Decaf Paris

Tea of the late afternoon…….

I could not resist the thought of Decaf Paris, so here it is in my cupboard. I am getting so much more sensitive to caffeine late in the day, and in my opinion, Harney does the best decaf black teas around.

The tea base is good, and I would say the flavor is just slightly more subdued than regular Paris. Totally a winner for me, because I can have my black tea late at night and sleep, too.

Usual mug method, 200 water for 3 minutes. Lightly sweetened.

Backlog- yesterday afternoon’s tea. This came in my last Harney and Sons order. I always liked the original Paris from H&S so I thought I’d try this.

I steeped this for 4 minutes and I think it came out just right. For a decaf it is pretty tasty, I got the vanilla and caramel but I thought I also detected a berry type of flavor. I didn’t pick up much bergamot, which is fortunate since I’m not really a fan. I did end up adding soymilk to this and quite happily finished it. It’s hard to find decaf teas that I really like but this is quite nice. I need to address my insomnia problem and I think cutting back on the caffeine will certainly help. I’m looking forward to cuddling up with this tea one afternoon and reading a good book. :)

I got this one in a swap quite a while ago from SimplyJenW… sorry it took me so long to get to it, and thanks for the tea! I so rarely think of having tea at night, but tonight after taking my inventory I thought I would have some.

Between more tea I discovered at the office in the afternoon, the Verdant Reserve package, and the mostly herbal blends here at home, my final count is 264. Whew!

This immediately smelled Paris-y and lovely. Yum. I might have over-leafed my teapot… I still haven’t figured out the optimal tea amount for this pot. Nevertheless, this tea isn’t bitter, just a little overly perfumy almost. The black tea is definitely decaf, in that there isn’t much flavor to it. But it’s pretty tasty nonetheless, and a nice to have what seems to be a black tea at night.

I picked this up over the weekend from the Millerton shop. I had a tin of regular Paris, but I have no idea where it got to. I might have gifted it to a friend or sent it out in swaps. Anyway I picked the decaf version up because I’ve been getting migraines again and this time I know it’s not from the gluten (as I’ve cut it completely). My doc’s suggestion cut back and try a few decaf cups of tea.

Now I’m still allowed my regular tea…but not the 6-8 cups I was having a day. More like 2 cups…but all the decaf I want…fun. This is only a test, I repeat only a test…thankfully. So I picked this up, because I was determined to have GOOD decaf tea! I can tell you I really don’t notice a huge difference at all. The same fruity flavor, the same everything. So it’s easy to forget that it happens to be decaf.

Bonjour! Paris, decaf, by Harney & Sons is now on my shopping list after I enjoyed a sample of this delicious tea. It is very flavorful: vanilla, caramel, and citrus are the flavors I taste. Also, there is a special flavor that I don’t often taste when having a cup of decaf tea. The flavor is…tea! I love it!

Love love love this one! I ordered a sample size pouch of this with my last order from Harney and Sons bc they had sent me a free sample of the regular Paris and I really liked it, so I figured I would try the decaf version bc I’m always on the look out for a good decaf or tisane. I have found that a lot of decaf teas lack flavor though. Not this one!! Tastes almost exactly like the regular Paris! Very flavorful, smooth berries and citrus over black tea, it all flows together really well. Black teas can be hit or miss with me, it seems that sometimes they are harsh (this could be brewing errors on my part though), but this one is perfect!! I added just a tiny bit of half and half and this was a dessert-y dream! I was able to get 2 steeps out of these leaves and enjoyed the sample so much I ordered more as soon as I got home from work. I have a feeling this is going to be one of those “old faithful” teas, like my citrus lavender sage. So happy I discovered this!! And it’s super cheap!!

Strong, rich flavor (particularly for a decaf). The bergamot flavor is a bit too strong for me. I would enjoy more if the caramel and vanilla came through more. All in all, a tea to enjoy (since I have a 4oz tin) but I doubt that I’ll repurchase.

Got this sample from Dr Jim and finally getting to try it out!

Steeped about 2.5 tsp of it in my XL mug just under boiling for about 5 minutes.

I’m not a usual black tea drinker, but this is nice for a black. I like the vanilla tones and it’s not too bitter even with the long steep time. I could see myself drinking this often on the rare times I reach for a black tea. I’m curious to try it caffeinated just to compare.

April Sipdown Prompt – a tea you give to tea newbies

All I have left is the decaf version of this, and to a tea newbie I would probably give the caf version. Also, this is a tea for the person who is coming to have tea and chat and maybe, just maybe get introduced to tea. I did actually use this about two months ago for a tea newbie who is now outfitted with all sorts of tea things.

If someone is truly interested in tea, I first pepper them with questions before their visit. What foods and drinks do they like? Which do they hate? Any allergies? (Pollen allergy folks can react to chamomile and such.) Then I choose a whole tea flight for them. And coffee drinkers get puerh, and that has only failed to be a favorite one time.

But for a casual visit with someone who says they occasionally drink tea and they really don’t want to “get into” tea, Paris is a great choice. It is Harney’s number two selling tea, right behind Hot Cinnamon Spice which has long held sway as number one. That one is too strong for me – I don’t even like Red Hots, but one question I ask tea newbies is whether they like Red Hots, and if they say yes and I happen to have some HCS on hand for the family members who love it, they get that one, too.

Paris is an Earl Grey family tea, with black currant and caramel flavors added. It is smooth and flavorful, and although I drink it plain it does take milk and sugar very well. It has an elegant feel and can even appeal to most people who dislike Earl Grey.

I need more evening teas! I haven’t been impressed with most of the Harney teas I have tried, so I’m surprised to find I like this one! It has a good EG/bergy flavor that is smooth with something fruity in the finish. A berry of some sort. I like this, I’d buy it again to have more decaf options, but it’s hard to type much right now with a playful feisty bird insisting that hands are for playing with birds, not typing on the computer.