Autumnal Ruby Darjeeling Organic Black Tea

Another of the samples I received in my black tea sampler ordered from Vahdam. This is a Darjeeling blend.

I steeped this tea for 4 minutes, using 6 grams of dried leaves in 18 ounces of water. The color of the brewed liquor came out looking like bourbon—medium brown.

The only aroma I found with the brewed tea was floral. It was definitely appealing. The floral aroma followed into the tea’s flavor—present, but not too overpowering. I also picked up flavors of muscatel grapes and wet rocks. It was slightly astringent as well, but that could be from over-steeping. I’d have to try a second steeping to find out. But, I can’t do that with this sample since I used the whole sample with this steeping. :(

Overall, this was another quality tea from Vahdam, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I have some of the others. That comment should not be taken as disparaging, as this was very good. I have been happy with Vahdam’s products so far—each Darjeeling has been similar enough to the others in the batch, yet unique in its own way. I am definitely enjoying these samples and getting some good ideas for future orders.

NOTE: The package was marked as packed in November, 2016.

While this tea is a little bolder than the first flush I drank a few minutes ago it is not a real strong black tea but still a somewhat lighter taste to it. It had a sweet note with only a little bitterness and no astringency. There were fewer green leaves as in the first flush but there still were some. I don’t know if this tea is 100% oxidized like a regular black tea. It is quite good.

This is a very good tea that I would buy again for sure.

I steeped this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker with 3 tsp leaf and 190 degree water for 3 minutes.