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“2024 sipdown no. 54 This is a really lovely EG. The yuzu is mostly apparent in a slight peppery scent once steeped, though I didn’t find a lot of it in taste. The bergamot is mellow here and...” Read full tasting note
“Finally trying another of my loose leaf selections from Murchie’s. I keep getting distracted by the cute teabag boxes sitting in front ha ha… This is quite lovely though. Very citrusy and bright...” Read full tasting note
“As I literally said just tonight, I love getting to taste all the different ways tea companies twist and play with the established expectations surrounding classic tea blends, like Earl Grey. So...” Read full tasting note
Adding a squeeze of yuzu for a light and citrusy redux of the classic Earl Grey. Native to east Asia, yuzu is often described as tasting like a cross between a mandarin orange and a grapefruit. We think this is an apt description. Bright and flavourful, it balances masterfully with bergamot and lemon, leaving you with a refreshing tea (hot or iced!) that’s modern and new but still unmistakably an Earl Grey. This one’s sure to be a classic.
The flavours dominate but don’t overpower the tea, and the Darjeeling and Ceylon come through fresh and a bit biscuity. Medium-bodied, brisk, with top notes of bright mandarin, sweet orange and grapefruit, and an aftertaste of bergamot. This tea is even more citrusy as it cools, making a very refreshing iced tea.
Ingredients: Black tea (Keemun, Darjeeling, Nepal, Ceylon), calendula petals, orange peel, natural and artificial flavouring, bergamot oil.
Since 1894, Murchie’s has been importing and blending the finest quality teas from select gardens around the world. As the decades have passed, the art of tea blending and tradition of excellence are handed down along with the old recipes. Today, Murchie’s offers traditional products and classic blends while also developing new combinations for a new generation of tea drinkers. We are proud to provide blends for events and occasions, from local landmarks to national observations and royal milestones.
2024 sipdown no. 54
This is a really lovely EG. The yuzu is mostly apparent in a slight peppery scent once steeped, though I didn’t find a lot of it in taste. The bergamot is mellow here and doesn’t have an edge, which is quite nice. The base is smooth and overall this tea steeps up very well.
Thank you Cameron!
Finally trying another of my loose leaf selections from Murchie’s. I keep getting distracted by the cute teabag boxes sitting in front ha ha…
This is quite lovely though. Very citrusy and bright on a somewhat smoother base than usual – maybe the Darjeeling and Nepal black teas are helping curb the Ceylon a bit. I will say, it lacks that distinct piney note that I associate with yuzu, and because of that it’s reminding me more of a mix of grapefruit, orange, lemon, and bergamot. But I almost prefer that really, as sometimes I find yuzu to be a touch overbearing when it’s very prominent.
Lovely extra-citrusy Earl, and it’s making me miss Troika from Kusmi. :P
Flavors: Bergamot, Citrus, Citrus Zest, Grapefruit, Lemon, Orange, Smooth, Tangy, Tart
As I literally said just tonight, I love getting to taste all the different ways tea companies twist and play with the established expectations surrounding classic tea blends, like Earl Grey. So when AJ shared this was one of their newer blends it IMMEDIATELY went on my to purchase list!
After I had unpacked on Friday morning, this ended up being the first tea from my large trip haul that I steeped up – the curiosity was too strong, and an EG on a Friday morning was just speaking to me conceptually. Yuzu is really interesting to me as an addition to EG for a few reasons – it’s been a pretty trendy flavour the last few years as part of a wave of Asian inspired flavours becoming more popular within North America. This is in tandem to many other trends, like a drive towards citrusy or tropical notes as people both clamour for global escapism post pandemic and seek out tastes that convey “happiness” through their brightness or acidity. Though I think Yuzu, in particular, is sort of cresting in the trend curve right now…
So for all of those reasons, it’s neat to see a more ‘Asian flavour’ with this modern trend backing it up coupled with something so classic and grounded in British tea drinking culture. Then, from a culinary side, it just makes a world of sense to me that these two citruses (Yuzu and Bergamot) would work so well together as both are highly aromatic with a lot of essential oil pay off and such depth to their floral yet zesty kind of profiles. True to my expectations, it does work reaaaallllyyyy well side by side. The citrus is lively on the palate but grounded due to those denser (and, in the case of the yuzu, almost peppery) and somewhat pithy notes. Still, there’s brightness to the top of each sip that keeps the cup from feeling sullen.
I’ve also tried AJ’s Royal Grey, which I like a lot too, but this one takes the cake for me. I just thought it was so impressively well balanced while really honoring both of these main flavours. Murchie’s is one of those companies that could probably put out a dozen EG teas in a year without their core customer base growing tired of them, so I’m really intrigued to see whatever spin on an EG AJ comes up with next!
There’s something very “grounding” about Earl Grey variations. You could make a very wild mix of interesting flavours and have it seem just a little too ‘out there’ to work, but if you tack ‘Grey’ on the end, it brings it more down to earth; it’s suddenly ‘comfortable and familiar, but with a modern twist’.
Bergamot in general I feel rounds out other fruit flavours well. I call it a very ‘bassy’ citrus.
I didn’t really get yuzu from this either, but loved the extra citrus notes! :)