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I had to upgrade my ranking (which was already high) on this after living with it for a couple of weeks. I’m finding this blend absolutely delightful, never tiring to my tastebuds (as most flavored teas are apt to become), and it is now not only on my must-always-have list, it’s moved to #2 after Noël à Venise — both of them elbowing a couple of amazing Mariage Frères teas down just a bit (Wedding Imperial and Marco Polo) . I vote this my “most drinkable, any time of day” and “most comforting.” I’m a bit worried that after hitting upon these two in my very first order from Dammann Frères it will be diificult for them to live up to my now crazy high expectations!

Note that I’m using a generous amount (roughly 1.5 – 2 grams per 100 ml, which is maybe 2 – 2.5 heaping teaspoons per 300 ml? ), which I’m finding is a good rule of thumb for black teas for me, and going with medium milky and sweetened most of the time. It’s tastiest once it’s cooled just a bit.

And now I’m off to make my third cup of the morning. mmm.

I hate to be the first to review this, because I really don’t like it very much. It’s frustrating, because it’s almost good, but for me the coconut ruins it. And I like coconut. When I read the site description I thought it sounded like a weird combo (“green oolong tea combined with the flavours of pecan, coconut, cereal and blueberry”), but also possibly delicious, and I wanted a nice blueberry-featuring tea. But hey, guess what, maybe there’s a reason that coconut isn’t often paired with forest fruit type flavors. To me, it really is a strongly dissonant chord in the composition.

I’ve tried it hot, and I’ve tried it cold brewed, and I slightly prefer it cold. I may use it up with added cranberry to nudge it more toward a cold fruit drink, and I had a weird thought that it miiiiight could do with a bit of cinnamon, so I’ll also try it hot again with a little cinnamon stick to test that stray notion.

Anyway, it’s very possible that others will find the coconut element to be perfectly nice, which is why I don’t like to be the only voice on this at the moment!

Finally, I’d like to complain about something I’ve noticed a couple of times now: mismatches between ingredient descriptions on the Dammann Frères site and ingredients listed on the packaging. On the site, it has blueberry as the main flavor, and no mention of cranberry at all. On the packaging it lists oolong and cranberry pieces, and blueberry as just one of the arômes. This is a bit frustrating, and while I like cranberry fine, I wouldn’t have bought this if it had the actual ingredients and their clear related prominence in the site description. (I wanted a blueberry tea, not a cranberry tea)

Okay, so here’s the thing: with all the teas I have, there was one that I didn’t have that I needed — good old plain black tea, preferably a cheery, dependable, brisk but comforting British character, there for you in your times of need or times of joy, a hearty, stout companion. I actually wanted to get PG Tips, but it’s a pain in the butt to get it shipped here for a sane price, and I haven’t seen it locally.

“So, yar, but, but…” you might ask, “why order from a French tea company?” Damned Good Question! Well, I made myself a promise (which I’ve already broken) that this order would be my last (from anywhere) for several months, and it happened I was ordering from DF, and so. I mean, THEY’RE TEA PEOPLE. They know what they’re doing, right? If they called this one out of all their blends, “Anglais,” who am I to doubt their expertise?

Sadly, this so-called “Anglais” chappy really does not meet my (fairly quotidian, I thought?) expectation, and to be frank, I’m not sure a Lipton’s bag would not be better. I mean it’s not awful. I don’t have to choke it down. It’s just very, very, very meh. BUT, check this out: when trying to look up more about this Mèlange Anglais online to find out what to avoid in the future (since they provide almost no info on the order page), I discover that DF has another tea named … wait for it … Mèlange Anglais Supèrieur. Which, I guess, makes mine the de facto Mèlange Anglais Inférieur. AND it’s only 50¢ more. Gee, thanks DF. It’s not like you could have said, “psst, by the way, we also have…” or anything. Or here’s an idea: just sell the Supèrieur? It’s almost the same price? Not that I would actually trust that description at this point; it’s possible they just hate the British.

Aaaanyway. Lesson learned. Maybe don’t try to buy British tea from Fancy Frenchy French ooh-lala tea shop?

(Still, I will make an effort with this, and try different amounts and steep times, but I don’t really detect any promise in it. We’ll see.)

