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“Advent Day 3 I thought this was lovely! This tastes like actual dried rose petals, rather than rose flavoring. Simple and enjoyable.” Read full tasting note
“Mariage Frères Advent 2021 – Day 3 Yep, this is a nice one! I think MF uses a broken grade of bai mudan for the sachet (as opposed to the Silver Needles pictured); their website supports the...” Read full tasting note
“I put the tea bag from the advent in a jar of water in my fridge and left it there for it looks like 11 days. A lot longer than I had intended, but I’ve been busy. The rose flavor is very bright....” Read full tasting note
“The Tin can says 7 minutes, but I recommend not more than 5 minutes, otherwise the taste won’t be at it’s best.” Read full tasting note
<< Thé Blanc >> Collection
Buds of white tea mixed with tender Oriental rosebuds, symbol of luxury and voluptuousness, evoking tales of love, graceful beauty, and noble feelings…
Tea leaves and flower petals perform a ballet in the cup, producing a floral fragrance and a fresh, velvety taste in the mouth.
The lacquered pink canister with silk-screened silver label holds 20g of flavoured white tea.
PREPARATION ADVICE FOR 1 CUP :
Amount of tea leaves: 5g
Best water temperature: 85 °C
Infusion time: 5-7 min
Company description not available.
Mariage Frères Advent 2021 – Day 3
Yep, this is a nice one! I think MF uses a broken grade of bai mudan for the sachet (as opposed to the Silver Needles pictured); their website supports the tin/satchet discrepancy too.
The sweet, dusky rose flavour is at a perfect level for me (essence of Turkish Delight). While distinct in profile, it’s delicate enough to allow the lighter white tea notes to shine through – including sour lemon, cucumber, and cream notes (faint but good companions to rose). There’s also a hint of pepper. The tea sachet yields a nice golden broth; I’m hoping it will resteep well. I’d potentially pick up more of this as a “fancy” casual drinker, if it were accessible.
Steep Count: 4 (No.2 @ 5min; No.3 @ 7min with a minor temp increase)
Yep, it did it! The rose has a minty undertone along with the pepper on No.2. Life is good. No.3 is pretty light but the rose is delicately “sweet” and there’s more cucumber in the last sips.
Flavors: Creamy, Cucumber, Floral, Hay, Lemon, Mint, Pepper, Rose
Whoa! I didn’t get any of that, just a really nice rose with a hint of white tea! I’m going to have to go for a second steeping while thinking about the flavors you described and see if I can catch them this time.
It definitely has a second steep in it! But your tasting note sums this tea up extremely well; it’s not complex and it would be nice if there was more too it. Like pepper & mint are more a “mouthfeel” I got from the rose, but it’s still just rose at the end of the day? Or, possible (happy) contamination – and I will never know unless I order more. D:
I wish there was more than one serving worth in this advent; MF teas can be super finicky and inconsistent in my experience.
Also.. I know it’s a tea bag with broken leaf, but playing around with the temperature might get the white tea release more flavour, especially in subsequent steeps; it may respond well to 195F/90C or a tad higher.
Oh, that will be interesting! Some of these seem like they’d do well that way. And I hear you on opening the tea bags and tea grade; with the oolong, the dust hasn’t managed to get past my filter but there is more of it then I’d normally like to see. I’ve been spoiled on loose leaf maybe..
I put the tea bag from the advent in a jar of water in my fridge and left it there for it looks like 11 days. A lot longer than I had intended, but I’ve been busy. The rose flavor is very bright. If I think about it really hard I can imagine mint and lemon, but if they are really in this tea they are added in such small quantities to be indistinguishable from the rose. Maybe that is what is special about this blend? Like adding a pinch of salt to something to bring out the flavors without even noticing the salt? I’m trying to be kind, but it’s still not striking me as that special of a tea. Enjoyable yes, but that’s about it.
I’m wondering if the mint I picked up is a cross-contamination from “No.17”. We shall soon find out :P
Oh! Maybe? I love the idea of mint and lemon in a rose tea. I really want it to be there!
lo and behold.. “No.17” contains mint! So there you go. Pretty sure it contaminated “Marco Polo Vert” for me too. :P
I wish MF had given us the rose mint white tea instead of this. If you break down what certain rose types taste like it can have a “mint-like” crispness but not what like I was tasting..
You are an advent physic! I thought of you this morning as I pulled my minty scented sachet from the calendar!
