Teajo Teas

5/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

It’s been way too hot frankly to want to drink hot black tea (over 100F most days and muggy as a dog’s mouth, blech), aaaand my favorite kettle is still out of commission (they sent me an entirely different model that isn’t nearly as good by mistake…told me I could keep it for my troubles so it works in a pinch but I really miss my good, keep-warm kettle!), but I was boiling water in the kettle to make steamed rice the Thai knuckle method (from It Rains Fishes) and had just enough leftover for a cup of tea. So!

This lives up to the hype! I’m so impressed with how citrusy it manages to be without getting off-balance—it’s got powerful flavor without ever becoming bitter, too tart, or unpleasantly scrubby in terms of mouthfeel. Slick as heck. I think the boldness of the assam works ideally with that sit-up-and-take-notice bright bergamot; the tea’s strength and body handles the acid beautifully. The first citrusy bergamot in an Earl Grey I really dig. One of the best EGs I’ve had period, especially in that increasingly rare category of EGs that taste like straightforward platonic ideal EGs—no vanilla cream flavorings or other unusual tricks up the sleeve, just a gorgeous balance of black tea and bergamot. Yay Steepster for tipping me off to it!

1 tbsp for 375 ml

The flavour profile of this black tea seems imbalanced, dry and thin.

Ackckck! Sil has pulled ahead of me! LOL!
Add to that, I can’t really drink too many cups of tea this afternoon, since I have a wedding to play at later! I wouldn’t want to be sitting there playing pretty music, on the verge of peeing my pants, so I’ll have to be careful, at least until after the gig is over!

I pulled this Assam out of the swap box I have from Sil, which WAS packed to the gills, but now it’s a little easier to move things around in there & find what I’m looking for. This tea is VERY bold! Initially it hit me right between the eyes with a sharp flute-like tone, along with a very low & bitter almost coffee-like bass, but there is some rich fruitiness emerging in the center & my tongue feels like it’s coated with velvet. This stuff is intense, a really potent brew!
I think that puts me at 245.

One more cup of tea from Sil, & then I have to go practice! I’m hosting a rehearsal at 1:00, & need to brush up on a few things before the other musicians arrive.

I’m having trouble identifying flavors & aromas today, probably due to allergies. Oh wait, now I’m getting something, lol. The aroma of this is like a bowl of cream of wheat with a spoonful of some kind of fruity preserves. First I was thinking apricot, but now I’m thinking orange marmalade. The flavor…a little bit bitter, like the peel of that orange marmalade again, but otherwise fruity & even a little bit of a brown sugar on oatmeal taste. Very different, but worthy of sampling.
Thanks Sil!

1 tablespoon used for 265 ml

Very mild flavour. Blooms in the lingering aftertaste.

Thanks to Sil for sharing with me

Backlog #3: This is another one I made during the weekend that my aunt and uncle stayed. I don’t drink this often because I don’t want to run out of it. I need to stop doing that because I shouldn’t “save the china for when the King visits”. I deserve good things and this is a good tea. I brewed it a little strong this time. I should really stop at three minutes.

I had this with a bowl of oatmeal this morning and it was surprisingly satisfying. I forgot how much I liked it because every time I look at it I think that it is going to be so strong like the Assam in Irish Breakfast. But it isn’t. It is tasty without any milk at all.

Backlog #3: After the whole cherry ordeal, I decided that I was ready to try some of this Earl Grey. The only Assam tea that I have ever had has been in the Twining’s Irish Breakfast so I was expecting something extremely bold that I would need to have with milk.

Oh my god! Was I ever wrong about that!

This tea is utterly fantastic. The tea base is sturdy but not overly bold. It tastes like good tea. But the bergamot is just awesome! It tastes like you took a whole bergamot fruit and just squeezed the juice into your tea. It is fruity and juicy and leaves a clean and fresh taste in your mouth that you get right after you eat a ripe orange.

It is just utterly amazing and unlike any other Earl Grey that I have had.

The only thing is that you have to have it plain. Even if you add just a drop of milk, the tea base disappears and the bergamot turns sour. But if you have it plain it will be just fantastic!

Thank you Teajo Teas for letting me have a sample! I think I’ll have to explore the rest of your Assams if it is anything like this one.

This was a sample thanks to Teajo Teas. I look forward to being able to buy some tea from them soon:)

Smell wise: I had gotten this on Monday…I think? But hadn’t been able to test it til now. And of course I could not resist opening it and sniffing it. It smells quite good, just like Mangos though I can see why people would smell Peach, too. However, there is an odd underlying smell of chemicalness that puts me off. Kind of reminded me of how oranges can get when they are getting old.

