Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Grey’s Teas
Tea Description:
Our Afternoon blend – Well chosen China and Indian teas are blended to give a light, fragrant liquor with a little smokiness. Once you have tried it you will not drink an average tea during the afternoon ever again! Can be drunk with or without milk.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I first open a package of tea, I do what many of “us” (tea drinkers) do, I inhale deeply to take in the aroma. And when I did just that with this Good Afternoon tea from Grey’s Teas, I noticed a hint of smokiness and a rugged earthiness, evoking thoughts of the smells I might encounter while hiking through the woods.
After brewing, the smell that wafted out of my tea pot and now out of my tea cup is smoky with hints of pepper. I imagine this is what it might smell like if I were to burn a bunch of peppercorns and pine wood in the fireplace.
But the flavor is quite surprising, because it isn’t as smoky tasting as the aroma lead me to believe. Yes, it is smoky, but, it melds quite nicely with the rest of the cup and doesn’t stand out as strongly as the aroma led me to believe it would. I taste the faintest hint of pepper as well. This is a very robust, bold kind of blend – much stronger than I expected for an afternoon blend. Other afternoon blends I’ve tried tend to have a lighter taste, like a Darjeeling. This tastes more like Lapsang Souchong (or possibly a strong Keemun) meets Yunnan and Assam for a power lunch.
All that said, I find this to be quite enjoyable. Different than I expected, but still, I am enjoying it. The smokiness is not overwhelming, it manages to marry well with the other flavors of the blend to become part of the complexity rather than oppressing it to the point where the complexity is lost – if that makes sense.
And as this tea cools, I find that it becomes even more enjoyable. It’s not cold, it’s still hot, it’s just not straight from the tea pot hot. It’s had a chance to cool just slightly and I notice the caramel-y undertones emerging, and an almost creamy note also come forth, which is really quite lovely when it melds with the smoky overtones. It’s really wonderful.
This is a powerful afternoon blend – for those days that you need something stronger than the average pick-me-up!
Craigmore English Breakfast FOP from Deckan Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Deckan Tea
Tea Description:
A delicious black tea from the Nilgiri Mountains of Southern India that is very fragrant, fruity and ideal through out the day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This tea surprised me a little. When I read the label and saw “English Breakfast” on there, I thought “ok, a breakfast blend, probably a blend of Assam and Ceylon.” I figured I was in for the “usual standard fare” when it comes to English Breakfast blends. But upon closer inspection, I noticed that this doesn’t appear to be a blend at all. It appears to be a pure Nilgiri, from the Craigmore Estate, no less!
And wow! This “breakfast” tea is wonderful. It has managed to strike that balance between an invigorating “get up and go” type of tea and a “slow down and enjoy the amazing flavor” kind of tea. It is rich and robust, delicious, malty, a little earthy, and possesses that highly prized biscuit-y kind of quality, but still has a bracing, stimulating effect to help wake and refresh you.
I prefer most of my breakfast teas hot, but I think that this would be absolutely delicious served iced too. When served hot, it takes the additions of milk (or cream) and honey (or sugar) quite well, but is also delicious served straight with no additions. When served iced, enjoy it with a sliver of lemon or perhaps a sprig of mint.
An unexpectedly wonderful English Breakfast!
Plum Spice from Kally Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Kally Tea
Tea Description:
Nilgiri region black tea, blended with cinnamon chips, to give it a nice spicy bite. But we didn’t stop there, give it a plum flavor to add a depth of fruitiness as well as safflowers to balance it all into a comforting aroma and there you have Kally Tea’s presentation of “Plum Spice”.
Ingredients: Black Tea, Cinnamon Chips, Safflowers, Cinnamon and Plum Flavors.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! This tea reminds me of the holidays!
It smells amazing. The cinnamon is very strong in the aroma, it smells warm and cozy! The plum comes through – although a bit more gently than the cinnamon notes – providing a sweet yet spicy, fruity fragrance that is absolutely enchanting.
The flavor is a bit surprising. After smelling all the cinnamon and fruit notes, I wasn’t expecting the first flavor to hit my palate to be that of Nilgiri tea! That’s not a bad thing though – not at all. After all, I’m drinking TEA … not fruit punch. I’m happy to be tasting the tea, and I’m thrilled that Kally Tea focused on the tea in this blend, and less on the flavors.
I mean, sure, the flavors are important, because if I wasn’t wanting to taste plum and spice, I wouldn’t have selected the flavor, right? I would have just purchased pure Nilgiri tea. And the flavors are there! The point I was just trying to make is that the tea is the main focus in this blend, and that is just how it should be!
After the rich, bold flavor of Nilgiri touches the palate (malty, slightly earthy), I notice the sweet, caramel-y undertones of the Nilgiri, and the delicious spicy-sweet cinnamon. The cinnamon is a spicy/sweet type of cinnamon, but it isn’t an overpowering flavor, so it doesn’t overwhelm the palate with spice. It is warm, comforting and delicious.
