Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
CASTLETON MUSCATEL is one of the finest muscatel teas that we have come across this season. This tea has been made from selective leaves that come from PURE CHINA BUSHES at an altitude of 6200 ft above sea level which is ideal for the MUSCAT FLAVOUR.
When this tea is steeped for 3 mins it gives a very SMOOTH MEDIUM GOLDEN LIQUOR which has a rich fruity aroma. With every sip, you get a very rich fruity flavour and it leaves a ‘twang’ of mint in the pallets. A perfect cup to make your mornings delightful.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The moment I removed my brew basket from my cup I could smell the distinct muscatel aroma in this Castleton Muscatel 2nd Flush from Darjeeling Tea Lovers. My mouth watered in eager anticipation for that first sip. Even though this is not the freshest Darjeeling, since I got it as a sample from one of my SororiTea Sisters, and have had it tucked away for awhile now, it is still delicious! The muscatel flavor is simply divine.
As my SororiTea Sister LiberTeas said it has such a crisp flavor almost a snappish like flavor to it. Like biting into a fresh juicy grape with a thick skin, you get that POP like flavor in the mouth! Perfection! The taste is lightly sweet which I prefer to refer to as naturally sweet, just as nature intended fresh fruit to taste, this tea exemplifies that perfectly! I can’t believe I have not made any of my own purchases from Darjeeling Tea Lovers, but I need to sometime soon.
After looking at their website, I am seeing some of my favorite Darjeeling and some I have yet to try, all in one place, it is like a smorgasbord of Darjeeling, my eyes widened in excitement just browsing the site! Seriously I am having to hold myself back from placing an order until I sip down some of the teas I already have in my stash, plus saving for college for my daughter in the Fall is a bit more pressing right now.
Regardless, if a tea from Darjeeling Tea Lovers from their 2012 harvest, which has been haphazardly stored this long tastes this good, I can’t wait to try some of the fresher and better stored teas!
As for this tea, well this tea, and me, will be spending some precious time alone with a good book, in the sunshine, while it lasts, both the sunshine and the tea.
Premium Sencha Green Tea from Aiya
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Aiya
Tea Description:
Premium Sencha is one of the most prized Sencha teas available in Japan.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Premium Sencha Green Tea from Aiya is easily the freshest Japanese Sencha tea I’ve ever had the pleasure of tasting! The freshness is due to the fact that Aiya’s teas are packaged in sealed tins. Not just a closed tin, not even just an airtight tin … but sealed … like a tin can. You know, the kind where you pull the ring and peel back the lid. Aiya takes the freshness of their products very seriously!
And while I might have been skeptical before popping the ring and peeling back the seal … after smelling the tea inside the tin and more importantly, after tasting it … I’m a believer! This stuff is fresh! The aroma smells like a combination of freshly cut grass and kelp. Not just “freshly cut grass” but the scent of the air as I mow the lawn. As in JUST cut grass. That is to say, it smells very fresh.
While it smells like a cross between grass and kelp, it doesn’t taste so much like these two things. There are grassy notes, yes, and perhaps even the faintest kelp-y note, the overall flavor is much more like steamed green veggies. A distinct “green” taste.
It is sweet, and there is a savory quality to it too, and I’m finding this contrast to be very satisfying. It has a brothy kind of taste and texture, and it makes for a soothing beverage. As I continue to sip, I start to notice an astringency to the tea, it is more of a “tangy” sort of astringency rather than a drying astringency … there is almost a citrus-y quality that goes along with it.
I’m loving the complexity to this tea … each sip brings with it a new discovery. It’s a wonderful journey in a teacup – and I expected no less from Aiya. I’ve always been so impressed with the quality and the flavor of their teas, and they are a company I feel good about recommending to all my readers!
Pineapple Upside Down Cake from Della Terra Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Della Terra Teas
Tea Description:
Pineapple, check. Brown sugar, check. Creamy butter, check. Delicious cake, check. What do we get… Pineapple Upside Down Cake. This tea starts off with a delicious tea base, and finishes off with a rich pineapple, brown sugar and creamy cake taste. Absolutely one of our owners personal favorites!
Ingredients: Black tea, pineapple bits and flavor, cream flavor, cherry bits*
Allergens: contains dairy.
Suggested brewing tips
Serving Size: 1 level tsp./6oz serving
Water Temp: 210°F
Steep Time: 2-3 minutes
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I really can’t believe I have not reviewed Pineapple Upside Down Cake from Della Terra Teas yet! I absolutely love this tea. It is one of my top five favorites from Della Terra and let me tell you it is darn difficult to come up with a top five because they are all so very good! This tea is also one of my stash perma teas too. I always have to have some on hand.
It is so yummy, so sweetly perfect. When I first tried this tea, back when it was first released by Della Terra Teas, I remember being worried it would be too pineapple flavored. Not that I mind a pineapple tea but I really was not looking for a tropical flavor in Pineapple Upside Down Cake. I was not disappointed! I wanted a cakey tasting tea and oh boy this is it! This tastes more like cake flavored tea than any tea I have tasted that was supposed to taste like cake. The pineapple is juicy and sweet but not so overpowering that it takes on too much of a tropical flavor. There is a honeyed note or a syrup like note to it that reminds me of the drippings from sugared pineapple. The aroma is mouthwatering!
