I love a tea with a good theme, so Vizzini’s Brew from Geeky Teas was a joy to drink and write about. Vizzini refers to the character from the Princess Bride film, you know the one who was always shouting: inconceivable! His brew was made with a black tea from the Fujian province of China.
When brewed, this blend was exceptionally smooth, both smelling and tasting reminiscent of creamy hot cocoa. With a chocolate scent and silky mouthfeel, this brew was far sweeter and more comforting than the grating voice of its namesake.
Beneath the sweet buttery-vanilla cocoa flavors, there were hints of honey-roasted nuts, reminding me of honeybush teas. The range and potency of these delicious flavors were impressive, knowing that this was an unflavored black tea.
I think the real cleverness in choosing this blend for Vizzini lies in its brewing notes. Geeky Teas said that this type of tea can be brewed strong or light according to your preference, and it will maintain its tasty cocoa notes without getting bitter. I couldn’t help but imagine brewing two mugs side-by-side with different brew times and tasting them to compare.
It made me think of Vizzini’s infamous “pick your poison” scene in the Princess Bride. A clever man would brew a strong tea… Light or strong: which would you choose? Just remember: never go against a Sicilian when death– I mean.. a good cup of tea– is on the line!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Geeky Teas
Description:
Black tea from the Fuijian province of China. Can be brewed strong or weak. As you wish.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Chinese Five Spice from 52Teas. . . . .
I love spicy teas, so when I saw that 52Teas has a special spiced blend for the Chinese New year, I had to try it. Chinese Five Spice from 52Teas is one of my favorite chai blends I’ve tried in a while. In the dry leaf, you can smell the Szechwan peppercorns, adding a little heat and a little tingly, earthy ground pepper scent.
The peppercorns are well-balanced with the sweeter spices like anise and ginger. The orange peels are specifically mandarin oranges, and there’s something distinct in the citrus flavor that makes it feel different than the usual orange notes. Finally, there are also plenty of cloves that add their own sweet-spice, almost making the dry tea leaves have a fragrance like Dr. Pepper or Moxie soda.
Brewed, the black tea really shines and shows off its quality, tippy tea leaf origins. Somehow both smooth and tart, it makes the pepper and orange pop on my tongue but without any spicy after-burn on my throat. There is still a very full-flavored scent in my mug with cloves and ginger, but it’s not sweat-inducing spicy in taste, very drinkable. No honey or milk needed (though you can always add them if you love it), the blend is well-balanced right out of the bag.
I ordered the sample size but I’ve already finished it, so I’ll have to put the full size bag in my shopping cart soon. This is a tasty, unique chai for spicy tea lovers everywhere.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Description:
Since China is a very important part of what I do (since most of my tea comes from China!), I decided it was important to do something to celebrate the ringing in of the Chinese New Year this year (The Year of the Dog)! I started with two black Yunnan teas – a Yunnan Black Gold and a tippy Assamica grown in the Yunnan Province – and added dried mandarin wedges and the whole spices of a Chinese 5 Spice blend: Cinnamon, Cloves, Star Anise, Fennel and Szechwan peppercorns. Then I added just a wee bit of ginger to enhance the peppery notes just a little. The result is a cuppa that is a little bit sweet, a little bit savory and a little bit spicy! It’s a really nice, round flavor! The mandarin orange flavor is bright and adds a nice touch to the spices here. It’s kind of like an orange flavored chai – Chinese style! I’m really happy with how this one came out – the spices are strong enough to be inviting but don’t blow out the taste buds with the spice – and the mandarin is really lovely: sweet and juicy!
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Toasty and Floral: Keemun Black Tea from The Tea Spot. . . .
Fine quality, unflavored black tea always makes me feel like a serious tea aficionado. So I brewed up a cup of Keemun black tea from the Tea Spot and put my semi-professional tea-hat on. Keemun tea is a well-known black tea from China. The leaves are dark, with medium length and medium twists in shape. No extra blossoms or fuzzy buds, just deep, rich tea leaves. Dry, in the bag, the tea smells earthy and musky, very complex.
