Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: ArtfulTea orArtfulTea on Etsy
Tea Description:
The classic cup of Earl Grey tea gets a makeover in Provence. The addition of lavender blossoms adds a soothing floral note to the traditional flavor of Earl Grey’s main ingredient – oil of bergamot. Very aromatic!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yay! It’s time for a cup of Earl Grey!
There really are very few teas that I prefer over a cup of delicious Earl Grey. Generally, I do prefer the classic, straightforward Earl Grey: black tea with the essence of bergamot. But I do also appreciate some of those cool “twists” to the traditional Earl Grey, like this Earl Grey Lavender from ArtfulTea.
And this is a REALLY good Earl Grey tea with Lavender! The black tea is a smooth, robust black tea that supports the strong bergamot flavor well. It’s smooth from start to finish with a tangy astringency toward the tail. The bergamot is strong without tasting perfume-ish, and that’s especially important when it comes to a blend like this because the lavender can often come off as too soapy. It’s crucial to keep the right balance of bergamot and lavender flavors so that the tea tastes like tea and not like a cup of body bath liquid.
But this tea has been carefully blended to offer a powerful bergamot note and enough lavender for a sweet, floral presence without creating a tea that tastes like it belongs at the cosmetics counter at the department store.
This tea is sweet, tangy, floral and invigorating to sip. It makes a nice afternoon cuppa. This is the kind of tea that evokes thoughts of sipping tea in a garden on a breezy summer afternoon.
This cuppa represents the last of the samples I received when I ordered the ArtfulTea Sampler, I guess I’m going to have to order more from them soon because my experiences with this company have been nothing but positive! I recommend them highly!
Organic Earl Grey Black Tea from White Lion
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: White Lion
Tea Description:
Natural Italian oil of Bergamot gives this tea its crisp citrusy bouquet. An all time classic, this tea is Sir Aubrey’s favorite.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yay! Earl Grey!
The dry leaf aroma is intensely bergamot with notes of bold top citrus notes and and undertone of a slightly floral note. The aroma of an Earl Grey tea is one of the things I love most about this traditional favorite, and so I was eager to taste this new-to-me Earl Grey!
To brew this tea, I used my Breville One-Touch tea maker and poured 500ml of water into the jug. Then I measured out two bamboo scoops of the tea into the basket and set the controls for 205°F and 2 1/2 minutes. The brewed tea is dark in color with a considerably softer fragrance than the dry leaf, but I can still detect the bergamot very clearly.
The bergamot flavor is much more subtle than I usually desire from an Earl Grey tea, but I can still taste the distinct notes of bergamot. Sharp, tangy notes of citrus that are much more focused if I slurp the cup to aerate the tea as it hits the palate. The aftertaste has a clear citrus note. This tea gets bonus points for a low astringency, as I find that many Earl Grey (or other citrus teas, for that matter) tend to have astringency. Here, the astringency is mild.
The black tea has a pleasing robustness to it. It’s very smooth in flavor from start to finish. It’s a little bit earthy and a little bit malty, and the malty notes meld with the bergamot in a very favorable way. The tea is strong and rich in flavor. It’s a medium to full bodied tea that would make a good late morning cuppa or early afternoon cuppa.
This would be a good Earl Grey for those who are timid when it comes to their bergamot. The bergamot is flavorful but not overdone. It is mellow enough for those who find a strong bergamot flavor to be too overpowering for them, but there is enough bergamot here to know that you’re drinking an Earl Grey.
Personally speaking, I prefer my Earl Grey to have a stronger bergamot essence, but I am enjoying this cup. I like that the tea is organic and it has a very satisfying flavor. It’s a good Earl Grey and it’s of good quality.
That said … this tea is best iced! I usually prefer my Earl Grey the same way that Captain Picard does … hot. But, this particular Earl Grey tastes best iced. The bergamot really pops as the tea cools!
New House Blend Black Tea from Bluebird Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Bluebird Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Perfect for those who like a stronger Earl Grey, our New House Blend is a full bodied blend of whole leaf Earl Grey and Assam. Enjoyed for years at founder, Mike’s, family home, The New House, where his family created this blend when he was just a boy!
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
When I am given a new-to-me Earl Grey tea to try, I’m as excited as a kid in a candy store. Earl Grey is my favorite “flavor” of tea – so long as it’s done right. I have had several poor excuses for Earl Grey in the past. Fortunately, today, I’m having a really awesome Earl Grey.
Because today, I’m drinking this New House Blend from Bluebird Tea Co.!
