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“No one in my family is a serious baker (my maternal grandmother casts a long shadow). Once in blue moon cookies may happen. When they do, they come with a warning from my mom: “don’t overuse the...” Read full tasting note
“New tea from the MF website. When it arrived, I opened the bag and recoiled—what perfumed the air was not pleasant to me. A round, pronounced mechanical smell was front and center. I had to wade...” Read full tasting note
A Jardin Premier® black tea, round and silky, blended with velvety gourmet vanilla.
A delicately scented cup.
Company description not available.
No one in my family is a serious baker (my maternal grandmother casts a long shadow). Once in blue moon cookies may happen. When they do, they come with a warning from my mom: “don’t overuse the vanilla. Don’t try to taste the vanilla extract straight up. You will regret it.”
Judging by the profile of this tea, no one ever offered similar advice to Mariage Frères.
The vanilla flavour is intense. Some might say too intense. It’s bold, sharp, vaguely alcoholic, and a stark reminder that vanilla does derive from an orchid and that the orchid in question probably hates you.
It’s just a lot, and there’s nothing to really balance it out. The black tea base isn’t naturally sweet or rich enough to make it feel like a finished dessert bake; it’s malty and astringent, with maybe a hint of something starchy and velvety.
I think the recommended steeping parameters of 95C for 5 minutes are the best bet for this tea. Some milk can help too, as does skipping straight to the second steep. A dab of maple syrup, or the right honey, may also be a welcome addition. Then you arguably have a breakfast raw pancake mix tea. Otherwise, this tea is a bit like eating the raw ingredients sans sugar. It’s like drinking vanilla extract.
Do Not Recommend. But, also – does anyone want this?
Flavors: Astringent, Bread Dough, Brisk, Floral, Malt, Orchid, Silky, Vanilla, Woody
New tea from the MF website. When it arrived, I opened the bag and recoiled—what perfumed the air was not pleasant to me. A round, pronounced mechanical smell was front and center. I had to wade through these strange notes to even discern the vanilla.
Curious minds want to know, so I decided to brew this tea first, before the others in my shipment. I followed the brewing guidelines to a tee, hoping the off-putting aroma would transform into something actually appealing. Nope. There was a bit of false hope on the nose—the overwhelming chemical notes of the tea leaves seemed to soften as the vanilla become more multidimensional. But when I tasted it, with a teaspoon of sugar, I was not a fan. It tasted like how the leaves smelled.
I’m trying to understand if I’m missing something delicate with this tea. It just doesn’t resonate with me. I wish I would have chosen another MF scented black tea that was in my cart.
Bizarre that the company calls it a delicately scented cup and the only,two notes on it on Steepster attest to just the opposite. A friend loved Vanille Des Iles. How did this one go so wrong?