Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
The English Breakfast blend is robust and malty. This black tea is a blend of Ceylon, Assam, Java, and Darjeeling teas and is best served with milk or lemon.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Ordinarily when I’m ordering from Butiki Teas, I gravitate toward the more unusual blends or the flavored teas because Butiki Teas is really quite skillful when it comes to creating something not only unique but delicious. The Tamarind Pop is an excellent example of this. Truly a unique and delicious tea.
So, I find that I tend to overlook what might be somewhat common or “everyday” blends from Butiki – like this English Breakfast – and to be honest, until someone mentioned that they’d like to try the English Breakfast from Butiki Teas in our recent giveaway sponsored by the company, I didn’t even realize that they had one! I’m just so used to them being the place for more out-of-the-ordinary type of blends … I didn’t expect to see an English Breakfast in the collection of teas from Butiki!
But, I was not only surprised to find an English Breakfast, but now that I am trying it, I am surprised that I thought that this would be a common English Breakfast – it’s nothing of the sort!
This tea has some serious HEFT to it – it is robust and invigorating. It has a thickness to it, some real tooth! It is what I sometimes refer to as “chewy” … which to me means that it has a flavor and a texture that sort of reminds me of a crusty, chewy, freshly baked french bread. It’s so satisfying!
This is a blend of Ceylon, Assam, Java, and Darjeeling teas, and while they do meld together quite amazingly to create a very seamless kind of flavor, I do notice certain aspects from the individual teas as well. From the Assam, I notice a rich, malty character. From the Darjeeling, I notice that sort of crispness that helps to clean the palate in between sips so that it does not become overwhelmed by what would otherwise be a very heavy tea. The Darjeeling keeps it sort of “light” … but don’t mistake that comment to think that this is – in any way – a weak or wimpy tea. It IS NOT! But, the hint of lightness from the Darjeeling helps to keep this tea from being too heavy, and I like that, because I don’t like that weighed down feeling from a tea.
From the Ceylon I notice an evenness of tone and I notice a rich warmness and robustness from the Java. Together… these four teas combine to create a very unique Breakfast Blend that stands out from the crowd. This is no ordinary English Breakfast!
Organic Japanese Puerh from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Puerh
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Looking for something completely different? Then we highly recommend giving this puerh a try. Our Organic Japanese Puerh originates from the Isokawa region of the Shizuoka prefecture in Japan. This unique tea was invented fairly recently and is made artificially with an organic malted brown rice culture and a combination of first and second flush harvest tea leaves. The leaves are pan fired and fermented for 3-4 days. After that period, a small amount of fresh leaves are added for 2 days. The aroma of the liquor has roasted chestnut notes with a lingering sweetness. This puerh is a strong smooth tea with a drying sweet after taste and buttery quality. Strong notes of roasted chestnuts can be detected. Cacao, tabaco, and brown rice notes are also present with a hint of fruitiness. This tea is somewhat coffee-like but not nearly as strong.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is wickedly good Puerh!
Now, I hope you know by now that I wouldn’t just say that if the puerh didn’t move me to say such a thing, because I’m very cautious when it comes to Puerh. Even though I’ve had far more positive experiences with Puerh now than I’ve had bad experiences, those first few bad experiences with Puerh have managed to shape my future Puerh experiences with an initial feeling of dread when it comes to actually even trying a Puerh. Although, I must admit, things are improving – there was a time I wouldn’t even consider ordering a Puerh, and I now actually DO order it! Who’da thunk it?
Anyway, back to this Puerh … when I sniffed the dry leaf, I expected some of that Puerh earthiness … but there was none! Actually, the dry leaf is fairly void of any strong aroma, it is really quite a mild scent that reminds me vaguely of the smell of dry, aged hardwood. The brewed liquor also is quite scent-less, I pick up hints of tobacco and a toasted nut scent, but it’s a very distant smell.
So, I took my first sip … a very apprehensive sip. And WOW! It tastes like coffee. Did I accidentally brew coffee beans instead of Puerh in my gaiwan? I really hope not, because that could taint my gaiwan. But seriously … this tastes like freshly roasted coffee but without that coffee bitterness… it’s kind of like a weakly brewed coffee that has been enhanced with a couple of spoons of sugar. It’s got a sweet, caramel-y tone to it. And it is also coffee taste that comes without the coffee jitters (and for me, without the coffee sickness that I feel a few hours later).
It has a rich, sweet taste, somewhat nutty, like roasted chestnuts, and with a slight earthiness but not the typical earthiness that usually comes with a Puerh, instead this earthiness is more like damp wood and dry tobacco, with a faint note of cocoa. As I continue to sip, I notice a smoothness, slightly buttery, and it’s really quite delightful.
One of the very best Puerh teas I’ve tasted yet! This one gets two enthusiastic thumbs up, and a big recommendation from me to anyone who has tasted Puerh and disliked it … this is one for you to try. Also, if you were a coffee drinker and like me, have found that you need to steer clear of it, but do sometimes still miss the taste of the roasted bean, try this!!! You’ll love it!
Creamy Eggnog Tea from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Creamy Eggnog is part of our holiday series that encompasses a number of holidays from different religions. Many people might not think of eggnog as their number one choice for a Christmas flavor but Eggnog is particularly important in my family’s tradition of celebrating Christmas. Eggnog always marked the beginning of the Christmas season and was the last thing we would drink before we would try to go to sleep Christmas Eve. As a child, getting any sleep Christmas Eve would have been a miracle. There was always so much excitement and anticipation building. Creamy Eggnog pairs our buttery Organic Huangshan Mao Feng with a rich creamy eggnog flavor. The tea and flavor work well with each other and neither overshadows the other. This tea is sweet with a heavy cream and eggy quality. Add a little brown crystal sugar and the tea becomes extremely creamy, rich, and very much like eggnog. Some vanilla notes become pronounced and so do the egg notes. We added safflower for a touch of red for a festive Christmas colored tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
OH goodness … this is so good. So creamy and delicious – you’d swear you’re drinking something incredibly sinful and fattening, but, it’s not.