When I first opened the pouch, I had forgotten that this is actually an Earl Grey (it says “New House Blend” on the package, and I didn’t read the small print that says:
A stronger Earl Grey blend with whole leaf Assam
Nor did I read the ingredients that list:
Ceylon black tea, Assam black tea, Kenyan black tea, Bergamot flavour
I didn’t have my glasses on, so all that I could easily read was the “New House Blend” part and I knew that it was a black tea, and since I needed my caffeine fix (my first cup of the day!) I grabbed it and tore open the package.
Then I smelled it. BERGAMOT! Yes! It’s Earl Grey!
And the bergamot here is strong and beautifully aromatic. I think that my taste buds jumped up off my tongue and started doing the happy dance after I smelled the dry leaf.
So, I impatiently waited by the tea maker as this tea brewed like a love-sick heroine from a romance novel who was anxiously awaiting the arrival of her lover who has been away for far too long. Yes, I admit it, I have been having an affair with Earl Grey. My husband knows about it. He doesn’t necessarily approve, but, since it’s a tea that I’m in love with, he accepts it.
Finally! The tea maker beeped to let me know that the brewing cycle was complete. I poured myself a cup and inhaled the fragrance deeply. The bergamot has softened somewhat during the brewing process, now I also smell the richness of the black tea blend along with the lovely notes of the Italian citrus.
Oh! This tastes SO GOOD. This blend has been skillfully crafted. As much as I love bergamot, the real star of this cup is the black tea base. The combination of not just Ceylon and Assam but the Kenyan black tea as well has created a solid, well-rounded black tea flavor that is rich and smooth. No bitterness and very, very little astringency. It’s a good, robust black tea with some gusto to it – this would be a good first cuppa! (Which it happens to be for me today.) It will give you that nudge you need to start the day.
But, of course, no “Earl Grey” tea would be a proper Earl Grey without the bergamot. The bergamot fruit here is done quite well. It’s strong but not so strong that it ends up tasting like Uncle Albert’s after shave. I like the strength of the bergamot, but I think it could be just a tad stronger without that after shave taste. If I had to offer any complaint about this tea at all, that would be it – I’d like just a touch more bergamot.
But don’t take that criticism as me saying that I’m not happy with this cup because this tastes amazing! The bergamot adds a tangy note with just enough sweetness, it’s bright and acidic, but not so acidic that I feel the insides of my cheeks puckering from it. There are a few floral notes to the fruit, but this bergamot is more fruit than flower – which is the way it should be!
An excellent Earl Grey, and a tea that is definitely worthy of an esteemed title of “New House Blend.” Well done, Bluebird Tea Co.!
Lady Earl Grey Black Tea Blend from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf here.
Tea Description:
Our very popular Earl Grey blend of citrus bergamot over an extraordinary Nilgiri Black Tea with the added indulgence of Vanilla. This mouthwatering combination is the perfect invigorating treat. For the famed “London Fog” effect, add steamed milk and enjoy a smooth and creamy delight.
Ingredients: South Indian Flower Orange Pekoe Black Tea, Earl Grey Flavor, Vanilla Flavor, Cornflowers
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
How awesome is this? Lady Earl Grey in the Selection Club box for August. If I wasn’t already in love with these boxes from Simple Loose Leaf, they would have had me at this tea!
When I first saw the name of this tea – Lady Earl Grey – I thought that it might be a bergamot flavored black tea with either Lavender or Rose added. It wasn’t until I opened the pouch and smelled the tea and could immediately recognize the aroma of the vanilla that I knew that this was a Creme style Earl Grey. The vanilla is very well pronounced in the fragrance of the tea and this translates to the flavor.
I brewed this in my Breville One-Touch by pouring 500 ml of freshly filtered water into the jug, and then scooping out two bamboo scoops full of the fragrant loose leaf tea and putting it in the basket of the tea maker. I set the tea maker for 212°F and the timer for 2 1/2 minutes. This produced two cups of perfectly brewed tea! (Have I mentioned lately that I love my Breville One-Touch? Everyone should have one of these!)
This is one of the nicer creme Earl Grey teas that I’ve tried in a while. The bergamot is strong and flavorful, but the sharp edges of the Italian orange is softened beautifully with the vanilla notes. It’s so delightfully creamy and smooth!
The black tea base is nicely round and has a malty tone to it. I like how the malt-like flavors of the black tea marries with the vanilla flavors to create an almost caramel-esque flavor that is positively delectable. The black tea is an invigorating, full-flavored black tea. I like that it’s good and strong and isn’t overwhelmed by the flavors of bergamot and vanilla.