This is the other Dammann Frères Christmas tea I bought, and after being utterly moonstruck by Noël à Venise, I can return to earth a bit to say that this, too, is rather lovely. The site description for this tea is “blend of black teas perfumed with notes of chocolate, apricot and vanilla. A subtle and tasty blend evoking the greedy taste of the famous Sacher cake,” but on the bag, it also lists orange peel and pineapple. Perhaps it’s better I did not see that, because I might have had second thoughts — it seems a bit of an overwhelming mix that could have you searching for the tea … or maybe the exit. Not to worry, though; they don’t lie when they say this is a subtle blend. Nothing, including the chocolate, is very assertive in this tea, but all together it makes for a very tasty, refined cup that teases out a bit of all these notes without blasting the tastebuds. I’m enjoying the restrained elegance.

I must say that in my personal experience so far, I do prefer this approach to chocolate as a nuance of of the blend rather than a main attraction. With the chocolate-forward teas I’ve tried so far, I’m always wondering why I don’t just have a cup of good cocoa, or maybe a mocha, if that’s what I want, rather than a watery chocolatish beverage with some tea taste. All that said, I did hope for a bit more apricot in this, but maybe I’m wrong. As I sit here with my empty cup, the last bit of lightly lingering flavor at the back of my tongue seems to be … maybe? … apricot?

sniff, sigh, sniff, steep, sip, sip, sip … Well, hallelujah! orchestral music plays. I’ve found my “if there could be only one” tea (for now, anyway). I received my Dammann Frères package today, and I’m walking on clouds because this one seems to be made perfectly, exactly for me. Like damn royalty. ;0. I adore creamy lemon desserts, and lemon curd is heaven to me, but I was worried about this blend being too sharp, too overpowering, or single note … and it is not. I think the papaya tempers the acidity of the lemon, and the caramel toffee adds just the perfect complement of sweet smoothness and creaminess without hogging the stage. I audibly sighed with pleasure when I first opened and sniffed the package, because it smelled perfect, but I steeled myself, because I often find that with flavored teas, the aroma can be much more compelling than the brew. Not so in this case! I’m only on my second cup, but it’s wonderful with milk, and wonderful black, and I’m in love love love.

My expectations were super high for this, so it’s maybe not surprising they weren’t fully realized. I’m not even sure what doesn’t quite hit the mark, but I feel like I wanted more of a toasted marshmallow flavor here, and … more … luxury somehow. However, I think this is one to really splash out on in order to conjure the promise of the scent out of the bag, so will be trying it creamy latte style next. Already I found that I have to be extra lavish with leaves on this for my tastes, or it’s fairly underwhelming, so even though I’ve had this with milk and sweetener, next time I think I’ll do the whole frothed hot milk, honey, even whipped cream (and possibly vanilla) thing and just go totally explicit “dessert in a cup.” Having said all that, I still find it enjoyable — it’s just that I’m hoping to nudge it closer to my fantasy of what it would be like!

Ever the rebel, I’m defying convention by having this morning tea in the evening! I actually bought this because I was on a nostalgia kick and looking for something to stand in for a taste like Constant Comment, unavailable here.

This isn’t that, but it does have a strong citrusy taste, and a slight dessert flavor playing hide and seek under the zing. For me it’s a bit too acidic, and I might like it better with a little more assertive caramel or creamy note to offset the citrus a bit. It’s quite nice with milk, though, and I will enjoy the rest of the tin, but probably won’t repurchase.

Upgrading my rating a bit, and I will repeat here my update on Melbourne Breakfast, since I’m making these both the same newer way (tl/dr: More is Better!):

I’m finding I prefer much higher amounts of leaf than I had been using, so like a level(ish) tablespoon (a bit under 4 grams) for two infusions in my 300 ml cup, sweet and a splash of milk is delicious … Also pertinent: instead of using an infuser in my cup, I used a small teapot. The infuser is pretty big, but free floating then strained is better.

This has been promoted to “Will definitely buy again.” :)

Okay, getting a handle on this (and New York Breakfast), and finding I prefer much higher amounts of leaf than I had been using, so like a level(ish) tablespoon (a bit under 4 grams) for two infusions in my 300 ml cup, sweet and a splash of milk is delicious. I’ll definitely be getting this and New York Breakfast the next time I order from T2. Also pertinent: instead of using an infuser in my cup, I used a small teapot. The infuser is pretty big, but free floating then strained is better.

Had this lovely stuff this morning, sweet and strong with milk. Though I love to snack on almonds, it’s not really my favorite flavor for desserts or beverages — nevertheless this is really gorgeous and yummy when I’m in the mood. The weather hasn’t been cooperating with the whole chilly “festive season” thing, so some of the more wintery holiday tea options didn’t strike my fancy and this was a nice alternative, just a wee bit spicy and smoothly cheering, without a jarring jingle bell vibe.