English Afternoon Tea

Love our little neighborhood—-local constabulary stops to play basketball with the older kids and flash his lights for the younger ones, neighbors speak pleasantly, people drive carefully for around pedestrians and patrons of the ice cream truck, and when you find a tin of tea for a quarter at the citywide garage sale, you can be pretty sure nobody’s trying to poison you.

Actually, I paid the quarter for the tin—it’s adorable, a little red call booth. An ounce of looseleaf in good condition was just a bonus.

I don’t go seeking out tea with bergamot in it. But this, even though I can’t vouch for its age and freshness, is plumb tasty! There’s just enough bergamot to add a happy, lemony little bounce to each taste. Each variety of black tea makes its presence known; maybe a little heavier on the Darjeeling, but the Ceylon and Assam keep it from getting too astringent.

Best 25 cents I’ve spent in a while.

Woke up at 5:30 today.. I would have died if not for this tea. I think I’m gonna make it a regular morning thing. :o woaaah plans …

This tea is a blending of Assam, Darjeeling and high grown Ceylon. I bought this from…you might have never guessed it, but Winners! It’s a popular store in Canada that focuses on clothing, but sells a ton of other stuff as well including stuff like this! This is just like the Earl Grey from Twinings, but is slightly better because I get a flavor that is full and a bit heavier towards the Assam taste(which I prefer over the other teas in the blend). The bergamot is certainly there, but to a less extent than the Twinings, which I feel is the perfect amount of it I would like. As someone else has mentioned, the hexagonal shaped tea caddy is amazing to look at. Mine features a drawing called “Teachers Outing” by Peter Szumowski.

Add: This tea does get a pretty sharp and bitter taste when brewed for too long. 3 minutes or less steep time is ideal. After my initial taste note, I found that it is a bit too floral for my tastes, so I don’t drink it as often. I guess I can safely say that I’m not much of a fan of any bergamot flavor added teas, including Earl Grey of course.

Add: I now have a totally different thought about my initial verdict saying that this was better than the Twinings Earl Grey. The Twinings one somehow just has a more refreshing citrusy taste which is also more sweet while not getting bitter. I definitely prefer the Twinings now.

Brilliant.

Definitely one of my favourites, ideal for breakfast, with a strong but fruity taste. It is a total classic in Iran, that is the place where I discovered this brand!

I bought this for the cute-as-hell little red double-decker bus tin. I’m reviewing this from memory, so I don’t recall steeping time, temp, or those details, since it was probably a year and a half ago I finished the last bag. I do remember it wasn’t as strong a black tea as I generally like. Others have mentioned Assam, but I think there was more Ceylon, since my experience is Assam is a stronger black tea (and I LOVE Ahmad Barooti Assam). This was definitely more delicate, which is how I’ve experienced Ceylon teas. Likewise, I remember being surprised when reading the label that it was supposed to have bergamot in it, since it didn’t taste like Earl Grey to me at all. Still, it was a nicely civilized tea, clean with a smooth finish, and I did enjoy it, even if it seemed weak to me. (And while I don’t remember specific steeping times or temps, I do remember preparing it the way I usually would Assam, and it was nowhere near as strong.) And now I’ve got the cute tin!

I enjoy this with chocolate digestives or Marie biscuits – both soften well on dunking!

My favorite part is the cute tin it comes in.