Taste Wise: It’s an interesting tea, not boring. Though I cannot say that I am especially inspired by this tea. But…I am impressed to the extent that I think I will come across teas that I do like even love from this company, most likely in the ‘Around the World’ sampler that I intend on buying in the next few months.

Thank you Teajo Teas for this generous Sample!

With open arms I’m enjoying the first Spring arrival of high mountain rain.
Next to my desk as I was looking outside the window the very bottom of the Rocky Mountain’s settled their jagged bones and smoothed out to a gradually descending plain.

I am in love with the drama of Frontrange weather! The romantic in me wants to pair the right tea with what’s happening in the atmosphere.

Black Manas arrived in the mail right on time for my imaginings.

With black and billowing clouds rolling overhead, I prepared a pot of tea and a 3.5 minute steep (I am a dark brew lover).

Taking my tea-tray to the largest window, I sat watching the sky. Tea is part of what is outside after all, more than what is in my heated, electronic filled house.

When I poured, the tea was very dark. I expected a strong and malty flavor, but was pleasantly surprised with a light, sweet and brisk taste that wasn’t very malty. Huh?

“What’s this?”, I asked myself. Had I assumed from the reviews that this was going to be a malty tea like so many other’s? This wasn’t the case.
For me, the tea was barely malty and had a clean citrus essense with delicious rose and butter cookie flavor.

The tea was strong, full bodied… yet gentle and smooth.

Sweetened and with cream…Superb!

As much as I love very strong Kenyan Tea when I need my jolt of caffeine, I really like the floral background in this tea very much!

For strong black tea lovers like me who want smooth superior flavor, this has it all!

For a rainy day, nothing could beat a tea like this one!

Silky Earl Grey

Sample package label:
“Contents: Whole leaf black Tea, w/Bergamot oil and natural flavors”
“Brewing: 1 teaspoon for 3 minutes 8-oz water @ 212*F”

8-oz water with total dissolved solids (TDS) of 25 ppm, boiled

Introduction: Teajo Teas Earl Grey is made with an Assam base. Most EG teas come from Shi Lanka formerly known as Ceylon. Having a different base tea, was a significant reason for wanting to sample this tea. Our current EG cream has a Ceylon base and I can’t get past the astringency. Also, my wife loves EG teas.

This tea has another fragrance that I can’t identify, which is at least as strong as the oil of bergamot fragrance.

Amber hue

3-min Infusion: A mild lemon taste with another equally strong enjoyable flavor that I can’t identify. I guess it’s the safflower as listed on their website: http://www.teajo.com/product_info.php?cPath=27&products_id=47
In my experience:
– The tartness of citrus bergamia is a common characteristic of most Earl Grey tea.
– Most EG tea is mild- to medium-bodied.

Impression: A full-bodied EG without astringency, bitterness or tartness – Quite an accomplishment!

2nd 3-min Infusion: Nearly identical to the original infusion.

Suggestion: For those like my wife who love the classic EG aroma & flavor, Teajo Teas may also wish to develop another version of their Silky Earl Grey where the other natural ingredients are not as strong as the oil of bergamot – a Silky Classic Earl Grey.

Thanks to Teajo Teas for providing this most generous 10-cup free sample. I will definitely enjoy the rest of it – and that’s not something I thought I would say! Well done!

Based on this very positive first impression of Teajo teas, I would also be interested in tasting their Black Manas and Tropical Mango teas.

Many thank to Teajo Teas for sending me a generous sample! Because this is my first pure Indian tea, my tasting skills are unrefined in regards to this type of tea. This was a novel, yet difficult experience.

The dry leaves’ aroma is strong and sweet, slightly fruity. The liquor is a dark reddish brown. The flavor – full-bodied and bold – brought me back to the English blended black teas (naturally) that I often drink for breakfast. Alone, it slightly tasted bitter. I’m sure that this flavor evokes more than just this, but, again, I’m going over my head with this one. After a few sips I cautiously added half a teaspoon of sugar and a couple small splashes of milk. The flavor was now similar to the aroma, having a gentle fruitiness. BACKLOGGED It wasn’t grapes that the tea evoked; rather, it was apricots. Yum!

This is a nicely tasting tea. Perfect for mid-morning, like now!

Last full cup of the sample, managed to sneak it in before our first really hot and humid day of the season kicked in. (When you live in southwest Missouri, anything above 85 before Memorial Day spells trouble. There’s a giant National Weather Service bulls-eye over our entire corner of the state.)

