Many of you know I start each and every day with a Black Tea and then move on to the other tea bases from there and sip on different teas all day long…but…I have to say that Assams are generally among my favorite!
May I introduce you to a new offering from Simpson & Vail? Assam Marangi Estate Black Tea (FTGFOP1).
This lead me to my own personal research and enrichment on the Marangi Estate. The Marangi Estate is located in the Golaghat district of north-eastern Assam south of the Brahmaputra River. This district’s economy is agriculture in nature, with crops of tea, rice and sugar cane its major crops. Tea is the largest agricultural crop grown here with over 63 large tea gardens as well as many small scale tea-growers. 63 LARGE tea gardens? Yes, please! While this is a small estate, with approximately 250 hectares in cultivation, Marangi is a well respected garden that produces very high quality Assam black tea. After sipping on this tea I would completely agree! This estate seems to be the definition of QUALITY over quantity!
This Assam – that I am sipping on again while typing this review – is from the Marangi Estate and has black and golden leaves and is graded as a FTGFOP (finest tippy golden flowery orange pekoe). It brews to a rich, amber colored cup with a slight cocoa aroma with floral and woodsy notes. Taste-wise it is malty with a balanced astringency and a smooth, slight cocoa finish. I have to say that malty and cocoa type Assams are among my favorite of the Assams!
This might have to go on my Top Ten Teas of this year so far! YUM!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Simpson and Vail
Description
This tea from the Marangi Estate has uniform black and golden leaves and is graded as a FTGFOP (finest tippy golden flowery orange pekoe). It brews to a rich, amber colored cup with a slight cocoa aroma with floral and woodsy notes. The taste is malty with a balanced astringency and a smooth, slight cocoa finish.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Russian Caravan from Tea Queens. . . .
I usually reserve my smokier teas for cool or cold weather since I find them very comforting, but cloudy, rainy days spent gazing out the window qualify, too!
Tea Queens sells through consultants, and you can host a tea break or a tea party to learn about tea and to taste some of their offerings. If there is no consultant in your area, the website instructs you to call customer service, so I assume you can order directly from them.
This Russian Caravan is a blend of Assam, Keemun with lychee, and Lapsang Souchong. There are no steeping instructions on the website so I went with 200F and four minutes just to pamper the Assam a bit.
The resulting tea is so light I thought perhaps I had made a mistake, but I have another Lapsang blend that comes out a similar color.
This went very well with our breakfast of blueberry scones. The company sells scone mix, too, by the way! And teapot cookie cutters and colorful decorating sugars.
There is a touch of briskness from the Assam, and it is nicely smokey. I like smoke, and a few Russian Caravan blends have disappointed me by being a bit too tame, but this one was just right. I really don’t taste much lychee, even the cups I drank after the scone was long gone. I think mainly I pick up a general fruitiness from the the Assam and lychee together.
I have made a lot of new friends by having people over who want to learn about tea, where it is grown, how it is processed, how to prepare it, why to drink. I think the idea of hosting a party where an expert comes to conduct your own personal tea flight is marvelous! Especially since it gives you a discount on your tea, and real teaheads know how outrageous the tea budget can get!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea Queens
Description
A blend of Assam and Keemun with Chinese lychee tea imparts a wonderful fruitiness. Lapsang Souchong adds a gentle touch of smokiness to this one of a kind blend.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
