There was no brewing info on the website; but their code for this is ‘BS07’ and on their instruction sheet they give two to three minutes and boiling water for ‘BS0x’, which I assume is a ‘cover all’ for Ceylon teas, so I steeped it for two and a half minutes. I used a moderately-heaped teaspoon.
It made a medium-intensity, clear, slightly brownish, red brew.
I couldn’t get much in the way of nose from it.
In the mouth it was a pretty straightforward sort of tea. There was plenty of good basic tea and there was a touch of richness there which I struggled to describe, but which I eventually decided was nearest to a tiny hint of rum.
That was about it, really – it struck me as a good, basic cuppa, suitable for everyday drinking with meals.
I made a second infusion, brewed the same way.
This wasn’t any weaker in colour, and I did get an aroma this time. I can best describe it as a rusty sort of smell.
In the mouth, it seemed a little lighter but I don’t think it was a noticeably weaker tea. In fact, it struck me as more complex. I thought the basic tea and rum were a little less in evidence, but that may have been because there now seemed to be the tiniest hints of orange peel and chocolate.
I think this was a little superior to the first infusion. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it excellent, but it was good stuff.
I don’t really want another mug, but I’m curious to see what a third infusion will be like, so I’m going to make one – I’ll brew the same way.
Well, the colour’s barely weaker. I’m not so sure about the aroma, though; I can barely detect it.
In the mouth, there’s basic tea and the hint of rum – but the latter is barely there, now – and a touch of digestive biscuit, perhaps; but it’s definitely a a bit on the bland side – it’s a bit watery – and I don’t think it was really worth bothering.
So, to sum up, I think this is a really good ‘everyday cuppa’ – the sort to have with the toast and boiled egg at breakfast or similar.
ETA something I’d completely forgotten. When I was taking the infuser out of the third infusion, the brew was quite pale but I could see the rich colour draining out of the infuser – it was very noticeable – so I dipped it in and out a couple of times. So it’s just occurred to me that the third infusion might have been better if I’d steeped it for a while longer. I’ll experiment with that next time.
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As far as I can tell you deciphered the instruction sheet correctly. I believe the code for the tea simply means ‘Black, Sri Lankan, number 7’
Yes. I’ve been buying from them for a couple of years, now, and it’s the first time it’s occurred to me to wonder what the occasional small ‘x’ on the sheet means. Doh!
Me too. I’ve always looked at that sheet and made a face like this O.o
It wasn’t until the last time that I finally worked out how to decipher it, in spite of the fact that I cottoned on to their coding system fairly quickly after the first time ordered. (But then I ordered sample sets then, so that made it a bit more obvious)
As far as I can tell you deciphered the instruction sheet correctly. I believe the code for the tea simply means ‘Black, Sri Lankan, number 7’
Yes. I’ve been buying from them for a couple of years, now, and it’s the first time it’s occurred to me to wonder what the occasional small ‘x’ on the sheet means. Doh!
Me too. I’ve always looked at that sheet and made a face like this O.o
It wasn’t until the last time that I finally worked out how to decipher it, in spite of the fact that I cottoned on to their coding system fairly quickly after the first time ordered. (But then I ordered sample sets then, so that made it a bit more obvious)