Grand Goût Russe

Day 14 of the Dammann Freres advent calendar. This is… fine? It’s an Earl Grey with a lime twist. I’m not a big fan of Earl Grey generally, which means I don’t have a great sense for what differentiates a mediocre Earl Grey from an exceptional one. The bergamot and lime citrus are assertive but don’t totally overwhelm the brisk base. There’s nothing in here that tastes off or alcoholic to me. The bergamot hits first, followed by the lime, but the lime is definitely present and works well with the other flavors. I just fundamentally don’t enjoy the bergamot + black tea combo inherent to most Earl Grey blends, so it’s hard to enjoy this one.

Dammann Frères Advent Calendar 2022 – Day 14

Solid citrus black tea and tasty with milk. This went over extremely well in the big communal pot. Bright and malty earl grey-styled teas are always a hit.

Dammann Frères Advent Day 20 (20-February 2021)

This tea is AMAZING. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been dancing around the house all morning to old school tunes that make me think of home and my early 20’s or what.

I really wanted to add this one to my order from December solely due to the fingerlime, which I have a bizarre intrigue with since becoming obsessed with Masterchef Australia many years ago. Alas, I didn’t add it because what if the bergamot didn’t agree with me and 100g…now I just have to place a new order because I love it so much. This is definitely a sign that I need to just live sometimes.

The dry tea had a delightful grapefruit scent. The bergamot is here, but mellowed out. And there’s a hint of sweetness that is perhaps the fingerlime in the background. The base is strong, but also mellow and balanced with the ingredients. Lexa enjoyed her cuppa too, but I loved it so much she donated half of her cup to me so I could enjoy more haha!

Advent 20.

The sachet smells mostly like ruby red grapefruit with bergamot underneath.

Light and refreshing. Smooth, woody and gently mineral-astringent base tea (only Ceylon?) supports well the mildly peppery bergamot, which is evident first, and lime, which shows up more in the aftertaste as floral key lime pie filling. I noticed the bottom of the cup smells like brown sugar and lime.

Second steep has what seems to me like the typical DF flavored black tea mouthfeel: thick and glassy, soft, almost juicy. The bergamot is stronger and akin to grapefruit rind, while the lime seems to have disappeared. My tongue is tingling from the bergamot rind. I like the lighter base tea; heavier blacks often used in Earl Grey tend to upset my stomach.

Maybe a little boring but still well composed. If you like milder Earl Grey and love lime, I’d recommend this. I doubt this would take milk well. Though I don’t add sweeteners to tea, I could see some honey doing wonderful things for this brew.

Sipdown (232)

This is the last of my teas from last year’s full advent calendars. So this feels sorta like an achievement.

As far as bergamot teas go, this isn’t too bad. The bergamot is mild enough and the lime offsets it nicely. It makes for a bright citrus flavor on a smooth base tea. It also has a depth to it that makes it feel like a winter tea despite the citrus flavors.

Advent day 20! Pretty underwhelmed by this tea. So much citrus in the DF advent. Pretty standard lemon black tea.

#adventageddon Day Twenty – 1/6

Today was awesome, but not because of the advent teas. No, what was really amazing was finally meeting VariaTEA in person after seven years of tea swaps! We met up at the DT office where I got to give her a tour (and tease some upcoming teas) and have a quick little Gongfu session as well as a QC tasting, and then I gave her a frankly absurd amount of tea samples – followed by some poutine! It was absolutely lovely meeting you in person!!

Of course, I asked for hot water at the restaurant because I still had advent teas to get through today even it was the last day of work at the office before our holiday break and I was spending the afternoon with VariaTEA – this was the only bagged advent tea that I had left at this point, so it’s the one I made.

To be honest it wasn’t unpleasant but it was a little bit boring. I don’t know why there have been so many advent days where it’s just felt like the flavour profiles selected by tea companies have just overlapped, but there were two Earl Grey blends in today’s selections. This was definitely the better of the two (the other being Tea Revv’s Ice Cream Earl Grey) but I didn’t think there were any unique or differentiating notes in the cup. It was a good lunch tea, I suppose – since it was a reliable but typical EG profile.

Sachet version.

I took it out of golden and woderful bag, and a lime aroma struck me. Then there were some bergamot notes too.

Tea itself have malty aromas, bit of citrus fruits, maybe even bit of smokiness.
Quite dark, copper colour. Clear.

In taste it is actually quite sweet. The lime flavour is really strong, but then a bergamot appears. I expected tea base much stronger. Overall, it is smooth, refreshing black tea. Enjoyable.

2020 Advent calendar – Day 20. Another one where I am in the minority. Lime and bergamot. Light, fresh, and not heavy in the bergamot department even, and yet it’s still not for me.Intellectually, I know this tea is good. Husband and daughter both love it and we even have a full can of it, but it’s just not my taste.

Day 9 of the Dammann Freres Advent Calendar

When I saw ‘Russe’ I imagined a Russian Caravan type smoky tea. Boy, was I wrong. This is bergamot. Or, as I think of it, Blechamot. However, the Earl Gray factor is pretty mild. I do get a hint of bright lime, although it is quite muted for me, which is a shame, as I think I would like that.

So this tea is not one I would order, but I’m glad to have tried it. I think someone who enjoyed a mild Earl Gray would quite like this one. There is no astringency to it or bitterness. Even with the bergamot I finished the cup. If a friend served this I would be able to drink it with some enjoyment.