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The hype about this tea made me set my expectations high. Unfortunately, they weren’t met. At first, I found the peppermint flavour to be overwhelming, and the aftertaste to be somewhat bitter. I suspect that this was the “malty” note mentioned by other reviewers, as a product of the Chinese black tea base used in this blend. I was unable to detect any sort of chocolate flavour, which was quite disappointing as I adore dark chocolate, and wanted to find a chocolate tea to fill my cravings. As my tea cooled down, the peppermint flavour dissipated (perhaps it seemed overwhelming because of the combined potency of the smell and taste?) and the chocolate flavour became more pronounced. The underlying “malt” note was still present, which I didn’t mind as much when paired with the chocolate. I couldn’t detect any sort of spiciness to this blend, but my tolerance is quite high in that regard.

Note: I tried this in a variety of ways, but I found that I preferred it black, with sugar. The addition of milk made my stomach turn— perhaps because I let the cup cool down?

The bottom line: Peppermint fans will appreciate this, pure chocolate fans, not so much (unless you prefer your cuppa cold.)

Note: I used the bagged tea.

Apparently Twinings has changed its Earl Grey blend in the last few years. I’m inclined to agree, as some of the older reviews complain about the absence of bergamot notes. The bergamot is the overwhelming flavour in the new blend, whereas the black tea is quite weak. This makes for a useful to-go bagged tea, as it takes much longer for the black tea to noticeably over-steep and produce a bitter flavour— on rushed mornings I can throw together a travel mug right before stepping out the door, without having to worry about removing the bag in-transit.

The bottom line: a convenient, easy to make, but weak Earl Grey.