This tea is “a black tea made with leaves from the same green-tea cultivars used to make traditional sencha,” which gives it a distinct flavor. I’d compare its flavor to oolong teas, which typically straddle the black-green divide.
It does have that mossy, nutty flavor that I associate with green tea, but a base like an evergreen forest in the spring. It’s vegetal, yet rich at the same time.
It’s the tea equivalent of Loki’s outfit.
*Smolder*, am I right?
And that’s how I feel about this tea. It’s kind of subversive, like Loki. “I took a green tea and I made it black! HAH! So there, Odin! I don’t CARE that I’m adopted!”
Except that, like Loki, when I drink this, I know it’s not really a black tea. Little things give away its true nature. Just like we knew, deep down, that Loki was too magic and otherworldly to be a part of that family.
You should try this tea. It’s a tricky, delightful limbo.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Mellow Monk
Description
Aso Black™ is a special presence in the world of tea — a black tea made with leaves from the same green-tea cultivars used to make traditional sencha. The flavor is brisk and clean, with a green-tea-like sweetness and a smoky, nutty taste, finishing with overtones of nutmeg. If you like, say, English breakfast tea, you will be positively enchanted by this tea. So order up some scones and brew up a pot of Crimson Grove™.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Harmony Tea from Mellow Monk. . . .
It’s been a little stressful in my personal and professional life lately and today I just needed a tea to bring everything into perspective for me. Every once in a while I’ll grab a tea and just sit down, tune everything out, and just enjoy what I’m drinking. . .and that is exactly what I did wtih this tea-Harmony Tea from Mellow Monk.
Harmony Tea is a genmaicha that is sadly sold out right now. I’ve always been a huge green tea fan and the first time I had genmaicha, my love for green tea grew even more. The wonderful buttery richness that this tea offers just relaxes me and really gives me that “zen” moment.
I brewed this tea up according to the recommendations that were provided and in just a minutes, I had myself a lovely pale yellow liquor that I knew would help me move my day along.
This green tea is perfectly named Harmony because it really delivers a perfect harmony of flavors. The rich buttery smoothness with a subtle hint of vegetal towards the end of the sip. Throughout is a lovely roasted toasted goodness that makes you warm to your toes. Oh the perfect tea to enjoy when you need to wind down and really take a moment for yourself or share with others.
I can sometimes have pretty stressful work days and its nice to take a moment to realize that everything will be ok in the long run and this tea is helping me get to that point. The calmness this tea instills in you is something that if you are a green tea fan, you have to try!
Sometimes the simplest flavors are the ones that truly hit the mark.
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: Mellow Monk
Description
Harmony Tea™ begins with a premium sencha, similar the artisan’s Monk’s Choice green tea, to which is blended just the right amount of flavorful roasted brown rice, to strike a perfect balance between the nuttysavoriness of the rice and the rich, herbaceous artisanal guricha-style tea, so that one flavor doesn’t mask the other. Even the guricha’s overtones of melon and berry are preserved in the overall flavor profile.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Crimson Grove™ Black Tea from Mellow Monk
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Mellow Monk
Tea Description:
Crimson Grove™ is a special presence in the world of tea — a black tea made with leaves from the same green-tea cultivars used to make traditional sencha. The flavor is brisk and clean, with a green-tea-like sweetness and a smoky, nutty taste, finishing with overtones of nutmeg. If you like, say, English breakfast tea, you will be positively enchanted by this tea. So order up some scones and brew up a pot of Crimson Grove™.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Really NICE! Having tried less than a handful of Japanese black teas, I can tell you that this is a real treat for me to be able to enjoy this Crimson Grove™ from Mellow Monk. All of the teas that I’ve tried from Mellow Monk have been very enjoyable and they are the purveyor of one of my all-time favorite green teas. And this Crimson Grove™ is yet another memorable tea from them.
The flavor is sweet and warm. As the description above suggests, it has the smoky notes and the notes of nutmeg. Nutmeg is my favorite spice, so, I’m loving the nutmeg-like notes here. It tastes a bit like someone grated some fresh nutmeg over my cup of black tea!
It’s a very flavorful cup. It’s not an overly aggressive black tea, though, so I wouldn’t turn to this tea as my first cup of the day for that vigorous shake awake that I look for when I want that jump start at the beginning of the day. This is smooth and sweet, with a lighter body. This is something I’d want mid-day for that little pick-me-up to keep me going.
Another awesome offering from Mellow Monk. If you’re looking for exceptional Japanese teas, this is the place to shop for them!
