I got a tin of this by accident – thought I had ordered the Marco Polo black while trying to find a suitable alternative to my favorite TWG 1837 Black, which I usually pick up while on business trips in Asia. I was not disappointed one bit, however, once I opened the tin and took that first whiff of the leaves. The ripe and dark berry smell was magic!! Blueberries, blackberries, elderberries, black raspberries, loganberries.. all muddled with some flower blossoms… but, I thought.. will this go as well with green tea as with black?
Surprisingly well, it appears. There are two reasons this doesn’t get a 90+ score from me, however. The liquor has a lot more floral notes to compliment the berries when compared to my beloved 1837 black, which has caramel notes instead of floral. However, this is not a terribble thing because sometimes I want a bit more flowers in my berry-green but not jasmine, and this tea hits the spot perfectly. The second reason it’s not a 90+ is that I only really get 2 solid infusions out of this at 175 (2 mins, 1 min), and they need to be combined post-brew into 1 batch for a good balance. The first infusion has the green tea flavor way too faint, and by the second steeping the floral notes are mostly gone and berry notes completely gone. A third steeping (at 2 mins) produces a mild, weak green tea. I haven’t taken this beyond 3 infusions.
I can’t wait to try the Marco Polo black tea after this though…
Flavors: Berries, Flowers, Fruit Tree Flowers
