I’m getting back to my morning routine of getting up with my partner instead of sleeping till 11am. This is good. As much as I’ve never been a morning person, I like sharing a schedule with my partners and being able to go to bed (and actually fall asleep!) when they do.
First tea of the morning is Buckingham Palace. I couldn’t remember what was in this one at all, but it was at the top of my untried pile, and I figured I couldn’t go wrong with a black, because morning.
All I really got from the dry leaf was a malty fragrance, so I’d kind of decided that this was probably just a blend of black teas. Not so! Steeped the liquor is quite dark brown and has a hint of floral fragrance, but then on the palate is loads of jasmine. What an awesome surprise! There’s also hints of bergamot, but quite subtle, a bit of vegetal from the green, and bold, malt and astringency, with a touch of bitterness. This has a thick, almost creamy mouth feel with a bit of a drying sensation.
Jasmine is definitely the dominant flavour here, which is different and interesting paired with the boldness of the black base. I’m very used to jasmine with greens or other more delicate teas with a lighter body.
As the cup cools, a really lovely sweetness develops along side the jasmine, reminding me of bamboo leaves.
I steeped this for 3 min at 96C, but I think with my next cup I might go for slightly cooler water and a bit shorter time. The Secret Garden black base seems to steep very quickly and be quite sensitive.
Flavors: Astringent, Bamboo, Bergamot, Bitter, Jasmine, Malt, Sweet, Thick, Vegetal
