto’ that I want for my first cup. This is more of a contemplative type of tea, something that you want to take a moment and sit back and take the time to explore the dimensions of flavor. There are so many delicate nuances to this tea that are just waiting to be discovered!
This is definitely one of the nicer smoky blends that I’ve tried, mostly because the smoke is gentle and unassuming here. It doesn’t aggressively assert itself into my tea drinking experience the way Lapsang Souchong can do. It allows me to sit back and enjoy subtle notes of smoke as well as the many other delicious layers of flavor. I highly recommend this tea to anyone who would typically shy away from a ‘smoky’ tea because they find it too overbearing. This tea will surprise you in a very good way!
Pineapple Sencha from Den’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
This tea is available from Amoda Tea.
Tea Description:
Loved by anyone who tries it, this tea is a must-try. There is a perfect balance between the fresh, grassy taste of a Sencha (a Japanese green tea) and the sweet tropical pineapple. Very natural & authentic fruit flavour and a buttery creaminess make this tea an example of how flavoured tea should taste! Great as a cold-steeped tea.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was really excited to find Pineapple Sencha from Den’s Tea in the March box from Amoda Tea! It’s a tea that I’ve been hearing so many positive things about on Steepster and one that I’ve had on my mental list of teas to try but one that I’ve not yet gotten around to ordering for myself. So, I’m really happy to have this opportunity now to try it.
The dry leaf looks very much like what the picture above depicts – it’s bright, jade green Japanese Sencha tea leaves with bits of dried pineapple. Some of the pieces of pineapple look a little darker – almost orange – and it almost looks like maybe that could be papaya or mango instead of pineapple. The ingredients list only Sencha, pineapple pieces and flavoring, so maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me.
But rather than actually sampling a piece of the fruit, I just poured the contents of the packet into the basket of my Breville One-Touch tea maker and added 500 ml of water to the jug and set the parameters: 170°F and 1 1/2 minutes.
This produced a very light tasting cup of tea – subtle but lovely! The pineapple is a prominent flavor but I can also taste the light, fresh notes of the Japanese Sencha: slightly grassy and with a hint of butter. There is a nice sweet and savory contrast going on between the two profiles.
And because this is a Japanese Sencha, you know I went in for a second infusion!
The second infusion is even stronger in flavor than the first was. The first was somewhat delicate and with this second infusion, the flavors have developed. The pineapple is well-defined. Sweet, juicy and very true to the fruit. There is no mistaking that this is pineapple! It doesn’t taste candied or artificial. It tastes bright! It tastes like fresh, delicious pineapple! YUM!
The Japanese Sencha adds a compelling contrast to the sweet pineapple notes. The Sencha adds a little bit of savory to the cup, balancing out the sweetness. It also offers a slightly creamy texture to the cup which is quite pleasant.
Overall, a spectacular tea – one I’m really happy that Amoda Tea chose for this month’s box! Thank you, Amoda!
Northumbrian Blend Loose Leaf Black Tea from Rington’s Premium English Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Rington’s Premium English Teas
Tea Description:
Our oldest and most traditional tea for original strength and flavour.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The cut on this Northumbrian Blend Loose Leaf Black Tea from Rington’s Premium English Teas is a very fine chop. It’s a very finely cut CTC, so when you’re brewing it, you want to take that into consideration and measure out a little less tea. The smaller the leaf, the more surface area that’s exposed to the water – so therefore it brews faster and stronger than a whole leaf tea would.
But that doesn’t mean that CTC teas aren’t good. Sure, I’ll be the first to tell you that whole leaf teas are some of the best teas you can get, but a finely chopped CTC doesn’t mean that it’s not a good tea. I’ve tried many CTC teas that I’ve quite enjoyed. It just means that you need to be mindful of the size of the leaf when you’re preparing the tea.
So when I brewed this, I measured out a bamboo scoop of the leaf and then I shook the scoop a little to let some of the leaf fall off the scoop and back into the package. I ended up measuring two ‘scant’ bamboo scoops of tea into the basket of my Breville One-Touch. Each ‘scant’ scoop is about 3/4th of a scoop. Maybe just a little more than 3/4th scoop. Then I added 500ml of water into the jug of the tea maker and set the settings for 205°F and 2 minutes. Again, because this is a smaller cut, I went with a slightly lower temperature and a little less time to avoid a bitter cup of tea.
Did it work? Yes it did. The tea is rich and what I want to call ‘stout.’ It’s a hefty, strong tasting tea. It’s not quite as ’round’ as some other teas that I’d call hefty or strong. It’s not quite as full-flavored and well-rounded, but it’s still a mighty bold cup of tea.
It’s got notes of earth and leather as well as some floral background notes. Toward the end I pick up on citrus notes. There is a fair amount of astringency to it but it’s not bitter. I would like to say though that if I had oversteeped this tea – it would definitely be bitter so don’t let that happen!
This tea would take the additions of milk and honey well should you wish to add them. I drank it straight up and found it enjoyable, although the second time that I drank it, I did so with a drop or two of cream and found it a much more enjoyable drink. The touch of dairy (not a lot, a little less than a teaspoon) helped round out the tea and as a bonus, it softened the astringency a bit.
