Tea Type:
Black Tea
Where To Buy:
TeaLeafs
Product Description:
Origin: India, Sri Lanka, Kenya – Ingredients: Luxury Black tea – Good flavor tempered with flowery character and malty notes. 50%+ Ethical Tea Partnership, 50%+ Fair Trade Tea.
Tasters Review:
It had been a while since I had a Queen Mary tea and the last time I was in the Buffalo area I stopped by my new favorite store front…TeaLeafs. It was just a quick stop to get more of their beloved Fig Formosa Oolong that both hubby and I LOVE. But I bought two other teas, too! This was one of them! TeaLeafs’ Queen Mary Black Tea is bold, a bit brash, malty, and a semi-crusty floral type flavor to it especially in the aftertaste. The more it cools at room temp – it gets even more malty…both in taste/flavor and texture. This is a beautifully bold tea to wake up to! This was VERY MUCH worth the drive – which for me – was about 2 hours!
Irish Breakfast Green Tea from Culinary Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Culinary Teas
Tea Description:
Irish Breakfast Green is full bodied with the ‘umpf’ of black tea but the gentleness of green tea. Enticing toasty hint of flavour. Massively Irish.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
I don’t usually turn to a green tea as a breakfast tea. I usually want the kind of gusto a black tea provides, but this green tea packs a swift kick! Yes, the “kick” is a bit milder than what I’d get if I were drinking a strong Assam black tea, but I could see grabbing this tea as a breakfast tea (even though I’m drinking this as an afternoon tea at the moment.) It has a very satisfying flavor.
Yes, this is a blend, but that doesn’t make it complicated to brew. I grabbed my Kati Tumbler – really, this is one of the greatest tea brewing systems that I own! I turn to it frequently because it works great for teas that I have just enough for 1 serving of. And since I’ll be sharing this sampling with my SororiTea Sister, TeaEqualsBliss, I want to make sure I have enough left to send her way!
I used 1 bamboo scoop of tea for 12 ounces of hot water. I heated the water to 180°F and I steeped the blend for 1 1/2 minutes. And wa-lah! A lovely green tea!
This really is lovely! A very flavorful green tea blend. I knew when I brewed the tea that the teas were from China, Japan and Kenya, but I wasn’t sure which teas from these regions were used int he blend. From looking at the dry blend, I would guess that the Chinese tea is a Gunpowder. It’s a little harder to distinguish which teas from Japan and Kenya were used, but I think that the Kenyan is the larger, rolled green tea (see the photo above) and I think that the Japanese tea is a Houjicha (or a roasted Bancha type tea). Of those three guesses, the only one that I’m pretty confident about is the Gunpowder.
I like the way the flavors come together. The sip starts out sweet. Right away I start to pick up on the toasty, nutty flavors. It’s not an overly vegetal/grassy tasting tea but there certainly is a “green” sort of taste to it that’s a little vegetative. There’s a hint of buttery flavor. After my palate becomes acclimated to the nutty, buttery, and vegetal notes of the tea, I start to notice floral notes. There is also a fruity note that I taste that is vaguely reminiscent of melon. In the distance, I pick up a light “smokiness” to the cup that is quite intriguing.
Overall, I found this tea to be a rather enjoyable cuppa. If you’re looking for a way to start your day with a green tea, this would be a great choice. I wouldn’t add milk to it the way many do with a breakfast blend – I think that milk would really overwhelm the tea.
Plus: Milk + Green Tea usually = ICK. So best not to try that.
Instead, try this one straight up. It’s got a really nice flavor without any additions at all. If you must add something to your breakfast tea, try a dollop of locally harvested, raw honey (added health benefits with that!) or even better: a thin slice of lemon or lime!
Kenya Hand Rolled Purple Varietal Oolong Tea from What-Cha Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong (Purple)
Where to Buy: What-Cha Tea
Tea Description:
A unique oolong unlike any other we have tasted before, made from the purple varietal tea plant which gives the tea a unique plum taste and purple tint. A rare and unusual tea which is not to be missed.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! What a delightful purple Oolong!