The plum comes through as a sweet-tart kind of plum taste. The plum notes hit the palate at about mid-sip, weaving their way in and out until the aftertaste, where the plum notes are strongest. I taste PLUM now. YUM!
This blend is nicely balanced with its sweetness and spice, and well-rounded flavor of the Nilgiri. Very enjoyable. I find it’s better to allow this one to cool slightly, as the flavors begin to pop about three or four minutes after I poured the cup. This one is also quite delicious iced!
Green Mashdana FOP from Deckan Tea (aka Deckan Coffee Co.)
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Deckan Tea
Tea Description:
Green tea from the Nilgiri’s of Southern India. Very rich in anti-oxidants with a smooth, subtle smoky aroma. Only use half a teaspoon per 8 oz cup of water and steep for one minute. Enjoy it plain with a squeeze of lemon drops, hot.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
When I opened this package and peeked inside, the tea leaves looked a little bit like a Chun Mee tea as well as a bit of a Gunpowder Green tea. If you were to somehow marry the two tea types, this tea would look like the offspring of the two.
It possesses a smoky aroma, a bit smokier than some Gunpowder green teas I’ve encountered, but it isn’t as smoky as say, a Lapsang Souchong or even a Caravan blend. The smokiness melds with the essence of the green tea leaves in such a way that it comes off as a savory smoke that is really quite enticing. The fragrance of the brewed tea is quite similar, but, it might even be a tad smokier than the dry leaf.
The flavor is incredible. It is smooth and sweet, but also quite savory. In fact, I’d say that the savoriness of this tea outweighs the sweetness, but, the way the two flavor elements meld together is really quite delightful. It tastes like a mild green vegetable that has been smoke-roasted, which brings out the sweetness of the vegetable but at the same time imparts a savory quality that tantalizes the taste buds.
It isn’t what I’d call grassy, though there is some characteristics of this tea that can be considered “grassy.” So to explain my position on it, I’d say that it is more savory than a sweet grass taste, and not at all that bitter green grassy kind of taste. It is an interesting savory grassy taste that is quite unlike anything I’ve tasted before. And I am really liking it.
This is a very different approach to green tea, quite unlike a Chinese green or a Japanese green, and definitely one that I’d recommend to those who like green teas and are looking to expand their horizons a bit.
Winey Keemun English Breakfast from Grace Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Grace Tea Company
Tea Description:
This extra slow-fired tea is of a rare and extraordinary quality. Our most well known and famous blend has an unusual depth, body and color that can be likened in description to a fine wine. A uniquely crafted tea blended with varying China, Formosan and Indian teas, Winey Keemun follows the traditional formulation of an English Breakfast blend. It’s one of our personal favorites.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The theme for this month’s Steepster Select Box is “Around the Clock” and features three teas to enjoy at different times … depending upon what time of day it is. As Steepster puts it:
Tea is a loyal companion. Always at your side, ready to infuse any occasion with flavorful, liquid love. Able to pack a punch or hug you close like a warm blanket, there’s a cup that fits any time of day: morning, afternoon, and night. So keep the kettle going for these three teas that will carry you from sunrise to sunset.
Obviously, this Winey Keemun English Breakfast blend from Grace Tea Company represents the morning tea. And what a lovely tea to select as the morning tea! It is bold, rich and delicious. It “packs a punch” but at the same time has a comforting flavor to it. In other words, it is invigorating but it makes me feel good about getting that burst of gusto.
This dark, full-bodied black tea introduces itself with a sweet start, somewhat fruity – like a well-aged wine. During the sip, I notice hints of leather, malt and earth, and a smoky tone in the background. Keemun tea usually has a variable degree of smokiness … some are very smoky while others are on the lighter side, with mere hints of smoky flavor. This tea is on the lighter side of smoky but I don’t know if that is because the Keemun itself is lightly smoky or if it is the fact that it is a component of a blend that includes several different teas, and the simple fact that this is not a straight Keemun tea may be the reason for the light smokiness.
The tea finishes sweet. There is some tangy astringency, but I notice no bitterness. Perhaps this is because I steeped it for just 2 1/2 minutes in my Breville One-Touch which seems to be the magic brew time for black teas such as this, but either way, I am enjoying the lack of bitterness here. The aftertaste is a light, fruity taste that is somewhat reminiscent of a wine-like aftertaste.
A rather enjoyable tea for the morning, I think this would also make a nice tea to enjoy in the early afternoon, perhaps as a pick-me-up, or even just a cup to savor in the company of dear friends.
Two more teas to explore from Steepster’s Around the Clock series, I hope that the teas they have chosen for afternoon and evening are just as enjoyable as this Winey Keemun English Breakfast.