The bergamot is pleasantly strong. It’s not the strongest bergamot flavor that I’ve experienced from an Earl Grey tea, but, it’s by no means weak or lacking in any way, in my opinion. It’s balanced well with the notes of vanilla so that these two components are not competing with one another, but working very harmoniously with each other, making for a heavenly cup of tea!
Save 25% off when you sign up for the Selection Club. Use the coupon code SISTERSELECTION25 when you join. This discount is applicable only to the monthly Selection Club subscription and not the retail selection of teas.
Earl Grey Black Tea from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black & Oolong
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
We start with our most popular tea, Laoshan Black for a chocolatey base, and build a crisp flavor with Yu Lu Yan Cha and a long sweet aftertaste with roasted Wuyi Oolong from the Li family. We accent the sweet richness of the teas and meld them together with a touch of vanilla, and finish with the fine organic bergamot oil. The result is decadent, creamy, rich and subtle.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is one of the more unique Earl Grey tea blends that I’ve tried, and it comes as no surprise that this blend should come from Verdant Tea – because they always seem to take a very unique approach when it comes to classic tea flavors like Earl Grey.
That’s one of the things I absolutely love about this company – this is a company of artists! They think outside the box when it comes to traditional favorites. Sure, they could have taken one of their superior black teas and added bergamot oil and said, “there you have our Earl Grey.” But, they didn’t stop with just one of their superior black teas, they chose two – their Laoshan Black and their Yu Lu Yan Cha – and then they added their Wuyi Oolong just to kick it up a notch (or two!)
Wait a second. Oolong and Black tea? OK … so since Wuyi Oolong tends to be a darker Oolong, I went with 195°F and 3 minute steep time for the first infusion.
The dry leaf smells amazing. The bergamot notes are strong, but I can also detect those sweet notes of vanilla in there too. And then I smelled the chocolate-y notes of the Laoshan Black. These chocolate-y notes were very THERE as the tea steeped. My mouth was watering from the aroma that filled my kitchen.
The brewed liquid – surprisingly – smells more of the Laoshan Black tea than it does bergamot. I was a little worried … but just a little, because this is Verdant Tea, after all, and I hoped they wouldn’t disappoint me.
When the tea is very hot, the Laoshan Black tea is a very dominate flavor. After allowing the tea to cool to a drinkable temperature, though, the other flavors began to emerge.
Oh my! This is lovely! The Laoshan Black tea with its distinct chocolate-y flavors remains a dominate flavor profile in each sip. (Yeah, that means I get chocolate happiness with every sip!) And I like the way this tea melds with the flavors of bergamot and vanilla.
The vanilla tones are subtle at first, but as I near mid-cup, the vanilla flavors are developing. It’s creamy and sweet, but unlike some of the Earl Grey Creme teas that I’ve tried, it’s not a dominate flavor. It doesn’t “soften” the bergamot, it complements the flavor profiles of the Laoshan Black and the Yu Lu Yan Cha Black teas, encouraging those chocolate-y and malty notes to come forward.
The Yu Lu Yan Cha Black is a tea that I will be reviewing at a later date. I was actually going to be writing that review now, but, when I went to the Verdant Website, I noticed that the Yu Lu Yan Cha Black is currently out of stock and the Earl Grey was still in stock, but in very low quantities. (In other words, if this tea interests you, you should go forth and buy it now before it sells out.)
The Wuyi Oolong offers a very soft toasty, nutty note that offers a very harmonious flavor that marries perfectly with the chocolate and malt notes of the black teas. It also offers a nice – almost buttery – texture the cup that melds nicely with the creamy notes of the vanilla.
The second infusion is as delightful as the first – although it is a little different from the first cup. Most notably, the Laoshan black tea has mellowed a little, allowing the other flavors some “play time.” This cup is smoother and creamier than the first. I’m tasting a sweet potato note as well as notes of fruit from the Oolong. I am not tasting much from the bergamot nor the vanilla, but this is still a very tasty cup of tea!
As lovely as this tea is, I have to admit that the bergamot flavor is not as strong as I would like it to be. I like a bright, bold bergamot note and that is something that I’m just not getting here. I do get a nice tangy tingle of bergamot in the aftertaste and this flavor dances on the palate long after the sip. I like that … but I do find myself wishing that there was more of that tangy bergamot during the sip to contrast with the sweet chocolate-y flavors of the Laoshan Black, the hints of toasty flavor from the Wuyi Oolong and the malty, sweet notes of the Yu Lu Yan Cha Black.
That said, I really enjoyed this blend and it’s a tea that I’d be happy to drink any time. It’s a really delicious tea with lots of layers of flavors to discover.