Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Starglory on Amazon
Tea Description:
Black Tea is consumed because of its natural flavour and for refreshment. Excellent cup of black tea helps a person to start a day positively with full of energy. At the end of a hectic, tiresome and busy day if a perfect black tea is taken , it will re energize and refresh oneself. This is one best Orthodox Black Tea sourced from Upper Assam Gardens.
Learn more about Starglory Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I love Assam black teas, so when I was asked by Starglory Tea to try their FOP Assam Black, I was only too happy to oblige!
Immediately upon looking at the dry leaf, I can see something distinctly different with this tea versus other Assam black teas. Most Assam teas that I’ve encountered tend to be a smaller cut or broken leaf. But these beautiful, long, wiry leaves of chocolate brown appear to be whole! When Starglory says “FOP” (which stands for Flowery Orange Pekoe – which basically means that the tea consists of large, wiry, and mostly unbroken leaves), they mean it!
To brew this beautiful Assam, I measured out 2 1/2 bamboo scoops of tea (I added an extra half a scoop because the leaves are so large and bulky) into the basket of my Breville tea maker and poured 500ml of freshly filtered water into the vessel. I set the parameters for 2 1/2 minutes steep time at 205°F. I used a slightly lower temperature because it’s been my experience that Assam teas can be somewhat temperamental and a slightly lower temperature can mean the difference between a perfect tasting cup of tea and a bitter brew.
And this tastes perfect!
It is rich, delicious and malty, just like I want from an Assam. But this tastes much smoother – no bitterness whatsoever! Not even a hint in the background. Just sweet, caramel-y notes that meld deliciously with notes of malt to create a thick, luscious flavor that not only entices me with its delicious flavor but also invigorates me.
The sip begins with a sweet note that becomes very caramel-esque as the sip progresses. I begin to pick up on the malty notes almost right away. There are notes of fruit and floral notes in the background. It’s got that “chewy” sort of flavor to it, thick and delicious like the crust from a freshly baked loaf of bread. Mmm! It’s a very satisfying tea.
This tea doesn’t require any additions – it tastes great as is. But, if you prefer a bit of honey or milk in your tea, this tea would take those additions well. It would be great with a thin slice of lemon too. Another great idea is to drop a piece or two of crystallized ginger into your tea. This adds a little sweetness to the cup as well as a hint of ginger’s peppery flavor. (Plus you get a tasty treat at the end of the cup!)
If you’re looking for an Assam that delivers the flavor of the Assam without so much of the harshness that is often associated with it – this is the Assam you’re looking for!
Morningtime Black Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
We don’t have a catchy intro for this tea. But it’s smooth, jolting, and flavorful. We consider this tea to be our flagship blend, perfect for the morning. Extra-strong Ceylon tea, Chinese Dianhong Gong Fu and Keemun tea, and Indian Assam tea: three continents in your cup! This blend is part of the Original 20 M&K’s Blends.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! The above description suggests that this is a jolting blend, and let me tell you, they got that right!
I was happy to find that the sample from M&K’s of this tea is just the right amount to brew 500ml of tea in my Breville One Touch! I poured the sample into the basket of the tea maker and added the water and then set the parameters for 212°F and 2 1/2 minutes.
The result delighted my taste buds! This Morningtime Blend is a great wake-me-up tea. It’s a bold, rich tasting black tea. Full-flavored and well-rounded. The sip starts out sweet yet bold. I notice notes of caramel and molasses mingling with malty tones, earthy notes and flavors of stone fruit and flower. There’s a lot of complexity beneath that robust, jarring flavor of WAKE UP!
Toward the tail, I pick up on light citrus tones and there is some dry astringency at the finish. The tea isn’t bitter, however, I suspect that it could very well become bitter if the tea were oversteeped, so don’t do that. I recommend no longer than 3 minutes brew time for this tea and from there, experiment a bit and find that right time for you and your particular tastes.
Another thing that I’m appreciating about the blend is that it really is a blend. A culmination of the four teas used to create the blend: I can taste notes of malt from the Assam, a wine-like flavor and hints of smoke from the Keemun, citrus-like flavors from the Ceylon and a rich Chinese DianHong rounds everything out with its rich, satisfying flavor. I can taste each of the components but they unite in this blend so well that it becomes almost seamless.
