Kusmi Tea

1 sachet for 300mL water @ 90C steeped 4 min 30 seconds, drunk bare.

My second-last new-to-me from my Kusmi Earl Grey sampler …

I expected to dislike this one, truth told. Once we start adding berry flavour or scent to a tea, it’s either fakey-fake sweet-almond from cheap 1970s hand lotions or tear-your-tastebuds-a-new-one hibiscus. I avoid hibiscus. Sure, it adds authentic colour and tartness, but it also dominates.

So there’s no hibiscus in this one, but I do get that fake-almond thing from the berry, vanilla, and caramel flavours. The bergamot cuts into them in the finish. That finish is sweet and a bit cloying, like a cookie that’s crumbled in your mouth and you can’t quite swallow yet.

I’d serve this to someone who said they liked a “cream” Earl Grey, but I won’t go our of my way on this one for myself. That’s no comment on the quality of the tea. It’s just a subjective thing.

1 sachet for 300mL water @90C, steeped five minutes.

I’ve been utterly ruined for Earl Grey by TeaBox’s Earl Grey Citrus, which remains the most fragrant and delicious EG I’ve ever had — probably because it’s so very fresh. Stash comes second, especially with their double bergamot EG.

So I admit, I was expecting the bergamot here to light may fire.

Well, it blows on the embers nicely. I would hardly call this an “intense” EG, more of a medium-to-strong EG. The tea base is quite good, which can make or break an EG, no matter how much or how little bergamot is used.

It’s delicious. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a lovely, sparkling bright Earl Grey with a good tea base, and a very smooth finish. I would happily serve this to someone I know likes a good EG, and I would buy it again.I could drink this all day. For intensity, though, TeaBox and Stash are way ahead.

1 sachet (full leaf within) to 300mL water @90C steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.

Definitely not getting the soapy thing that many others have. Then again, the floral scent here, ylang-ylang, is in just about everything from soap to body wash to lotion to shampoo …

The citrus gently cuts the floral, and the black tea base is, once again, decent-to-good, as it should be for the price.

I love floral teas, so this totally works for me, The contrasts blend into one delightful and very smooth yet complex tea.

I’ve kept the bag in … at 5 minutes, the tea really starts to take over.

1 sachet (full leaf within) to 300mL water steeped 4 minutes at 90C, drunk bare.

I’ve got a sampler! I love samplers! And it’s an Earl Grey sampler from Kusmi, so it’s bergamot forever here at my house today.

After s subtle and gentle start with Kusmi’s basic Earl Grey, it’s up several notches of brightness with a good Ceylon and China base, bergamot oil, lemon and lime oils, and orange blossom flavour! The first sip is very citrus, but not rudely so, and the orange blossom gives it all a soft finish that I could get really get charmed by. This blend is supposedly named after Anastasia Nikolovna Romanova, the youngest daughter of the last tsar and tsarina, and she was impish and playful, very bright and loving.

I’d call this a soft-to-medium EG. The orange blossom flavour really mellows things out at the end. I’d drink this any day. No bitterness — I expect using 90C water helps there.

1 bag steeped 4 minutes 30 seconds in 90C water. Drink bare.

Kusmi is new to me, and I’m a student of Russian history, so how can I resist?

I’ve come to enjoy black teas, especially Darjeelings, brewed at 90C instead of 95C. It’s often makes for a smoother tea.

I’m also on an Earl Grey kick — can’t get enough bergamot. TeaBox’s Earl Grey Citrus might be the best I’ve ever had, so fresh and vibrant — it scents my whole study — with Indian teas in the base. Andrews and Dunham Damn Fine Tea Mount Grey is also excellent. So is Stash’s regular (yum) Double Bergamot (oh mah GAWD) Earl Grey. That said, it’s actually hard to find an Earl Grey that uses a decent tea base and doesn’t just cover up poor quality tea with bergamot perfume (Twining’s, I’m looking at you — and don’t get me started on supermarket’s own brand EG teas.)

So I’m a bit picky about Earl Grey.

I’m hitting a Kusmi Earl Grey sampler today, everything from their basic Earl Grey to the spicy and vanilla Earl Grey they call Prince Vladimir. I love samplers — always a great excuse to make MOAR TEA. One at a time, though, one at a time.

Kusmi’s Earl Grey is a gentle soul. Liquor is a beautiful copper, and the mouthfeel is exceptionally smooth — a bit odd for a citrus tea, but I like it. The bergamot is subtle, which adds to the smoothness, and the tea base has some Ceylon, I think, so the tea base is decent.

It’s a competent and delicious Earl Grey, if a very smooth and subtle one. I doubt I’d go out of my way to buy it again, and perhaps Kusmi’s Earl Grey Intense will suit me better. If you’re introducing someone to Earl Grey tea, maybe try this one, but in my experience, those who love EG love it a lot and want more bergamot, not less.

One complaint: the tea comes in those plasticky sachets instead of muslin or paper. Not impressed there.

Finally finishing the last tea from last year’s advent calendars, just in time for the new season to start. This was a mini tin, but I ended up sharing all but the last serving. This smells really good, but the chai flavors didn’t turn out quite as strong as I had hoped. I can’t tell exactly what spices I taste since they’re a bit subtle. It’s okay, but I expected more.