The dry leaf is a simple yet beautiful looking tea with the curly green tea leaves and just a few red safflower petals to add a pretty holiday look. The aroma has a strong vanilla tone that smells so sweet and creamy. My mouth started watering before I even started the tea to brew.
The brewed liquid smells much more like eggnog. It has a custard-y note to the fragrance, with an almost egg-y kind of scent. And I like that I am tasting what I smell … a very egg-y, custard-y kind of flavor that is distinctly eggnog. The flavor of the Organic Huangshan Mao Feng comes through nicely, and there seems to be a very pleasing balance between tea and eggnog taste.
I’ve tried a couple of different eggnog teas, and I’ve enjoyed most of what I’ve tried, but if I had to choose the best that I’ve tasted thus far, this one would be the absolute best. Butiki Teas never ceases to amaze me with their ability to create amazing flavored teas.
Really, all that’s missing for me with this eggnog tea is a touch of nutmeg, because I always like to grind a little bit of fresh nutmeg to top my eggnog. But, I think that can probably be easily remedied if I were to grind a bit of nutmeg into my teapot before the tea brews. Just a wee little bit, enough to add a little bit of warmth and delicious nutty flavor to the cup.
Yum. Just YUM!
Grapefruit Dragon from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Grapefruit Dragon has an Organic Dragon Well base that originates from Anhui, China. At the beginning of the sip, the grapefruit is almost immediately noticed then the mellow sweet marine notes of the green tea appear. Towards the end of the sip, more intense natural grapefruit notes produce a slight tartness that tingles the tongue. The grapefruit flavor most resembles pink grapefruit or perhaps a gentle white grapefruit. With a little brown crystal sugar the grapefruit flavor is much sweeter and juicier with only minimal tartness and somewhat resembles a Grapefruit Brulee but sweeter.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was really happy when I learned that Butiki Teas recently introduced a grapefruit flavored green tea to their collection! I’m so fond of the flavor of grapefruit + green tea, which is actually kind of funny to me, because I don’t regularly eat grapefruit. I like it alright, but, I wouldn’t say it’s one of my favorite fruits … or even one of my favorite citrus fruits. But, the tangy, bitter flavor of grapefruit seems to marry so well with the sweet, grassy tones of green tea – something that I discovered a couple of years ago when I visited the Tahono Chul Park in Tucson, Arizona.
Oh my goodness, I so loved that place, I was ready to move there. I don’t know where I would have slept in the park, exactly. Perhaps someone should make a park like that in Portland. Yes, I think it would be a perfect addition to Portland!
Butiki Teas has nailed the grapefruit flavor here perfectly! It is tart and tangy and even a little bitter, just like a true grapefruit! I can feel the tingly sensation on my tongue in the aftertaste that is similar to the way my tongue feels after eating grapefruit, or drinking grapefruit juice. It truly tastes as though someone squeezed a liberal amount of fresh grapefruit juice into a cup of Dragon Well tea!
And let’s not forget that we’re drinking tea … and I’m happy to say that the flavor of the Dragon Well tea is there too. Dragon Well seems a good choice for the base, it is sweet and a little vegetative, and offers a pleasing broth-y texture and a lightly buttery taste to the cup. The sweetness from the Dragon Well softens the taste of the grapefruit in a very appealing way, so that the true nature of the fruit is intact but, some of the sweeter tones can also be enjoyed.
These two flavors have a good balance. Neither flavor attempts to overwhelm or overpower the nuances of the other. I can taste the many subtleties of the grapefruit, as well as those in the Dragon Well.
Refreshing and zingy, this grapefruit green tea is even BETTER than the grapefruit green tea that I enjoyed at Tohono Chul Park!
Zhen Qu from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Zhen Qu originates from Yunnan, China and has downy black and gold curly leaves. This lightly malty tea has wonderful honey notes that linger and mingle with floral, chocolate, and pecan notes. Our recommended steep time produces a well-balanced tea and is less dry but we also recommend trying this tea at longer steep times for a more intense flavor.
Ingredients: Chinese Black Tea
Recommended Brew Time: 3 minutes
Recommended Amount: 1 level teaspoon of tea for 8oz of water
Recommended Temperature: 212 F (boiling)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
As soon as I added water to my cup I could smell sweet honey notes and a malty, almost smoky aroma. I knew this was going to be an amazing cup! The water had not even settled into the cup yet and these aromas were so instantly present.
Once steeped I got a better whiff of something I had thought I noticed when I first poured the water onto the dry leaf. It was in there with that initial aroma I already described but I had held back on stating it as I thought maybe my mind was playing games with me. Hey that happens a lot! It is this wonderful wine like aroma! Yes like a delicious merlot! The flavor does not disappoint! While I do not get a wine like flavor – no alcohol flavor – there are some elements in this tea that have wine like notes. Sweet, and yet somehow savory, just lightly smoky but not like a lapsang souchong smoke at all, nutty, and a light grape note. This is not an ordinary tea!
While I do taste the chocolate note within this tea which is so nicely balanced by the floral note what stands out more to me personally is how this tea is like a very fine wine with deeply earthy notes. Not earthy like a pu-erh however, but earthy as in the way the tea plays with the nuisances of the soil it was grown in, again, like a very fine wine.
As the tea cools some the floral note becomes more pronounced but it is so delicate to begin with that it is nice when it peeks out more.
This is truly one of those teas I could have many times before I discover all it has to offer! I am so thankful that I have got to sample this tea and it will go directly onto my shopping list!