A really lovely breakfast blend type tea. It would take the additions of milk and honey well, but I like it straight up! It’s got just a little bit of edge to it that I like, but it isn’t too aggressive. It gives me the alertness I need and the smooth, rich, roundness I love from a well-crafted tea.
So far, I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve tried from this new-to-me company. They have excellent customer service – they promptly reply to questions and my order arrived very quickly. And I love these samplers!
Assam Gold Black Tea from The Persimmon Tree
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where To Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tea Description:
This smooth, malty infusion is the perfect alternative to coffee. Assam Gold can be steeped multiple times while retaining its flavor. Golden in color, this import from Northern India is a thick, comfortable black tea brew that warms and energizes after a tough, bitter, cold day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! I love this Assam Gold! So much malt in one little mug!
Well, OK, my mug isn’t that small, but there’s a whole lot of malt flavor going on in it right now.
I brewed this Assam in my Breville One-Touch. I know I talk a lot about my tea maker, but seriously, if you drink even half as much tea as I do … even a fourth of the amount of tea that I do (I drink a lot of tea), you really should invest in one of these!
So, yes, I brewed this tea in my Breville, adding 2 bamboo scoops of tea to the basket and pouring 500ml of water into the jug. I set the parameters for 205°F and 2 minutes. I generally go just a little lower with both the temperature and the time when it comes to brewing an Assam in my Breville. Assam teas can be temperamental, and I find that by lowering the temperature just slightly and cutting back on steep time, this reduces the chances of bitterness.
And I don’t know if it’s my brewing, or if this is just one of those Assam teas that is a little less temperamental than others can be, but I’m not even picking up on a hint of bitterness at all with this. This is smooth from start to finish, and there’s very VERY little astringency to this cup. That is to say that unless I’m really focusing on trying to detect astringency in this tea, I’m not noticing any. Only when I’m really focused on it do I pick up on a slight pucker of the inside of my cheeks and a very slight dry sensation.
Mostly what I am experiencing here is MALT! Sweet caramel-y tones. A smooth texture – like silk. (Perhaps spun gold would be a better descriptive for this particular tea?) There are notes of fruit to this, reminiscent of sweet plums (no tartness to the plum notes), dates and dried raisin. I am not really tasting so much “raisin” as I’m tasting the sugary sweetness that you might experience form biting into a piece of dried fruit, and a slight “wine-like” note from the grape-y-ness of the raisin.
There are floral notes to this too – off in the distance. I’m envisioning the gardens where this tea has been grown to be edged by some flowery field and when the breeze comes by and picks up on some of that flowery essence, it delivers that essence to the awaiting tea leaves. Not a strong presence of flower. Just a whisper of it. A breezy note of flower.
This is a really good Assam. If you’re one who yearns for that malty flavor of an Assam, put this on your to-try list, I think you’ll be pleased with the malty character of this one.
Assam Orthodox Black Tea (TGFOP1) from Starglory
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Starglory on Amazon
Tea Description:
Black Tea is consumed because of its natural flavour and for refreshment. Excellent cup of black tea helps a person to start a day positively with full of energy. At the end of a hectic, tiresome and busy day if a perfect black tea is taken , it will re energize and refresh oneself. This is one best Orthodox Black Tea sourced from Upper Assam Gardens.
Learn more about Starglory Tea here.
Taster’s Review:
What a fabulous Assam! It’s a rich, full-flavored, robust Assam – just what I’d expect from a top-notch Assam black tea, but it’s far less harsh than many Assam teas that I’ve encountered. This is smoother and sweeter!
To brew this, I used my trusty Breville One-Touch tea maker (I really love this machine!) I added 2 heaping bamboo scoops of tea to the basket – a little bit of extra leaf since the curls of the beautiful TGFOP1 leaf add some bulk to it versus the typical smaller torn leaf. Then I poured 500ml of water into the jug and set the parameters: 205°F and 2 1/2 minutes.
This particular Assam is a single garden tea from the Dibrugarh estate. I like that when I had a question about the Assam tea’s origins, Starglory Tea got back to me promptly with the answers I was looking for. I appreciate that kind of customer service! It makes me feel good about the company I’m dealing with!
