Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Two Leaves and a Bud
Product Description:
A Japanese tea-master created a Hojicha for two leaves and a bud like we’ve never tasted before – naturally sweet, young stems of the tea plant yield a smooth, round, almost textural feel in the mouth. It is medium-bodied with a complex but approachable flavor.
Taster’s Review:
I simply love Hojicha tea – I love the roasty-toasty flavor, the hint of smokiness, and the smooth flavor and texture of it. But what I love most about Hojicha is that sweetness that comes from it. It has a natural sweetness to it that is almost like honey – a note that is further enhanced by the smooth mouthfeel. It’s a little like sipping on a thin honey.
This Hojicha from Two Leaves and a Bud is really delightful. Actually, I am thinking that this is more like a blend of roasted Kukicha and Hojicha, because mostly what I see in this blend are stems and twigs, with a few roasted tea leaves in the mix. But, since I love both Kukicha and Hojicha, this tea combines two great tastes that taste great together! (um… that sort of sounds like a commercial for a candy bar, doesn’t it?)
I love Hojicha served hot or iced. Hot, it is quite good served neat and clean with no additions (although it is very nicely paired with some of these crackers from O Pair), and iced, it is positively refreshing with a squeeze of lemon!
This Hojicha is divine – It is sweet and savory at the same time. For those out there who resist green teas because they don’t like that grassy taste – try Hojicha. The roasting of the tea leaves and stems removes the vegetative taste that is often associated with green tea, and replaces it with a lovely caramelized quality. Delicious!
Blackberry Fig from The Jasmine Pearl
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Jasmine Pearl
Company Description:
Organic, light-bodied Darjeeling black tea blended with organic anise seed and sweet fig and blackberry natural flavors. This fragrant and gently sweet tea is excellent in the mid-afternoon, perhaps accompanied by a scone.
Ingredients:
Indian Black Tea*, Anise Seed*, Natural Flavors.
*Organically Grown.
Taster’s Review:
When I found this tea at a Made In Oregon store, I knew I had to buy it! First of all, I love supporting local businesses. Second, after smelling the anise, blackberry and fig aroma of this tea (they had little “smelling” jars on the shelves so that we could experience the fragrance before buying!), my mouth began to water – right there in the store! Finally, as if I needed further persuasion (I didn’t), it was a flavored Darjeeling tea!
I mean, seriously… how could I go wrong with this tea?
This is a delightful afternoon tea. I say “afternoon” tea, because, well, I find Darjeeling to be just a little to “light” for morning. In the morning, I need something with a bit of vigor… something that is going to help me shake the remnants of sleep and help get me going!
This… isn’t that tea. But what Darjeeling lacks in “vigor,” it more than makes up for with its light and refreshing taste. And that lightness is just right for this blend.
The muscatel of the Darjeeling complements the fruit flavors of the fig and blackberry (which seem to be more of a unified flavor, rather than two separate fruit tastes, which results in a very smooth, deliciously sweet fruit essence). The anise is also sweet… and is a very delicate note of licorice-like flavor that seems to wash over the palate throughout the sip and linger just ever-so-slightly in the finish.
I adore this tea. When served hot, it makes a great little pick-me-up to help with those afternoon blahs… and when served iced, it is perfectly refreshing and light! Delicious!
Figue Fraîche from Dammann Frères
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Dammann Frères
Company Description:
A blend of Ceylon & China teas with oriental fig.
Taster’s Review:
I love figs! And, this tea is the ULTIMATE fig tea! Absolutely the best fig tea that I’ve tasted (well, so far!)
The fig flavor in this tea is amazing. It reminds me of when I was young and living on a farm which had an amazing fig orchard. One of my fondest childhood memories involves playing in that orchard, and when I would get hungry, I’d pick a plump, ripe fig and eat it right there in the orchard – still warm from the sun! This tea, served hot, tastes so much like a fresh, warm fig! Sweet, rich and bursting with fruity flavor!
The black tea base is mild and unassuming, and I really appreciate that in this blend, because for me, this one is all about the fig. (did I mention that I love figs?) That is not to say that I can’t taste the black tea – it’s there. But it is not a strong, assertive black tea flavor. There is very little astringency and just a hint of a tannic characteristic that hits the palate in the finish.
As I’ve already mentioned, this tea is fabulous served hot – especially if you happen to like warm figs as much as I do! This tea is also makes an excellent iced tea – smooth, sweet and refreshing; the fig flavor remains strong and true.
This tea stands out as my favorite from Dammann Frères – yes, it’s really that good!
Noël en Provence from Dammann Frères
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy:
Company Description:
A blend of non smoked teas from China and Ceylon with fig, strawberry and honey, cornflower and sunflower petals, lavender granulates.
Taster’s Review:
This tea smells amazing. It possesses a very fruity bouquet: I can smell both the strawberry and the fig, with the strawberry fragrance being the most prominent. The aroma also captures the essence of the lavender in this blend, creating a lovely melange of fruit and flower that is simply a delight to experience.
And that’s just the dry leaf! The aroma of the brewed tea is even more enchanting than the dry leaf. Some of the notes of the black tea emerge as the tea brews, giving off a warm, biscuit-y scent, and when introduced with the fragrances of fruit and flower, it becomes truly irresistible!
But as I’ve said before, it’s the flavor that really matters most, and this tea delivers on flavor too. The flavor of the lavender is very pleasantly pronounced. It is very floral in taste, but somehow, the lavender in this tea tastes quite unlike any other lavender tea (or even just lavender), that I’ve encountered from here in the United States. The lavender from France is magnificent!
A pleasant sweetness washes over the palate with this tea also courtesy of the honey. The honey is not super strong, and therefore is not overly sweet, but, it is just enough to help bring out the sweetness of the fruit and flower of this blend. In contrast, there is a slight sharpness to the tea which I accredit to the sunflower petals. It makes for a unique experience for the palate.
The strawberry is also well-defined in this blend. And I don’t know if I’ve ever tasted strawberry and lavender together in a tea before… but, here, in this cup… it’s divine! The fig is also there, it is somewhat softer than the other flavors, but definitely adds its own flair to the cup. The black tea base is a very enjoyable, non-aggressive black tea, with a slight “baked bread” kind of quality to it that compliments the other flavors in this tea so well. Delicious!
This is a tea that would be quite delicious served iced, but, I think I prefer it hot. Because of the honey present in the blend, no sweetener is necessary with this tea – it has quite a lovely sweetness on its own. However, I did try it with just a sprinkling (about 1/4 of a teaspoon) of raw sugar, and found that this encouraged some of the softer flavors to reveal themselves – especially that of the fig.
A very bright, flavorful tea that would be enjoyable any time of day – another winner from Dammann Frères!