The Tea Spot describes this tea as having notes of “smoky pine, orchid, crushed apple.” I was very intrigued. Brewed, the keemun has a much sweeter taste alongside the damp earth tones, which must be the “crushed apple” flavors coming through. The earthiness is not as strong or overwhelming as sour pu erh tea, but more lush, like wet leaves or freshly-turned soil. There is a touch of the “orchid” floral notes in the scent of the tea, but I don’t notice it as much in the taste.
The more I drink the tea, the more a toasty, almost-caramel aftertaste starts to appear. And despite all my talk of savory, masculine flavors, there is a hint of a brighter note, more reminiscent of breakfast teas, with a lighter, almost lemony tone.
There is a lot going on in this tea, and lots of details to savor and enjoy. For mornings when you want to feel sophisticated and expand your tea palette, you can’t go wrong with Keemun from the Tea Spot.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Tea Spot
Description: A splendor of toasty flavor and aroma! The most refined and perhaps the most well-known of Chinese black teas, this Keemun is handpicked in Anhui Province. This tea has an indescribable flavor, with the most delicate hints of smoky pine, orchid, crushed apple and a rich, sweet body.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Golden Monkey from Tea N Joy. . . .
Tea ‘N Joy’s website claims that this is a super-high-quality tea, and I tend to totally agree with that assessment. In fact, I’m tempted to place an order right now just so I can continue enjoying a premium-quality cup of this tea on a regular basis. <3
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea N Joy
Description
Golden Monkey Tea is hand-processed each spring with a careful plucking of only one leaf and one bud. It is among the finest Chinese Black Teas available today. A rich, full-bodied Tea. The name comes from its unique appearance: the leaves resemble monkey claws. Sweet and very ‘nosy’ with the aromas of: savory roasted apples, cocoa and spice notes that linger as you sip. Rich, coating texture and very smooth, soft mouth-feel. Delicate, almost indistinguishable astringency.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Hot Cinnamon Spice Tea by New Mexico Tea Company
I steeped 1 tsp of this tea for 5 minutes in one cup of 212 degree water.
First of all, this tea isn’t kidding when it says “hot.” (Currently I’m able to smell the cinnamon flavor through the bag even though I double-bagged it, which means it has about the same strength as lapsang souchong). You can clearly see, when measuring it out, that there’s tons of cinnamon in the tea leaves. The ingredients list says it has natural and artificial flavorings too in addition to the three types of cinnamon–I didn’t know three types of cinnamon existed, did you? But apparently they do.
I don’t expect the black tea flavor to come through much at all at this point (it’s probably mainly there for caffeination purposes.)
It smells very spicy and strong as it steeps, too. After steeping I note that it has a very dark brown, fittingly cinnamon-ish color. It’s nearly opaque and has bits of dissolved cinnamon in it. Kind of like spiced cider. It also has a faintly sweet cider-ish smell, but of coursewithout the apple factor. (It does have clove and orange peel though, so that’s probably why it’s reminding me of cider.)
First sip: yes, it’s quite sweet and quite spicy. And no, I don’t really taste the black tea at all. There is a slight bit of astringency, but I’m not sure if it’s from the black tea or from the cinnamon. There’s a depth to the cinnamon flavor, which is probably caused by the blending of several types of cinnamon and cinnamon flavorings to create a more complex cinnamon blend rather than one that hits you all in a wave. It’s very effective, too. It’s like a tour of cinnamon.
With milk (no sugar needed as it’s already sweet): it’s creamier, of course, but the milk doesn’t really bring out the tea flavor the way it usually does with spicy teas (though maybe there’s a hint). The excellently warming, invigorating cinnamon flavor isn’t quelled by the milk either, though perhaps a bit tamed.
Overall I like this tea very much both with milk and without. I’d recommend trying it both ways to see which strikes your fancy the most.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: New Mexico Tea Company
Description
.This blend brews very sweet even though no sugar is added. A cinnamon lover’s dream come true. A combination of hearty Chinese and Indian black tea and invigorating cinnamon.
Many cinnamon teas have a watery aftertaste due to the use of low grade teas. The black tea here has the stamina to last through the whole tasting process
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