I steeped this the way I would usually steep an Oolong tea, using my gaiwan. I “eyeballed” a measurement of leaves. These leaves are so long and wiry that it would be difficult to measure them using my bamboo scoop. So I poured out an amount that looked like it would be a bamboo scoop into the palm of my hand and then I put it into the bowl of my gaiwan. Then I heated water to 180°F. I poured in just enough of the heated water to cover the leaves and I let this sit for 15 seconds – to awaken the leaves – and then I strained off the liquid and discarded it. Then I steeped the leaves for 45 seconds for the first infusion and added 15 seconds to each subsequent infusion. I combine two infusions in my teacup – so my first cup is infusions 1 and 2, and the second cup is infusions 3 and 4 … and so on!
The brewed tea takes on a purple-ish color and has a sweet, floral aroma with notes of fruit. There is a strong flavor to this tea: tasting primarily of stone fruit and flower. Just as the above description suggests, there is a strong and distinct plum note. It is sweet with notes of tart.
The texture is lighter than a typical Oolong. It doesn’t have that buttery mouthfeel like you might experience from a greener Oolong. This doesn’t taste or feel “creamy.” It tastes strongly of fruit. The fruit notes bring a lot of sweetness to the cup and there is a slight “sugary” sweetness to the cup as well. There is a moderate astringency to this tea – I can feel the insides of my cheeks pucker a bit at the finish. But don’t let that dissuade you, because I find that the sensation enhances the fruit notes.
The plum notes were even more focused in the second cup. Still sweet with notes of sugar cane. The astringency is about the same in this cup as it was in the first.
The third cup turned out to be a bit different than the first and second cups. This cup is not as astringent as the first cup – this is much smoother from start to finish. The plum notes are softening somewhat now. Still lots of fruit flavor, I’m noticing the flavors starting to become unified. This is slightly less sweet and a little lighter. I’m picking up on a slight creamy note now and an ever so slight vegetative note. Neither of these new flavors are very strong – they’re off in the distance. Floral notes are slightly more noticeable this time too.
This is a really delightfully different Oolong – one I’d recommend to those who are looking for something just a little off the beaten path!
Kenya Silver Needle White Tea from What-Cha Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: What-Cha Tea
Tea Description:
Our Kenyan Silver Needles hits the usual notes usually associated with good quality Silver Needles while having its own unique characteristics not usually found in other Silver Needles. Kenyan Silver Needles is on the fuller side of the Silver Needle scale and features lovely soft tannins, making it perfect for those who find the more traditional Silver Needles too subtle and overly delicate. Our Kenyan Silver Needles represents a chance to try one of the great Chinese teas grown in the unique terroir of Kenya.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Most Silver Needle teas tend to be on the delicate side and this Silver Needle would be considered “delicate” if it were being compared to a green or black tea, but it’s much stronger in flavor than many other Silver Needle teas I’ve had.
But I brewed it the same way I’d brew a Silver Needle: I used my gaiwan and heated the water to 170°F. After a 15 second rinse, I steeped the first infusion for 2 minutes. I added 15 seconds onto each subsequent infusion. And one thing you’ll find with white teas – they’re ready to keep on steeping! You’ll easily get five or six infusions out of this tea – perhaps more!
The first infusion was sweet and hay-like. I also got some lovely melon notes as well as a crisp, floral note. And even though the approach of a white tea tends to be subtle, I find so many wonderful layers of flavor. I think that’s why I enjoy them so much. True, they’re not the type of tea that will get in your face with the flavor. Instead, it offers its love sweetly and gently.
The second infusion was even sweeter than the first. A little less like hay and a little more like a sweet, juicy melon! Lovely! I am noticing very little to no astringency with this cup. I did notice a wee bit of astringency with the first infusion … not much, but some. Now, not so much.
