Taylors of Harrogate

This is a straightforward chamomile tea. Difficult taste to describe but if you have brewed it in the past you are likely already familiar with this flowery, herbacious and slightly sweet infusion.

The Taylor’s reminds me of my mother, who religiously bought Celestial Seasonings teas for me in my youth. This was perfect for teatime in the late evening as it is more of a health benefit with no caffeine. I would have no qualms sharing a cup of this tea with her so as far as I am concerned it passes the test to be enjoyed. Chamomile is not my favorite, but for the nostalgia if nothing else, I must say it is fine.

10oz out of tea for one pot/mug.

Light, aromatic, and pleasant. Fairly mild and one-dimensional, which to some can be a good thing. So light I would not dare add anything as it would likely just overpower.

No bite on the peppermint but it’s an herbal infusion, so more of the complimenting notes are a balance of herbs instead of blasting your senses all at once. Less like enjoying a peppermint hard candy but more like smelling a peppermint plant from a few feet away.

It’s all right, and for someone who is after this light taste I could recommend it. As they say though, it’s just not my cup of tea.

Let’s be honest, you probably know what Earl Grey tastes like.
How does this iteration stack up? Splendidly.

Bagged, 10oz, 5:30 steep time. This particular steep was perfect, with distinct black tea through the sip and a bergamot rushing in to match it.

I used to drink Twining’s Earl Grey by the box. It got me through college when I just didn’t want coffee. So this was my base for all other Earl Greys.
If I’m being honest, my palate is slightly numb. With a poor sense of smell I am used to overpowering my senses with strong cigar smoke, deep black coffee, and dominating cologne.

Earl Grey is not about that, this is a light and refined blend with balance and a little bite on the finish. I learned from good tea to treat it with tact and it will reward with more nuance and enjoyment.

This is a solid cuppa, and I can’t help but heel happy to serve guests a pot when they ask for this timeless classic. At the end of the day when the curtains draw and it is just family/friends/company around, that is what Earl Grey is to me.
Well done Taylor’s, you’ve stood up to the expectations of memory with a great blending of a classic taste.

Honestly I could not imagine chamomile and vanilla together. Yeah, an herbal and sweet notes. Weird.

But result is better than I have expected. Although when it comes to chamomile, I rather like the golden buds of it than “hay” – stems, leaves et cetera. There wre maybe one or two flower buds in whole big bag. But in taste it was like classsic camomile tea with sweet aftertaste. But the vanilla was not too strong, so it was not annoying.

This was again a nice surprise. I expected much more sweet notes and annoying chamomile taste. Now, let’s do some school stuff and, let’s celebrate Day of fight for liberty and democracy (and international student’s day).

My friends in Britain got me hooked on this tea- it’s a good, sturdy, strong cuppa tea. It does brew fast, due to the CTC method of the leaves, but it a way it’s a great thing too so I don’t have to wait too long for a good cup of tea in the morning if I’m in a rush. 5 min and it’s good to go! I have noticed it is very bitter if I oversteep it past 5 minutes. Generally it doesn’t bother me as I add milk to balance out the astringency. All in all, very good!

It’s peppermint; not too dank. I drank it during our office move this week, since most of my loose leaf tea and infusers were being held hostage in a crate for the best part of two days. I’m still not sure how I survived.

Also, I think I might be back. It’s been a while!

I ended up finding this tea at a place called “The English Gardener Gift Shop” at a market local to me. I heard from r/tea group that it’s a nice strong black tea, good for slow mornings. It’s great with milk and/or sugar. I don’t recommend it being iced. I can’t really describe the taste, it’s just a very nice smooth black tea. Not as “complex” in flavor as Twinings English breakfast, but very good. I use 1 teabag from anywhere from 8 oz to 12 oz. Anything bigger gets two.

Deeply not a fan of this one; had that sour grassy/lawn clipping note that I associate with bad/cheap green tea and a rather floral/perfume-y strawberry. Not really any vanilla; flavours didn’t mesh up together. Nope.

I really liked this one; it reminded me quite strongly of DAVIDsTEA’s Rose Lemonade black tea (but this is herbal) but a little bit sweeter and more distinctly rose flavoured; so basically it had the two qualities that I wanted a little bit more of in the DT blend! Still tangy/lemonade-y though. Yum yum!

Loved this tea. The rhubarb is so fresh and real… despite there being no rhubarb in it, just rhubarb flavouring.

