Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Whispering Pines Tea Company
Tea Description:
Glen Arbor Breakfast is our classic, everyday breakfast blend. On those days that you just need a cuppa to get moving, this is the tea for you! This robust tea was inspired by riverside morning walks in the summertime with the perfect breeze whispering through the pines and the birds singing cheerfully. Glen Arbor Breakfast brews a smooth, sweet cup that can be taken plain or with sugar and cream, boasting a pleasant light stringency at the end of the sip and lasting aftertaste of cedar wood and malt! Second and third infusions morph into a beautiful earthy and malty cup with cooling eucalyptus notes!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I was excited to try this Glen Arbor Breakfast Tea from Whispering Pines Tea Company. I had been reading some positive tasting notes written about this tea on Steepster, and I was interested to experience the tea for myself.
And since the description above suggests several infusions with this tea, I decided to take it through it’s paces. My first infusion proved to be a hearty, robust cup of tea. A bit more astringent than I expected – I wouldn’t categorize this as “light” astringency, it’s more of a medium astringency in my opinion. I do get the aftertastes of cedar and malt, and those are quite pleasant, indeed.
The flavor is rich and earthy. There are hints of smoke to this – not a strong, smoky presence, but, enough for me to envision a walk through the woods on a crisp spring or autumn morning.
My second infusion … wow! I am tasting those eucalyptus notes as promised in the above description. It’s a really cool and crisp sensation, and it evokes more of those thoughts of a morning jaunt through the woods.
This tea really should be infused at least twice, I think, because I’m finding the second cup to be more rewarding than the first. The first was good – certainly! But the second is even better. The body is not quite as hearty, but, what it loses in bold, bracing flavor, it gains in complexity. The astringency is lighter here, and the taste is smoother. I love the malty flavor and earthy tones of this cup.
This is a little different from most breakfast type teas that I’ve tried – I can definitely taste the “woodsy” influence to this cup. While I know that the teas of Whispering Pines Tea Company are inspired by Northern Michigan, as I sip them, I feel more connected with the beautiful Pacific Northwest that I call home. This tea has a very rugged, outdoorsy sort of taste to it. I like it a lot!
Black Currant Flavored Black Tea from Georgia Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Georgia Tea Company
Tea Description:
When you open the package, you smell the fruitiness from the currants – perhaps a dark raspberry fragrance. As you take your first sip, you sense a slight tartness which is the contribution of the fruit, but it doesn’t overpower the strength of the black tea. Perhaps add some rock sugar to soften things a bit. By the way, currants are not grapes or raisins. Grapes grow on vines and are sweet. Currants grow on bushes and are tart. Research has discussed the high antioxidant level of currants and several studies indicate currants may delay onset of Alzheimer’s.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Nice! Georgia Tea Company has nailed the currant flavor in their Black Currant Flavored Black Tea, and they managed to do it without sacrificing the flavor of the black tea base.
The black tea here is rich and smooth. There is some astringency to this cup – a moderate astringency – and the dry, tangy sensation from the astringency plays to the currant notes. The tea doesn’t taste bitter, and there is an undertone of sweetness … almost a raisin-y sort of sweetness. Again, I think that this plays to the currant note in a favorable way.
The currant is a strong flavor, but, it doesn’t taste artificial. It’s rather tart, and I’m not always a big fan of tartness. However, I think that there is enough sweetness from the tea that the tartness doesn’t overwhelm my palate. This tea is definitely more tart than sweet, but, I like the contrast between the sweet notes of the tea and the tart notes of the currant.
The overall taste is reminiscent of wine. And as it cools, this tea becomes even tastier – it makes an excellent iced tea! However you choose to serve it, it makes a really nice cup of tea – one of the better currant teas that I’ve tasted over the years.
Golden Monkey Black Tea from Georgia Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Georgia Tea Company
Tea Description:
Black tea from the Fujian province of China. 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. The name comes from its unique appearance: the leaves resemble monkey claws. If you enjoy full-bodied teas with an abundance of flavor, we urge you to give this tea a try. It has a very smooth flavor and brews a golden brown.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is LOVELY! Of the many pure black teas out there, if I had to choose but one to drink for the rest of my life, I think that a Fujian tea like this Golden Monkey Black Tea from Georgia Tea Company would definitely be in the running for that one tea.