The third infusion was very much like the second – sweet, melon-like, very little astringency and very few vegetal/hay-like tones. Later infusions slowly started to become less fruit-like and I started picking up on more of the hay-like flavors again as well as hints of an airy floral quality. Imagine the “taste” of the air when you’re walking through a field of flowers. Something like that. Really beautiful and wonderful to experience as those tastes washed over the palate. I started to notice a loss in flavor by the fifth infusion. It still had a lot of flavor but not as quite as much as the four that preceded it.
This is a fantastic Silver Needle. If you’re one who tends to avoid Silver Needle White teas because you find them to be too soft in flavor … don’t give up on Silver Needle teas completely – just widen your search to include this Kenyan Silver Needle! I think you’ll find it much more flavorful!
Kenya Silver Needle Purple Varietal White Tea from What-Cha Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White (Purple)
Where to Buy: What-Cha Tea
Tea Description:
A delicate tea with sweet hints and a gentle taste of peony flower.
A completely new tea which has just been released to the world; Kenyan purple varietal silver needle white tea represents the latest development in purple varietal tea from Kenya. It is a very subtle and delicate tea which requires the greatest of care and experimentation to unlock its full potential.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
These leaves are beautiful. They are so long that they almost look like pine needles (they don’t smell like pine needles though!) They are darker in color than the typical “Silver Needle” – they have more of a purple-ish hue than a pale green or silvery color. If I look closely, I can see very fine, short hairs on the leaves. The aroma is soft with notes of flower and a hint of vegetation.
To brew this tea, I grabbed my glass tea cup. I added 2 pinches of tea to the cup (these leaves are much too long to be measuring with a scoop!) and then added the water, heated to 175°F. I steeped the first cup for 3 minutes and added 30 seconds onto each subsequent infusion.
I don’t often use this cup except for the times that I brew a “blooming” tea or other tea that I want to watch steep, and this was one that I thought would be interesting to watch because the “silver” (they look more purple than silver!) needles are so long and elegant looking, I thought that their dance would be something cool to watch. Unfortunately, they didn’t really dance much. But they still produced a delicious drink!
The liquid is very pale. It almost looks “white” – not an opaque white but a very clear, transparent, slightly off-white, almost yellowish colored liquid. It almost looks like water, it’s so pale! I’m happy to say that it doesn’t taste like water!
The flavor is quite delicate though, especially in this first cup. It is sweet and floral. The floral notes hint at sharpness, but don’t quite get there because the overall tone of the beverage is so delicate. It’s quite lovely and soft. It’s one of those types of teas that you want to take some time to drink so that you can allow it to take you on a journey. So many layers of flavor. A soft, pleasant mouthfeel. No astringency noted in this first cup.
My second cup was much stronger in flavor than the first. Still a rather delicate tea, I am picking up on more flavor this time around. The floral notes are less sharp and have melded with the other flavors. I’m noticing a sweet, creamy flavor this time. Still sweet and floral, but the creaminess softens any of the floral sharp notes. At the tail, I pick up on a light fruity note that tastes of peach and orange.
A third cup? Sure! These leaves just keep on going. This cup seemed less creamy than the previous one. I could pick up on some nutty tones this time. The sweet floral tones are still there. I’m picking up more fruity flavor this time but it’s less distinct. In the second cup, I tasted distinct notes of peach and orange but this time it’s more like an indistinguishable fruit.
As I sipped on this tea, I tried to compare it to other Silver Needle teas I’ve had. This has less of a “hay like” quality to it, and the fruit notes are different. Usually, I get like a delicate melon-like flavor from a Silver Needle – but here this is more like peaches and citrus. I don’t get so much of that “fresh, airy” refreshing quality from this tea, instead, I taste more of a creamy, sweet, nutty flavor.
Sure, it’s different. But that’s what makes it so good! I love it when I discover a new tea like this!