Blissful Buds Green Tea from Mellow Monk
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Mellow Monk
Tea Description:
Blissful Buds™ is a mecha, or bud tea, made from young buds and shoots. The aroma is pleasantly herbaceous. The flavor is full and deep, with an apple-like sweetness and overtones of berry and a lightly tangy aftertaste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mellow Monk is a company that offers one of my all-time favorite green teas, so when I had the opportunity to try another tea from them, I was very excited. And while this Blissful Buds Green Tea from Mellow Monk is not quite as amazing as their Top Leaf, it’s still quite delightful to sip.
Then again, it shouldn’t even be compared to Top Leaf, because they are two different teas. Top Leaf is a Honcha tea, and this Blissful Buds is a Mecha tea, which is comprised of the young buds and shoots of the tea plant. The leaves are so tiny, and the color is so deep and green. The color reminds me of a Japanese Sencha, but these leaves are even finer in size and shape than a typical Japanese Sencha.
The aroma of the dry leaf reminds me of spring … like the smell of the fresh, newness of spring as all the plants, trees and even the grass begins to sprout new life. It smells vegetative, but not like cut grass or steamed veggies like so many other green teas smell, this has that new, spring “greens” smell to it.
The flavor starts out sweet and lush, and by mid-sip, I notice a bitter undertone. Not a “oh, I oversteeped the tea” kind of bitterness, but a savory bitter greens kind of taste which actually seems to complement the sweetness. It has a brothy kind of appeal to it, like a cup of chicken soup would have – restorative … invigorating!
A very enjoyable cuppa, and certainly different from the usual cup of green tea. I like that, and I like this for being different!
Yuzu Dream from Mellow Monk
Tea Type:
Green Tea
Where To Buy:
Mellow Monk
Product Description:
Yuzu Dream™
Green tea with sun-dried yuzu peel.
Origin: Aso city, Kumamoto, Japan
Aroma: Fresh earthiness of green tea with a yuzu fragrance rendolent of orange blossoms
Taste: Sweet, tangy, and earthy, with citron flavors and notes of orange blossom and rose.
Yuzu Dream™ is an exquisite blend of first-flush fukamushi tamaryokucha and dried peel from yuzu, arisinally grown on small orchards. The tamaryokucha (“curly green tea”) is of the same quality as our award-winning Top Leaf™. Both the tea and yuzu are specially selected and blended by the tea artisan-grower, for an experience that is unique in the world of tea. Must be brewed to be believed!
More about Yuzu Dream™
In Yuzu Dream™, the creamy mouthfeel and semi-sweetness of the artisanal green tea harmonizes beautifully with the citrusy tang, orange blossom fragrance, and rose notes of the yuzu. Yuzu fruit is grown on small, independent orchards in Kumamoto, where the ripened yuzu are hand picked and the peel is specially sun dried into nuggets bursting with flavor. The grower–artisan who crafts the tea in Yuzu Dream™ also personally selects the yuzu peel — using the same demanding standards he applies to his own teamaking — and blends it in perfect proportion with the tea.
Tasters Review:
Oh my – those were the first two words that came out of my mouth when I tried this! Mellow Monk is KNOWN for their awesome straight-up GREEN Teas and this is their first ‘flavored’ one…I have to say…PERFECT First Attempt!
This aroma – DRY – is AMAZING! You have your wonderfully fresh and crisp and clean Mellow Monk Green Tea with Sweet-Juicy-Citrus-Yuzu! WowZA! The dry aroma – alone – is enough to put me in a trance!
BUT…then…
I added the water!
The infused aroma is unbelievable, too! It’s somewhat the same but with a few minor additions! I can now pick up on a Creamy-Vanilla-HONEY type aroma…somewhat like a Creamsicle! Then there are hints of blossoms/floral notes! What surprise! What WONDER!
The infused liquor is a yellow-green with a slight grey-ness trying to hide throughout! I can now smell a bit of lima bean and/or spinach as well!
I’m totally LOVING the aroma both dry and wet!
YUM! The flavor…is…totally dreamy! Completely creamy! Slightly Green-buttered-veggies! Citrusy and honey-esque! This is better and better the more I drink it!
Unbelievable! I can’t compare it to others! The green tea base is perfect! The Yuzu is perfect! The texture, aroma, everything…honestly, I can’t imagine this ratio and recipe being changed or tweaked!
My goodness! WOW! You seriously HAVE to try this for yourself!
