Thé des Moines

(trying to get back into Steepster!!) tried a sample of this tea last night. I don’t usually care for flavored teas, especially those with bergamot. But I did enjoy this one. It was surprisingly smooth and the citrus was subtle. Definitely vanilla as well. Not something I’d reach for, but I can understand why it’s so popular.

After drank Lapsang Souchong, this tea is now my second favourite.

Tried it twice in the same hour, because the first time around, it was so light that I thought I pulled my infuser too quickly.

Another item from my 16 canisters from the PdT Black Friday sale, this one is vaguely like Earl Grey that hasn’t been steeped for long enough… or maybe hot enough. Either way, as someone who truly appreciates Earl Grey, I just couldn’t get into this one.

On the second cup, I cranked up my kettle to max, doubled the leaves, and let it sit for nearly 10 minutes – just as a sanity check. And even then, it was like a weak Earl Grey with very, very subtle notes of vanilla. Closest comparison would be Teavana’s Earl Grey Creme if it had only been infused for a minute or two.

This goes in the “trade or give away” section of my tea rack.

- Temperature: 175°F / 79°C
- Time: 3 min, 0 sec
- Tea Amount: 4 g
- Water Volume: 3 oz / 100 ml

For this tasting, I experimented with a gaiwan and utilized a somewhat unconventional brewing method: 79°C water temperature, 4g of tea per 100ml of water, steeped for 3 minutes for the initial steep, followed by constant 10-second steeps.

The second steep revealed plenty of jasmine notes upfront, accompanied by a strong clove-like taste and some floral notes. Unfortunately, the experience was marred by an incredibly bitter aftertaste.

As I continued steeping, the floral notes became more pronounced, with the jasmine dominating completely and leaving no room for any other aroma.

Despite the bitterness in the second steep, I found the blend to be quite enjoyable overall. The complexity of flavors, particularly in the second steep, was remarkable and not something encountered in most teas. While the unconventional brewing method may have contributed to the bitterness, I believe that proper gongfu style brewing could yield better results.

- Flavor Complexity: 18/30 – Rich in jasmine and clove notes but overly dominated by jasmine in later steeps.
- Brewing Forgiveness: 10/20 – Requires careful brewing to avoid bitterness.
- Consistency Across Infusions: 12/20 – Maintains a strong flavor profile, but bitterness impacts enjoyment.
- Overall Enjoyment: 15/30 – Enjoyable despite the challenges in brewing, but not exceptional.

- yaro

2022 Palais des Thés Advent Calendar

Palais Des Thes Advent Calender Day 4:
I’m a little bummed by the order of this advent calendar so bar as the first two days were detox types teas and then this is the second bergamot tea in a row. I think they could’ve switched the order of teas up a little bit more.

I did forget about this tea while it was steeping but it only steeped a few minutes longer than it was supposed to. Luckily it doesn’t taste oversteeped at all.
This is a nice bergamot jasmine flavor combo very smooth with creamy notes of vanilla as well. I taste the bergamot more than the jasmine though and wish it was the opposite. It’s pleasant to drink but not one I feel the need to purchase.

Brewed this as per recommendation from Palais. IT is a very approable, significantly scented tea with nice floral overtones, a vanilla-ish sweetness, citrus, and just a tiny hint of astringency from the green teas. The leaf quality is nice for the price point and it is very balanced in profile, albeit a bit to the sweet side. i will try brewing it with more tea next time as i found it a bit too light.

i think it is too light in flavor to make it a morning tea for me, but a nice overall everyday tea which is good for also less experienced tea drinkers

Overall a nicely balanced version of a scented tea and i find the black/green blend quite nice

So I made this cup immediately after drinking Granville Island’s Monk’s Blend, and it was really interesting having that immediate contrast. Granville’s is the much more classically North American interpretation of a Monk’s Blend while PDT’s various much more from that standard and incorporates some less conventional ingredients like green tea and bergamot;.

It’s still very good, and the thinks that I think it’s actually even ‘better’ with are the aroma and finish which have a really calming floral quality to go alongside the overall sweetness. It’s also arguably a more complex cup compared to the straight forward black tea and grenadine of the former. However, I’d be lying if I said that I liked it more than the former despite its complexity and the other things that I think this tea gets right.

Mostly I think I find it a little too floral and perfumed, but also there’s just less clarity to the flavours overall and part of what I like so much about the North American interpretation is just how clear and distinct the grenadine note is set against that brisk black tea. The green and black mix of this blend is too “soft” to me, by comparison…

Okay, not my favorite. I hoped, after smelling it, that I could learn to love this… c’mon, it’s Palais des Thes. But the scents of jasmine and bergamot… nope, nope, nope. Just not my thing. Maybe, possibly, on their own… yea, no.

This might be lovely for someone that loves these flavors in their tea – and thus why I keep on giving this to an ex who LOVES blergamot.

Received another sample box from Palais des Thes because my original RedditGift got lost in transit – and then arrived four months later. So, expect more of these reviews in the next few months.

I always find black/green blends a bit tough to describe. The jasmine and bergamot both stand out, though I really don’t get any vanilla. It’s good, but not great, likely because I’m not the biggest fan of bergamot.

Putting this one in the give away box. I have so much caffeinated hot tea to get through, and this is good enough that I’m positive one of my friends will enjoy it. I pretty much keep them stocked with my castoffs! I like the job, my way of paying it forward.