652 Tasting Notes
1.25 tsp for 250mL water 100C, steeped 4 minutes 15 seconds.
Dry leaf: mostly small brown to black wiry leaves. Aroma: Keemun toastiness.
Wet leaf: dark browns, aroma of tannins and minerals.
Liquor: gorgeous dark red-brown. Keemun gives way to Darjeeling’s bite, which leads into a strong Ceylon finish with mineral and especially copper notes. It feels like the different teas in this blend travel over the tongue, in an orderly queue. Slightly bitter — often a risk with Keemun. Very nice blend, and strong enough to cut through and then complement other strong tastes. I imagine this would go beautifully with smoked salmon, or a sweet cake.
1.25 tsp for 250mL water 100C, steeped 4 minutes 30 seconds, drunk bare.
Dry leaf: lots of long and wiry brown leaves, small dark copper leaves, a few flecks of dull green. Aroma: toast , earth.
Wet leaf: brown, bright copper, dark green. Aroma: Ceylon copper.
Liquor: very dark reddish brown.
A touch bitter, but I did oversteep — I got interrupted in my timing. That said, this is a strong and heavier-bodied tea. The bitterness seems to be from the Keemun, as there’s a touch of smoke to it. The Yunnan is malty and sweet, and the Ceylon gives brightness and heft. Potent and delicious.
1 bag for 250mL water at 100C, steeped 4 minutes 30 seconds.
I wanted to use two bags, I find teabgs in general skimpy and the resultant brew weak in taste and body. No, I said, these look like decent teabags. Let’s follow the instructions.
Well, I have some vaguely tea-favoured water here, some sweetness, a faint coppery-Ceylon scent … but meh.
A disappointment. I might try two bags later.
1.25 tsp for 250mL water 95C, steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.
Dry leaf: brown flecked with some green and a few twigs. Aroma: winey wood.
Wet leaf: the green leaves brghten and open up fast — very pretty. Aroma: tannins, wet earth.
Liquor: medium brown, a bit darker than I expected.
Full and classic Darjeeing taste with a good body. I prefer a second flush, so I’m quite happy here. Lots of muscatel, and a slight bite back, almost like the pepper in some Yunnans.
1 bag for 250mL water 100C, steeped 4 minutes 15 seconds, drunk bare.
Dry tea bag aroma: coppery Ceylon and faintest pepper.
Liquor: copper. not much fragrance beyond wet earth.
Oh. Oh oh oh, this is good, gorgeously balanced: Assam giving malt, heft, and body, Ceylon being all coppery bright, Darjeeling making that even brighter, with just the finestest peppery bite of Yunnan. Despite not being aromatic, this is a delicous blend.
1 bag for 250mL water 100C, steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.
Dry tea bag aroma: faintly spicy from the Darjeeling and coppery from the Ceylon.
Liquor: beautiful reddish brown, perhaps from the Keemun in the blend.
Some malt and heft from Assam. Bright notes from the Ceylon and Darjeeling, with a slightly bitter, slightly smoky finish. Strong taste but only a medium body. A little too bitter: that might be improved with milk or sugar, but I prefer my tea bare. (Added: the bitterness settles as the tea cools.)
1.5 tsp for 300mL water 100C, steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.
Dry leaf: mostly brown, some dark green.
Aroma: smoky toast, some nuttiness.
Wet leaf: mahogany, brown, and amber with some bright green.
Aroma: subtle smoke, earth.
Liquor: reddish brown, light body. Smoky but not tarry. Some surprising crispness and florals— a Nepal or Darjeeling tea in the blend? Some mineral notes as the tea cools.
I wish the body was just a little heavier. Otherwise a very fine Russian Caravan, distinctive and smoky yet also balanced.
1.5 tsp for 300mL water, 100C, steeped 4 minutes.
Dry leaf: almost half bright green, the rest amber and brown. Very few twigs. Pretty.
Dry aroma: earthy and mineral with something sharp and fresh, faintly floral.
Wet leaf: the green is less bright. Otherwise unchanged.
Wet aroma: earth, rocks.
Liquor: light copper, very heady with florals and muscatel. A bright, fresh, and crisp black tea, medium-strength, very like an assertive Darjeeling yet still its own tea. I’m sure I can also taste cold fresh air. Delicious. Great value for money.
Preparation
1.25grams to 250mL water at 85C, steeped four minutes.
I received this as a gift fr a friend who was justin London.
Dry leaf is long and twisty, various shades of green: very inviting.
Dry aroma is white tea, slightly floral, and the finest bit earthy.
Wet leaf is pale, pale green, liquor a pale rosy-beige.
Aroma is more vegetal than I expected, closer to some green teas. However, the tea yields that lovely muscatel note of many Darjeelings and Nepal teas. Crisp mineral finish with some floral and vegetal lingering.
With cooler water and a shorter steep, it might be a bit sweeter. I;ll try 80C on the next one.
Just lovely.
1.25 tsp for 250mL water @95C, steeped four minutes.
I’ve hardly drunk any tea at all for weeks. What the hell is the matter with me?
Harney’s Russian Country is one of my favourite blends. The whiffs of smoke and toast, the tickle of peach, the heft of what’s either some Indian or Ceylon tea … delicious. And potent. I find this one has quite the caffeine boost. I also find the peach notes from the oolong come out better with water at 95C. Anything cooler and the black teas don’t open up right.
Sometimes drinking this feels like being hit with a tea brick, but it’s worth it. I imagine this would stand up quite well to sugar or honey. I It might also take a bit of lemon well — must try that.