Brewing it hot was lovely, the longer it brewed the more the colour of the tea transformed through shades of rose gold and peach. Then the aroma develops from tart and almost sour to sweet, vanilla, rhubarb and crumble. The flavour is spot-on. Rhubarb is not the sweetest, friendliest fruit – it’s got a bite, an edge. This tea has managed to perfectly balance the tart vibrancy of rhubarb with sweetness. It should be sour and suck in your cheeks, but the sweet aftertaste rushes in and saves it.

I greedily drank the whole cup. Definitely going to buy this fruit tea again. Full review and a few pictures: https://www.immortalwordsmith.co.uk/taylors-of-harrogate-sweet-rhubarb-tea-review/

I got a small box of this bagged tea from the San Francisco Tea Festival. Being a CTC English Breakfast tea, and one that is, well, actually a known British brand, I went all-out tannin-wuss on my steep and only steeped it for a minute and a half. But it still looks a proper reddish-brown color to me, so…

The aroma is like malt, crisp autumn leaves, and a bit like cherries and cinnamon. The flavor of this is actually very nice, the short steep was probably a good choice for me since this isn’t too strong, though I imagine had I left it steeping very long it would’ve tended that way. I’m getting a lot of the notes that were present in the aroma — malt, autumn leaves, and cinnamon spice — but there is also a lot of lemon citrus and burnt sugar. It’s suprisingly good for bagged tea with quite a few flavor notes. The astringency after the sip is mild to medium, not as strong as I was expecting. It isn’t my favorite breakfast tea, but I certainly like this one more than many I’ve sampled, and I’m glad that it has a flavor that I can take plain just fine, at least if I prepare it with a brisk steep.

Tasted like artificial strawberry. Vanilla was definitely “gentle” as described, to the point of being barely detectable. Good for a strong artificial strawberry flavor, but crosses the line to “too sweet” and puckery at times. Tasted 11.2018.

Steeped 4 min. Out of the packet – bag smells sour, even “off.” Smells sour after steeping, tastes warm like it’s trying to be fruity. Definitely can isolate the rhubarb taste – net necessarily a good thing without the assistance of other flavors like berry helping it along. Tasted 11.2018

Last freebie from the San Francisco International Tea Festival.

So this is a proper British cup? Robust with dark wood, dark toast and malt. Hefty seems like a good way to describe how it feels in the mouth. Not too astringent but what is there only effects my tongue. Two bags in a big mug had with a waffle and berry breakfast is fueling a top-to-bottom cleaning of the bathroom and hanging of 6 loads of laundry on the clothesline. Pretty solid without milk and sugar but not something I’d go for often.

Accidentally brewed this one at low temp – I was trying to manage sixteen things at once and didn’t think to see if the kettle was /done/ before pouring the water over – but it doesn’t seem to have ruined it, thank heavens.

This tea is all smoke. There’s a rich, malty black tea underneath billowing flavour-clouds of that perfect Lapsang Souchong smoke…which is exactly what I wanted. 10 oz of it feels a bit excessive (this brew is usually a 6 oz cup for me) but for something to sip on while I wake up it’s a pretty good fit.

What can you say about bagged chamomile?

It’s a decent chamomile bag. Fresh, not woody. On the Chamomile Flavor Spectrum®, this one lies more toward the earthy end than the apple end. Good enough to drink again.

I wasn’t feeling very well tonight as I have a head cold in full swing, so I decided to have some tea in hopes hat it would make me feel a little better. Whenever I’m feeling ill I try to have a steaming cup of tea to ease me, if only a little. I will say this tea has helped a little to alleviate the pressure (head colds are he WORST). Just being able to smell the smoky fragrance helps me feel better, though I’m not sure if it’s a placebo effect or if it is really helping lol

I wasn’t originally a fan of smoky teas, however this one is oddly pleasant. The smokiness is not overwhelming and gives me a feeling of oneness with the its earthy, woodsy flavor. It is not sweet in the least so if that is your preference then this is not a tea you would enjoy.

The third tea of the Platinum Collection.

This can be read about it on Taylors of Harrogate´s website :
“Love Assam? Meet one of the very best – a sumptuously rich, sweet and strong lightly rolled tea from the celebrated Halmari tea estate. It’s picked during a six week window during the second flush season and we’ve secured a small batch for the UK. It makes a bright russet infusion with aromas of honey and caramel and a beautifully malty flavour with hints of raspberry jam.”

This is indeed a lovely Assam, rich in taste and at 4´steeping time not a hint of bitterness to be felt. A drink to enjoy at any time of day, definitely moreish (if you can say this of a tea ;-) ). Maybe the better of the 3 teas in this collection of rare teas, at least in my opinion.