First Class Teas

Last year’s first flush darjeeling is starting to lose some of its fresh sweetness, but it’s still one of my favourites. On this occasion I brewed it too long on the first brew and not long enough on the second one, so I was slightly disappointed. I’ll have to drink it again tomorrow and do it better that time!

I love it… sweet, fresh… Just perfect for every moment of everyday life!!!

Light yet complex, Sikkim teas are similar to those produced just to the south in the district of Darjeeling. Sikkims have a pleasant tannin level that is often accentuated by a natural fruity note.

A well-made tea, with an abundance of white leaf buds. The cup has floral notes and muscatel nuances. This particular type rivals many of the top Darjeeling selections and shows the full potential of Sikkim teas.

No milk or sugar needed.Be gentle in terms of portioning…

By the way, i enjoyed it together with a Chinese ‘mooncake’.That is a rather sweet pastry that gets mainly produced for the Chinese mid-autumn festival.The taste of the cake and the tea are a perfect match…!

All gone. What will my cupboard do without this lovely blend of darjeelings?

I don’t often drink darjeeling but as I have said before, I really love this blend. I am sitting down in the living room watching the final of the masters snooker tournament, and it’s lovely and homely. I have spent the weekend with friends from university, who I used to wach snooker with. I have had this type of tea for quite a few years and drinking it reminds me of late nights watching the snooker with a slight feeling of panic that exams were coming up and I couldn’t really afford to spend an evening until 12.30am watching wo middle-aged men puzzling over safety shots. Still, it was very absorbing and it still is.

This is one of my late-night teas, which means it’s black and I tend not to have milk. It tastes caffeine-licious so it shouldn’t be late-night tea. It just is.

I love this tea. (As I remember) It’s from the german (I think) blenders Haelson and Lyon and is one of the few teas that I think geniunely goes quite well with or without milk although I tend to have it without. It’s cheap, very tasty, and my housemates love it, so it’s a winner in my book

Had a Ginger Black tea (of unknown brand) recently at Falafel garden in Kyoto. Since I never used to drink much black tea I would guess it might even been my first. The flavour was subtle but still the gingery bite came through. I prefer brewing my own fresh ginger and a lot more stronger but nevertheless it was a nice new tea experience.

very light (to my taste) and a pleasant mild flavour

i love this one .. sweet & malty

i like this

Oh, deep and meaningful Assam, how I love your malty sweetness…

Particularly satisfying PuErh flavour. Best on third brew this time using Yixing teapot and boiling water for about 30 seconds.

New delivery from Thiashola, as good as I always remembered it. Fiery, edgy flavour, with a crisp clear flavour, and golden orange cup. Mmm.

Really sensual tea. Mmm.

A celebration of winning the Ashes test match at Lords – that’s a cricket reference for all you USA readers ;-)
Yummy, now onto the third brew from my new Yixing teapot.

Onto the fifth brew for the day: I like it stronger that some, so it’s getting a bit light now, but still very enjoyable.

Mum drinks this all the time. She likes it thick and black, with sugar – really rich flavour. Yum.

Finished off the dusty remains of the bulk bag this morning – unsaleable from a visual perspective, but a lovely warm, sweet, hay nose and mildly edgy flavour owing to the crunched leaves. Can’t wait for the new pickings to arrive.