Brad Send Message

I love this tea!

I first started drinking Darjeeling about a year ago, and I went through a few different types, including some non-blends. When I saw this blend for about £7.50 in a nice tin I wasn’t expecting very much, but I was pleasantly surprised – it’s actually a very pleasant, smooth, easy-drinking tea that I can (and do) enjoy any time of the day. It quickly became my go-to Darjeeling to have in.

It brews a lovely, light, golden colour and has a subtle aroma. There is very little bitterness and it goes down smoothly. It also holds up to multiple brews very well; I always get three, sometimes four.

I’m not normally a fan of green tea, but I don’t mind jasmine tea from time to time. I bought this mostly because my girlfriend loves jasmine tea and I wanted to give it a go.

I have to say… my mind hasn’t changed that much. I’m still not a huge fan of green tea. The jasmine definitely makes it more bearable, but it’s still very much green tea (and I brewed it at a low temperature, 75-80C). It’s also a little on the astringent side… and the fact that I brewed it at such a low temperature means that this is somewhat surprising to me. I would be expecting less astringency.

It’s quite jasmine-heavy, which is… nice? I think? Perhaps it’s a little too heavy on the jasmine though. The smell is lovely, provided that you like jasmine of course. The colour is very clear with a yellow tinge.

It holds up to multiple brews quite well, so you can get your money’s worth (it’s not the cheapest of teas).

I personally wouldn’t get this tea again, but then again I’m not a green tea drinker. While it’s here I’ll have it occasionally when I fancy something a little bit different.

I’m new to “real” tea, having opted for standard teabags with milk in the past. However, I picked up a bag of this of haven’t looked back – in fact it prompted me to spend £70 this month alone on tea so that I can explore different varieties, and sign up to a tea journal website so that I can record my tastings!

It turns out that I love a good Assam without any added milk. I tried this with milk and it ruined it. To me, it tastes so lovely and smooth as-is, so there is no need for milk. It is hardly bitter or astringent at all. In fact it surprises me just how much like a cup of tea with milk this tastes (presumably because there aren’t any impurities that need masking with milk).

As far as colour goes, it’s a lovely golden/orange. It goes down great any time of day or night. I’ve been getting two brews out of a teaspoon; I’ve tried for a third but by this point it’s so weak as to be pointless. A second steep is still very nice though. As far as steep time goes, anywhere from 2-3 minutes seems ideal for me.

I’ll be replacing this one once it runs out, I’m sure.