This is a really smooth Assam. It’s malty and there is a wine-like note to this too. It’s got a crispness to it. It’s not quite as heavy as some Assam teas can be. It’s got that invigorating edge to it without being bitter. In fact, I’m not picking up on any bitterness to this at all. With many Assam teas, I tend to pick up on a slight bitterness, like hinting at bitterness. Not quite bitter, but suggesting to me that had I oversteeped the tea, it would have been. I’m not even getting the slight insinuation that this tea would be bitter! I like!
There are notes of cacao which I found surprising – in a very good way! It’s a rich, decadent cacao flavor with notes of flower in the background. Hints of fruit. Molasses which adds a rich, almost roasted flavor to the cup that accents the cacao quite beautifully.
While I am sure that this tea would take well to the additions of milk and honey (or other additions if you prefer) I would first recommend tasting it before you add anything to it! It has a very satisfying flavor served straight and there are so many lovely nuances to this tea and the additions might just overwhelm those other flavors.
This Assam is so good that I’m finding it hard to write this review as I drink it. I don’t want to stop sipping long enough to put the cup down and type! That’s the true measure for this reviewer of a really good tea – if I finish the cup of tea before I finish the review – it deserves all kinds of accolades. And look! My teacup is empty!
Assam 2nd Flush 2014 Silver Needle White Tea from What-Cha Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: What-Cha Tea
Tea Description:
A great tasting Silver Needle with a delicate sweet taste and no detectable astringency.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Assam 2nd Flush Silver Needle White Tea is quite unlike any other Silver Needle White tea I’ve tried to date. So to brew it, I decided to follow the purveyor’s suggested parameters and heat the water to 175°F (OK, the parameters suggest 176°F, but my Breville heats water at 5 degree intervals, and I figured 1° wasn’t going to make or break the tea.) I measured two pinches of tea into the bowl of my gaiwan and steeped the tea for 1 1/2 minutes for the first infusion, adding 15 seconds onto each subsequent infusion.
Note: The steep time and the measurements that I used were my own, not the purveyor’s suggested parameters. I only used their temperature suggestions. What-Cha suggested 2 minutes steep time and 1 teaspoon per cup. But because I was using my gaiwan, I went with slightly more tea and slightly less time.
As I said, this tea is quite unlike any other Silver Needle Tea that I’ve experienced until now. Yes, there are some similarities to the Silver Needle teas I’ve had in the past. First of all, the leaves look very much like a silver needle, except that these are probably a little darker green than the silvery pale green that I’m used to seeing with a Silver Needle.
And there is a distinct hay-like aroma and flavor to this Assam Silver Needle, and that’s something that I typically experience with other Silver Needle teas. But the hay-like aroma here, especially in the dry leaf, is intense! It smells like the air of the countryside after a field of hay has been cut. Like within the hour of the hay cutting! It’s a strong scent. The fragrance softens when the tea is brewed, but there are still some strong hay-like notes to the cup.
And to the flavor! The hay notes are strong in the taste as well. It’s sweet and delicate – like a Silver Needle – but those sweet and hay-like flavors are stronger than in a typical Silver Needle.
If compared to a Silver Needle tea, this Assam Silver Needle would not be considered a delicate tea. But if compared to an Assam Black, then yes, this is definitely delicate in comparison.
Interestingly enough, I think that it’s appropriate to compare this Assam white tea to an Assam black because there are some similarities to the “more familiar” black tea from the Assam region. For example, I can taste notes of malt to this. I didn’t expect to. Sure, it’s an Assam tea, but, it’s a white tea … and I figured this Silver Needle would be far too delicate to detect the malty flavors. But no! There is a lovely malty sweetness to this cup.
It’s a smooth, calming drink. As the above description suggests, there is no astringency to this. It starts out sweet. The texture is silky. The aftertaste offers a delicate sweetness. I also pick up on a subtle citrus note in the aftertaste.
In later infusions, I began to notice the hay-like flavors begin to soften somewhat, not really waning, but instead, melding with the other flavors and allowing those other notes to come into focus. I started to pick up on gentle fruit notes and a lovely floral note.
A really delightful, deliciously different Silver Needle! This is another MUST TRY from What-Cha Tea. They are becoming THE source for some very unusual marvels of the tea world!