Kusmi has better tart fruit herbals, but I really don’t mind this one. There’s definitely plenty of hibiscus in here, but I think the balance is still decent. It’s like having fruit juice that’s less sweet. I’ve enjoyed a few large cups of this cold. I actually totally forgot about this tin from last year’s advent calendar because it fit perfectly underneath one of my other tins, but it’s still quite fresh! It’s finished now, and I wouldn’t repurchase, but it wasn’t bad.

This is another blend from my swap with Cameron, while this sort of blend is typically my jam, it was not my favorite. I thought it was pretty bland because I like super strong bergamot flavors. It also had a thick film on the top even though it was looseleaf I’m not sure how that happened.

SVTTB Tea #2

I got the tea box on Wednesday and since I am in wedding celebration crunch time (Sept 24th), I decided to take samplings of teas that piqued my interest, add my contributions and send it on its way again so I can enjoy the samples over a longer period of time. I managed to find two types of Kusmi tea in the box: Tsarevna and Anastasia. This is my first time trying Kusmi tea and I am pretty excited; it was one of the companies on my “want to try” list.

Preparation: Western
Tasting Note: Really nice smooth base, lots of deep floral notes and the citrus/bergamot wasn’t over powering. So far I can see why people like Kusmi tea’s blacks. Would drink again if I had more. :)

I received a single sachet of this as a free sample with my small Kusmi order. I was actually considering ordering this exact tea, but decided on the White Bellini instead because I’ve enjoyed Kusmi’s peach white teas in the past. But I was excited to find this sachet when I opened the box! :3

I didn’t remember that Kusmi’s “white” teas actually use a mixed white and green base, so I steeped it at a white tea temperature. It did come out very slightly bitter, but not enough to ruin the mug. I quite like this tea, the “forest fruits” flavor is very heavy on the blackcurrant, which makes it very dark and rich and syrupy. So overall it’s quite jammy-tasting, which is unusual and tasty on a white base. There’s some nice nuttiness from the green tea as well.

I’ll have to keep it in mind for a possible future purchase. And since I really enjoyed the peach and blackcurrant white tea that Kusmi used to make before the rebrand, it would be interesting to try mixing this and the White Bellini to see if I could recreate a similar flavor…

This is pretty typical for a mint green tea. Nothing bad, but nothing new. The green tea adds a bit of intrigue to the mint, but I prefer both green tea and mint paired with different things over this combination.

It’s hard to distinguish what flavor this is supposed to be. I taste a combination of herbs, but nothing really stands out. It’s okay cold, but it’s more like a sick tea than something you drink for fun. There’s definitely plenty of licorice.

This is a pleasant combination of ingredients. It’s a nice herbal blend, where I can taste something gingery. Sweet and savory flavors combine in a pleasant way. It’s not special or amazing, but it’s good.

There’s something about this that I really like. The flavor tastes like lemongrass and a subtle sort of something, though I’m not sure what. It’s lightly fruity, and I’d totally drink it again. This is the second time I’ve had a Kusmi tea without realizing there was mate in there. I don’t usually enjoy it, but apparently I don’t mind the way Kusmi does it!

This smells super tropical. The flavor is definitely still tropical, but the base takes over a little, and white tea isn’t really my thing. I can’t tell exactly what fruits it’s going for, but I can taste something like pineapple. The base is a little drying and plant-like. If the tropical flavors were stronger, this would be really great.

This is a nice hearty black tea. Something in the base isn’t super agreeable to me, maybe tasting a bit vegetal and not rich and malty enough. It’s still pretty tasty with milk, just not ideal.

This one didn’t taste great plain, but once I added milk, I enjoyed it more. It’s difficult to nail down what flavor it’s going for. It’s fruity and tasty, but I wouldn’t get it again. The fruit is maybe orange or apple. The rooibos is decent.

This tastes quite floral, though it’s hard to tell what kind. I think I notice a little peach. I guess the other flavor is bergamot, though it’s hard to pick it out when it’s not paired with black tea. It’s a little too strong on a white base vs a black base.

This tastes a little murky and minty with some random other herbal flavors in there. I feel pretty neutral toward it. It’s possible it would improve with a shorter steep, but I only have this one advent tea bag, so I can’t test.

This is mild and not spicy at all. I get a good deal of licorice flavor, and there are some other supporting spices. It tastes nice with or without milk. It’s pleasant and herbal, and I’d consider ordering it again. It’s a nice, mild herbal chai.

Whoops, I totally oversteeped this while accidentally eating way too much ice cream. Luckily, it turned out perfectly okay. I’m drinking it cold. The flavor is mild and peachy and not too tart at all. It’s subtle, and it’s another one from Kusmi that I’d consider ordering despite being generally tired of peach teas. I appreciate that it goes in a slightly different direction than others.

The strongest thing I taste is lemon. It’s nice and herbal and savory in just the right way. I prefer this one cold because then you get more intricacy from the flavor. I’m enjoying this lemon here – it’s much more herbal-leaning than tart. It’s a fun change. I didn’t realize this tea had mate in it – it blends very nicely.

This tastes lightly biscuity. The flavor is so surprising. I only have this advent sample, but I’d consider buying more. It genuinely tastes like baked goods. I wish I’d tried this warm before refrigerating it because I think it might be best warm with milk. I’m still enjoying it sweetened cold. The resteep tastes almost the same. It’s sort of like an orange cake or something. Very intriguing.

This tastes pretty high quality. I taste the peach and also the base tea. They’re quite well balanced. I get a bit of a floral flavor, but it’s not too strong. This makes a nice cold drink.