Organic Pu-er Tuocha from Tao of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Tao of Tea
Tea Description:
Made from the large leaf ‘Da Ye’ tea plant varietal, better known as Camellia Sinensis ‘Assamica’. The Tuocha refers to a family of bowl shaped teas, commonly available as Green tea Tuocha, Black tea Tuocha and Puer Tuocha. Made at one of the few organic tea gardens in Yunnan, this tea is popular among strong, dark tea drinkers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! This Organic Pu-er Tuocha from Tao of Tea is seriously awesome. It isn’t often that I’ll say that about a pu-er! Oh, I may enjoy a pu-er, but I don’t often say the word “awesome” when describing a pu-er. But this … this is AWESOME.
And I think I know why. This tea was actually made from an Assamica plant! That is to say, it’s made with the same plant that makes an Assam tea, but the tea is grown and processed in Yunnan. And the result is something that I could happily curl up to any day.
My first cup is oh-so-smooth. It tastes a lot like a black tea only smoother. I’m not getting the same astringency that I’d get from a black tea. But I get that delicious undertone of molasses-y caramel and even a malty note. It’s sweet. And my first cup disappeared before I could finish coming up with words to describe what I was tasting.
The second cup was darker in color and deeper in flavor than the first, and the first word that came to mind as I took my first sip of that cup was “robust.” Another word that I don’t often use to describe a pu-er! Smooth, yes, I use that word often to describe a pu-er, and this tea is definitely smooth. Mellow, yes, another frequently used word to describe pu-er, and yes, this tea is mellow. But it’s also robust! It has a flavor that reminds me SO much of a black tea that I find myself questioning it! So sweet, notes of fruit and flower, notes of molasses, hints of leather and a lovely note of malt.
I’m on to my third infusion now and it’s even darker than the second. This is the first cup where I’m noticing a slight “earthy” mushroom note and the first cup where it actually tastes more like pu-er than black tea. But even so, I’m getting a lot of those black tea flavors too, the malty notes are still there and there’s a really pleasant sweetness to this. I love the way the aforementioned fruity notes mingle with the leathery notes and the notes of mushroom. It’s a deep, complex cup that’s really very enjoyable.
My fourth cup is very much like my third, only deeper in flavor. This is very much what I think I would expect if I were to mix a cup of Assam black tea and a cup of pu-er together. It’s not nearly as earthy as I’d experience with a pu-er, there are some earthy notes but it’s more like a mushroom flavor with notes of leather. It isn’t fishy or briny. There’s very little astringency to it and it’s not bitter. It’s just really smooth and pleasant. Notes of plum mingling with molasses, malt, and mushroom. It’s very different, quite unlike any pu-er I’ve experienced until now.
I’d recommend this pu-er to any tea lover – even those that don’t usually like pu-er because this is so similar to black tea, especially in the earliest infusions, that it eases you into the earthiness of pu-erh slowly. And even when it does start to become earthy, it’s not overwhelmingly so.
This is one of the best pu-er I’ve tried, ever.
Iron Goddess Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Dachi Tea
Tea Description:
Commonly referred to as a Tie Guan Yin, the Iron Goddess Oolong has a mature, nutty, smoky aroma that leads you nicely into a very full-bodied tea with the puckering effect of citrus fruit. The sweet linger of this tea reminds you of dried apricots, but the woodsy and earthy taste which comes from the deep roast could well lead the mature palette to pick up more savoury notes.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
A really lovely Iron Goddess Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea! This is a Taiwanese Tie Guan Yin – so you’ll experience more of the roasty-toasty, nutty flavors with this tea as opposed to the creamy, floral notes of a jade/greener Tie Guan Yin.
To brew this, I measured a bamboo scoop of the tightly wound pellets of tea into the bowl of my gaiwan. I heated my kettle to 180°F and poured just enough water over the leaves to cover them. Then I let this steep for 15 seconds to awaken the leaves. After straining off the liquid and discarding, I filled the gaiwan with hot water and let it steep for 45 seconds for the first infusion. For each subsequent infusion, I added 15 seconds. Each cup is the combination of two infusions, so my first cup is infusions 1 and 2, the second cup is infusions 3 and 4 … and so on!
The flavor is very much what I’d expect from a top-notch roasted Tie Guan Yin. I must say that my experiences with Dachi Tea thus far have all been very positive – this is a company you really should experience!
My first cup is smooth, sweet and toasty. It’s nutty, fruity and creamy … and oh-so-wonderful to sip! It’s not bitter (I rarely encounter an Oolong that is!) and there’s very little astringency to this cup. Just a hint of tangy ‘pucker’ at the end that works with this tea because I’m also picking up on some lovely citrus-y notes toward the tail. This tangy quality plays well to that citrus tone.
As I neared the bottom of my cup, I also started picking up on the apricot notes as the description above suggests – and I like the way the sweet apricot flavors contrast with some of the earthier, woodsier notes of the tea and how those earthy, woodsy notes complement the the roasted nutty flavors. It’s a beautiful medley of tastes in one teacup.
The second cup was not quite as creamy as the first cup – but still just as flavorful. That is to say that the texture was thinner now, not as creamy feeling on the palate, but I’m still getting delicious nutty notes that remind me of freshly roasted chestnuts and that really pleasant citrus note toward the tail. The flavors I experienced in the first cup are still there for the second and they’re better defined now.
With my last cup (cup 3) I found the flavors starting to mellow and become more unified. I could still taste the toasted nutty flavors and the sweet apricot notes, the notes of wood and earth and citrus, but they seemed to have less distinction between them, like they were melding into a seamless flavor.
Another really fascinating cup of tea from Dachi Tea – I’ve loved every cup that I’ve tasted from them! This is a must try company!