White Orchard

Light fruit notes make this a warm, welcoming brew. Peach, with a hint of green apple & citrus.

Cold brewed at a shmancy training session where they plied us with delicious food and drinks. Frickin delicious. The peach note is prominent, sweet, and juicy. This reminds me very strongly of Simple Loose Leaf’s Sweet Peach White Tea, to the point where I wonder if these companies sourced the blend from the same manufacturer. I loved that tea so I am glad to have found something similar.

The way this smells is incredible! Peaches just barely ripe and crisp melons. Sadly the taste falls completely flat. It’s slightly bitter and grassy like a badly-processed bagged green—given this with no context, I would not have guessed it was a white. I get a little bit of artificial melon flavor, but the peach is just not there. This isn’t the worst fruit tea I’ve ever had, but it’s not good.

Fruity without being annoyingly so or tasting artificial. Nice and light, good for a cheer-up. Very peachy.

This tea is good, despite the fact that it reminds me of artificial melon more than real melon (think Jolly Ranchers). As far as white teas go, I have only found one I really liked though – so I might just be picky.

It’s definitely worth a sip, and I wouldn’t refuse it if it was offered to me. But I don’t think I’d keep it permanently stocked in my tea closet. I’m still on the lookout for that perfect melon tea…

I used to love this tea, back when I first had a Mighty Leaf Master Sampler. That was about two years ago now, though, and today I realised that my tastes have changed fundementally. Either that, or the tea has changed. I think it’s safer to assume it’s me.

I used to think it was delicate, juicy, and wonderfully melony. I’ve been in a Processfix workshop for the last two days (last one tomorrow), so I took a small supply of tea bags knowing that loose tea wouldn’t be practical. This was one I pulled out this afternoon. I let my water cool first, added the bag, and gave it about two minutes. The liquor quickly turned a fairly deep yellow, so I was expecting at least some bitterness from the base. Fortunately it was smooth and relatively sweet tasting.

My problem with this tea is the flavouring. I got a lot of peach, but it was the kind of plasticy, artificial peach I can’t get along with. Sometimes it even gives me a headache. There was no melon to be found. The flavouring didn’t completely overpower the base, which was actually the nicest thing about this tea, although I would have preferred just white rather than a white/green blend. And some melon, obviously.

It’s not that this is a bad tea…I just can’t believe my recollection of it from two years ago was so vastly different to today’s experience. Unfortunately, once I’ve finished the bags in my sampler box, it won’t be one I come back to again.

Very nice blend of fruits and white tea. Even overbrewed, it’s pretty good but bitter. (I tried this at a restaurant and they overbrewed it… but what’s new?)

A sweet white tea and like most, a lot of fruity flavors. Not the best white tea I’ve had, but not bad.

This tea smells like peaches and flowers upon opening the tin. I was worried it’d be too floral for me, but once brewed, the floral smell is less intense. The floral taste is also very subtle in this tea. It’s not half bad. The peach comes through, although not in a overtly annoying way. It blends in with the smooth, sweet taste of the white tea. As for melon, I suppose it’s more in the aftertaste than anything. I actually prefer this, as most melon teas have an odd, overpowering flavor that I just don’t like. But the melon in this is nicely balanced. I actually seem to be catching its taste right as I am catching the slight tanin taste (don’t worry, it’s not really bitter/astringent, more of a little spark. It’s a smooth, light, and refreshing cup. Perfect after a long night at work, cuddled in bed with a book. I’m actually surprised at how much I’m digging this tea. It’s only been sitting in my tea basket for a month! Might order this again someday. Maybe in the summer, so I can try it iced!

Here’s a hint to those who are nervous to try this tea or are getting bitter results:
Steep for about 2 minutes rather than the suggested time, and make sure the water temp is on the low side! You don’t want to be brewing this tea with water anywhere near 180-200. I’d aim for low 160’s or mid to high 150’s. Mess with it a little, and you can get some nice results.

damn tasty. Everything I expect from a flavored white tea. Light and fruity.