But I digress. This black tea is stout enough to please heavy-duty Assam-ites, light enough to accommodate those who don’t want a black eye from the punch of the drink, and versatile enough to come out just right no matter how little care you pay to time and temp. Good, good stuff.

I’m finding something else to like about this time every time I drink it. Today’s “fave feature” is its flexibility…I was bumbling through the morning routine much slower than usual and a three-minute steep time stretched well over five. Still tasty and bright, not bitter. It isn’t bulldozer-strong, but an all-around good a.m. selection.

Top o’ the mornin’ to you. (yawn) We had hail in the wee hours and it sounded like a million leprechauns were clogging on my roof.

This was the first Assam I could lay my bleary eyes on, and I’m glad I did. Loving its texture—not too heavy, not too thin. Loving its flavor, which is still prompting me to use adjectives like bright and fruity (which I usually associate with Ceylon teas). Looking forward to a second steep this afternoon.

First, thanks to Teajo Teas. I needed a little cheer-up after this week, and the little padded sample mailer made my day.

First whiff out of the open packet reminded me a little of fruity chewing gum. (Peer pressure, based on other reviews, said it should have smelled like malt and hay.)

Regardless, it steeps up into a red-brown, fruity (yay…somebody else said raisiny; I’m not crazy!) cuppa. A little gentler than my usual boot-yer-backside-out-the-door breakfast preference. And I’m thinking it will be refreshing if the sample holds out long enough for me to try a cup chilled!

Got it yesterday and actually conducted an EGC tasting last night. Almost forgot this one coz I hadn’t logged it in my catalog yet so I rushed to steep it alongside the 5 EGCs but then i realized this was not an EGC!

No matter, it tastes just as good as one. Or rather, this trumps them all in my book! Many thanks to Piccolo for the very generous sample..but I’m afraid it will not be enough for me, haha. I gotta buy more of this!

Silky – perfectly describes the beautiful taste that coursed through my tastebuds and captivated me (sigh)

order it here:
http://www.teajo.com/product_info.php?cPath=23&products_id=47

Thank you for offering a beautiful EG, Teajo Teas!

update: 2nd steep was still ok. 3rd was not quite but then again, neither were the others. maybe it was because i left them sitting too long? i noticed that with EGs they dont taste so good when cooled and actually become bitter-ish. all of them except for one….which you shall read about in my next tasting note!

sipdown! (196) i tried this today a couple ways…mostly because the first sip i took went something like:
“oh look yummy tea”

GAH! ew!

yeah…no. not sure if i was just way over brewing it or missing something but no. no. no. Makes me sad because i feel like i SHOULD like this. but i can’t get behind it.

Backlog:

Thanks to Em for sending me some of this tea. This is a delicious white tea – quite beautiful. Sweet, hay-like, with delightful nutty tones. It’s warm and toasty.

Here’s my full-length review of this tea: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/03/06/white-leaf-and-bud-single-estate-white-tea-from-teajo-teas/

I have been drinking lots of tea lately, but have been too busy to sit down and log anything. I’m sitting now and enjoying a glass of Ginger Peach iced and lightly sweetened. Actually, this is the last of my small purchase of this yummy tea. For me this tea has a great balance of ginger and peach that compliments the black tea well. I will buy more!

So this is the Earl Grey! And it’s a sipdown! (Much needed too, I gotta say. My samples from Courtney came in yesterday and now I’m over 230, with a Butiki order coming in the next few weeks, and some more samples from Sil! Haha. BEST problems to have).

This is a pretty decent Earl Grey. It’s really not that strong but there is a tangy astringency at the end of each sip. It’s enjoyable, but I think I prefer EGC over regular EG’s. And yes, I know I could just ADD cream, but… I’m lazy? Also I guess I’m just used to drinking it plain.

I really like this! The sample package says that it’s Assam tea. This is my 2nd Assam. The first one was a revelation (‘Awesome’ Assam Banaspaty, by Yokotea), as it opened my senses to enjoying black tea.
This Ginger Peach Assam is just as good, perhaps more interesting because of the added flavouring. Lovely mild peach scent/taste, not overpowering, and that really good flavour that I can’t name or put my finger on, and presume is the black tea itself. Maybe “malty” says it. (I can’t really taste the ginger, but I don’t care because the tea is great.)
I added a little sugar and skim milk.

I’m glad to have an ample sample (ha!) packet, and thanks Starfevre for bringing Assam tea into my life.