I love the rich, full flavor of this Golden Monkey. It has a strong malty tone with notes of cacao and a delectable caramel-y undertone. Mmm! It is sweet and delicious (and cozy!) but it also has the kind of GUSTO that I look for in a black tea. It’s invigorating enough to get me going when I’m looking for that nudge to wake.
The astringency here is what I’d categorize as mild to moderate. There is a slight – very slight! – bitter intonation to this cup which suggests to me that perhaps I brewed it a tad too long (3 minutes) and so it is advisable to watch the steep time with this tea. Next time, I’ll go with 2 1/2 minutes for a smoother cup.
Overall, a very delicious cup of tea.
Rose Oolong Tea from Zi Chun Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Zi Chun Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Our tea master produces our popular Rose oolong by scenting oolong tea repeatedly with fresh rose petals. The outcome is a fresh tasting oolong with a pleasant rose aroma.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Rose Oolong Tea from Zi Chun Tea Co. is absolutely lovely! Rose scenting is not normally something I associate with Oolong teas, usually, I can find rose scented black teas with no problem but rose scented Oolong teas are less common.
But I love the sweetness and slight sharpness that the rose imparts on the soft, silky Oolong tea leaf. This Rose Oolong does not have an overpowering rose essence, it’s delicate and allows for the beautiful complexity of the Oolong to emerge.
This Oolong is a greener Oolong, so the flavor is buttery and floral, and the floral notes of the Oolong marry well with the rose tones, making this an obviously floral Oolong but, I like that I’m not overwhelmed by floral notes as I sip this. I don’t feel like I’m being beaten over the head with flower bouquets!
I brewed this the way I would normally approach an Oolong – in my gaiwan. After a quick rinse, I infused the leaves twice (first infusion was 45 seconds, and the second was 60 seconds), and combined the strained liquid from both infusions into one cup. My second cup was produced similarly, using infusions 3 and 4, and the third cup was comprised of infusions 5 and 6.
The first cup was the most delicate tasting of the three cups. It had a soft, silky, buttery texture and a soft buttery taste to go with it. There were distinct floral notes. There is a barely-there note of vegetation in the background. Mostly with the first cup, what I taste is sweet floral notes that are a little sharp around the edges but not in a perfume-ish way, buttery notes and an undertone of honey-like sweetness.
The second cup had a much creamier undertone than the first cup, the soft and silky notes turned into a very rich and creamy taste and texture. The rose remained the top note, but, it is somewhat softer now, offering a very pleasant, subtle rose note that is much more subdued in this tea than you might experience from a black Rose Congou. I like the rose like this … I like it a lot! There are hints of nutty background notes, and a very enjoyable sweetness that rounds out this cup.
With my third cup, I noticed the flavors starting to meld. The nutty background notes previously mentioned are a little more prominent, but, the rose still remains the top note. A sweetness that reminds me of honey. There is less creaminess now, more floral notes, and a hint of what tastes almost like a tart apple in the distance.
This tea is a must try for the rose tea fans out there. I really like how different rose tastes with Oolong tea as the base!
Mao Jian Green Tea from Little Red Cup Tea Co.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Little Red Cup Tea Co.
Tea Description:
Our Green Mao Jian Tea is pure whole leaf organic Chinese tea, Fair Trade certified and sublimely drinkable. A marvelous tea to accompany you throughout a busy morning and into the early afternoon, a tea both for the dedicated tea consumer and one for the casual tea drinker as well.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I just came in from a massive marathon of holiday shopping, and I can’t think of another tea that revitalizes me quite the same way as a sweet, lush green tea like this Mao Jian Green Tea from Little Red Cup Tea Co. There is something just so … enlivening about green tea that seems to re-energize my drained “batteries.”
Mao Jian is one of my favorite green teas, because it has a sweet, vegetal flavor that is very fresh tasting but without a bitter grassy taste. This is more like a young, spring-green grass note that evokes thoughts of the dew that might form on the grass early in the spring mornings in a grassy field. There is a slightly savory quality to this cup as well that hits just after mid-sip. Savory … yes. Bitter? No.
And this is an excellent Mao Jian. It tastes light and refreshing, and I can feel it revive me as I sip after what has been a very long day of shopping. I like that this tea is organic, I like that it’s fair trade … and I like the way it tastes and how it’s giving me a much-needed jump-start!