Hampstead Tea

Backlog: I had this chai this morning for my wake-up. It was delicious. I liked the lemongrass in this, it added a nice citrus-y backnote. The pepper and ginger were the strongest components, and I really noticed the clove in this chai. Perhaps that is because there is no cinnamon in this blend, so the cloves had the opportunity to really shine.

Either way, it was a very enjoyable chai.

This is a very nice afternoon tea. Crisp and light. The muscatel tone to this tea is outstanding. I love the fruit tones to this tea, it finishes with a sweet yet tart taste of currant. Delicious.

Backlog: I had a cup of this earlier. It was pleasant, not quite as peppery as I thought it would be. It has a very mellow, smooth taste, with a nice aftertaste that is both slightly ginger-spicy and sweet-yet-tart. A very nice combination of flavors, this tisane.

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this. I had tried this in teabag form, but, I am very happy to be trying it loose leaf. Thanks!

A lovely English Breakfast blend – I still stand by what I said about this being one of the best that I’ve tried. It has a full-bodied, robust flavor and a lot of gusto. Here is my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2011/06/02/english-breakfast-from-hampstead-tea/

This is a very robust English Breakfast – some of the English Breakfast blends I’ve encountered as of late were rather ho-hum. Not bad, just not quite as powerful as this. Good, strong tea – just what I needed this morning.

Enjoying a cup of this before I sign off for the night. I’m really quite surprised at how much I am enjoying this tisane. It is not at all pollen-like, it is light and sweet and apple-y. Very nice, soothing, and I can feel it start to work at calming my tensions from the day.

OK, I think I have nailed this one this time. It is important not to over-steep or to steep it too strong. Before, in a larger mug, I used 2 teabags instead of one (because with most teas, it ends up just right that way with this mug), but not with this tea… I used a regular sized mug (8 oz) and 1 teabag and pulled the kettle just before boiling. Steep it for just 2 1/2 minutes.

While this is probably one of the most temperamental teas I’ve encountered, it is worth the effort to get it right, because I am loving what is in my teacup right now. The saffron flavor is strong in its delivery from start to finish. The black tea is brisk and bold and delicious. A very nice cup, indeed!

Having a cup of this… I could smell hints of the saffron before I infused, but they were very faint. Flavor wise, the saffron doesn’t present itself until the near the end of the sip. This does have a bitter tone to it, I think I over-steeped… still want to play around with this one a bit and see if I can do better next time. Overall, it’s a bold, strong black tea with hints of sweetness and a bitterness that hits at mid-sip with the saffron coming through at the tail.

I brewed this double strength. It’s very strong and a little bitter, so rather than rate it at this time, I’m going to hold off until I’ve tried it steeped at regular strength. It’s still pretty tasty though.

Lime baby:) who knew this would be a good combo!
I can hear the ocean waves as they hit the beach…peaceful, a perfect end to a dreadful day.

Tea bag one:
First sip: dirt, was that dirt I tasted? second sip, no not dirt, mint? Really?
As I empty my cup, definitely mint of some sort. Not what I expected from an EB tea.
Tea bag two:
My second cup of this tea was better than my first. I still taste the mint, but I do see what others are saying about this tasting like a Darjeeling.
Drinkable, just not my cuppa.

Mild green tea with a hint of ginger lingering on the palette.
I will try to steep the next cup at 2 minutes and see what I think…the last few sips of the 3 minute brew time were bitter:(

This is very nice! It’s delicious and refreshing. Soothing and restorative.

This is a really good Assam. I am especially impressed by it as it is a bagged tea. It is very strong, lovely amount of malt. So very good and rich and just what I needed to help me shake off the residual sleepeeeeee feeling that I have. Yes, I know it’s 12:40 in the afternoon, but, I am a night owl, so this is still quite early for me.

Fortunately, this helps!

This is an impressive bagged Assam. It has a very bold flavor with a nice malty tone. A hint of bitter at the tail end of the sip. Astringent. Sweet undertone. A very good Assam that is great for when you gotta get up and go, and have no time to fuss about with measuring loose leaf tea.

Fennel in tea scares me. Licorice in tea scares me…together it would normally give me the hee-bee-gee-bees! There’s something that works about this tisane! It’s light on the scary stuff and just right on the minty-goodness for a nice combo of flavors that create a taste of its own. Pretty surprising! Pretty good!

A delicious bagged tea. The lime does not overwhelm the green tea. It tastes fresh and vibrant, with a pleasing lime flavor that is tart but not pucker-y. It reminds me of my gramma’s backyard when the citrus trees were in bloom. Lovely!

Pretty Fly For A Bagged Chai

(As said to the tune of “Pretty Fly for a White Guy”)

backlogging…nice morning EG :)

One of the Juicer EG’s I have tried and I must say I really like it! Thanks to LiberTEAs for sharing a plump portion of her stash. :) I love the orange in this…juicy!!!

1 cup hot and 1 cup cold and I really enjoyed both of them! This is a tasty one!

had two cups this morning…see previous notes…

A bit on the lighter side today but still nice…backlogging from earlier…

The aroma is pleasant but not overpowering at all. It’s a more perfume-type EG taste. The Black Tea is a medium-strong taste and the Bergamot is more of an afterthought but a nice addition. As far as that ‘normal’ Earl Grey taste I would say it’s a little less than medium strength but overall it’s a really nice, tasty cuppa! Especially for a bagged EG! This is decent, indeed!

backlogging…see my other note…