This is a very sweet tea so don’t fault it for that but it also is not cloying and does not have a lingering sickly sweetness in the mouth. Another thing to love about this tea is the number of steeps you can get out of it. I was able to get six steeps from this leaf before it began to lose any flavor!
I am always impressed with Della Terra Teas and I am even more impressed by their customer service and amazing deals they offer on their Facebook page.
Genmaicha from The Persimmon Tree
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: The Persimmon Tree
Tea Description:
Genmaicha green tea, also known as “poor man’s tea” is a great choice for bold flavor. This earthy infusion of organic loose-leaf sencha and toasted rice kernels pairs perfectly with savory snacks and Asian meals, and has just enough caffeine to pick you up after a long day.
Ingredients
Organic Sencha Green Loose-Leaf Tea, Roasted Rice Kernels
Characteristics
Bold, Organic
Flavors
Earthy, Grassy
Caffeine Content
Low
Steep Temperature
175˚
Steep Time
3-5 mins
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Genmaicha from the Persimmon Tree, One of my favorite teas! There are different levels of “roastiness” in genmaicha this is not one of the roastiest that I have tasted but it is well balanced and quite lovely. Genmaicha is a “go to” tea for me really anytime, but always when I can’t decide on what to steep. Genmaicha always satisfies. I love sencha, and I love the nutty toasty flavor that Genmaicha has to offer. Call it poor man’s tea if you must, I feel rather lavish when I sip on a cup!
The mouthfeel is creamy, buttery, and fresh, with that lovely sencha flavor that I can’t resist. The rice kernels are plentiful too, and I like that! This is also a very forgiving tea for a green tea, it takes to an over-steep quite well if you are prone to forgetting about your steeping tea. Not that I ever do that, (yeah right).
Today I needed something to center my mind. I have had a crazy busy week, missing one day of reviewing entirely (sorry about that), so today I just needed to get focus back, and ground myself. This tea was calling to me and it is doing just what I needed it to. I also find that Genmaicha helps curb hunger pangs and will really get you through to meal time.
I have sampled a lot of Genmaicha teas and this is one of my top three favorites due to its high roasted flavor. Yet, even with its high roasted flavor, the sencha is the star of the show! You do not lose one bit of the wonderful sencha taste. It also just fills my room with earthy, fresh aromas and is way better smelling than any room spray!
I love a tea company that does good. You can read all about the Persimmon Tree here. I personally love this excerpt:
We, at The Persimmon Tree®, contribute to the sustainability of our planet. Where possible, we use recycled and recyclable materials in our shipping supplies and printed materials. Using recycled products increases the demand for recycled material, which increases the rate of recyclability. Our passion is to instigate and experience positive change through the simple things, and we encourage our customers to do the same.
A very good Genmaicha, a very good company!
Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
Produced in Tianmu Mountain(天目山), Lin’an County, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang, China
Harvest time: March 8 – March 10, 2013
One bud with one or two leaves
Dry tea is shaped straight and pretty
Soup presents tender a yellowish green color, tastes sweet and brisk; aroma lasts long in the middle and back part of the tongue.
Fresh aroma with chestnut flavor
Low caffeine (less than 10% of a cup of coffee)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I received my samples of the new spring teas my first tasting selection to sample was Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green from Teavivre. The aroma is strong, awakening, and as fresh as a tea can smell. The dry leaf is so pretty and bright green. The flavors range through various steepings from nutty, buttery, vegetal, and salty, but every single steep brings forth the freshest flavors you could imagine.
When steeped properly there is absolutely no astringency and of course no bitterness. There is also a lovely light sweetness to the flavor that can be detected at different levels through the various steeps. The color is very light so do not be tempted to over steep this lovely tea. Take your time with it and let the flavors be gently caressed out of the leaf with shorter steep times which will provide you a longer and more relaxing brewing session. Green teas like this one from Teavivre are deserving of your time and focus. I do not recommend a tea like this for an out the door on the go tea. You can do that if you wish, but I feel it is cheating the tea from providing all that it has to offer and really just cheating yourself.
Some teas are great for an on the go pick me up and get me going for my day ahead tea. This Long Jing however is a relaxing, meditative, sip and consider type of tea that will rock your world in a totally different way if you give it time and allow it to. I find that while this tea is refreshing, and so lightly fresh, it has a brothy mouthfeel, verging on creamy in some steeps. I love it when a tea can bring out both feelings, light and fresh, yet thicker in the mouthfeel, as it is an unusual combination.
Teavivre brings us so excellent offerings in their new spring line, and I am really amped up to try them all but today I shall sit with this tea, looking forward to many steeps to come. It is absolutely lovely. See all of Teavivre’s Spring Teas here and learn how you can get samples of all of them for free!