Your favorite Ceylons
One type of black tea that I feel sorely undereducated on is Ceylons. This makes me sad, because I see from reviews that a lot of them tend to have caramely, sugary, berry tastes, which are all things I love and would love to find in an unflavored tea.
Golden Moon’s Sinharaja and Mighty Leaf’s Ceylon Kenilworth are two that have been on my to try list for awhile. Any other recommendations?
I haven’t tried Mighty Leaf’s product, but I’ve found I tend to like what Kenilworth has to offer.
I don’t really know much about Ceylon teas, either… They do have a place in the tea world, though, and I’ve found myself on some occasions craving them.
If it helps expand your knowledge at all, it’s where Sir Thomas Lipton started his tea empire, after Sri Lanka’s coffee crop fell to widespread disease.
Sinharaja is the best Ceylon I’ve ever had. The only other one’s I’ve tried are Adagios and Andrews & Dunhams.
I really like Adagio’s Ceylon Sonata. However, I believe in some of your tasting notes you have said you don’t like Adagio’s “yucky black tea base”… well they normally use Ceylon as the base for most of their flavored black teas. Thus, you may not like Ceylon Sonata…
Plucker’s Pick Brunswick Ceylon BOP (broken orange pekoe) is another favorite of mine. I made iced tea with this stuff last summer… those were good times.
Sinharaja is really excellent. I’ll credit Carolyn for turning me onto that one, and I recently ordered a tin because I had to have more of it.
I recently got some of Samovar’s Ceylon and I think it’s really very good as well. It’s got great depth, full-bodied, nice black tea flavor, with a kind of ripe raspberry taste to it.
Best of luck on your Ceylon search!
Dilmah. They have four Ceylon teas all grown at different altitudes, all with a different flavor. Lover’s Leap, the one grown at over 5.000 feet, has the characteristics of a high grown Darjeeling but with more tannin. Fruity and luscious. The lowest grown in my favorite, dark as bittersweet chocolate with strong tannins and no bitterness. I love strong tea.
Dilmah also has green Ceylon tea and Earl Grey with a Ceylon base. It has all the bergamot, but with the zing of Ceylon. Really nice.
Ceylons are the greatest black teas out there. I bought a bulk order last year and am still working my way through it. Favourite? Inverness Estate Pekoe by a mile.
If we’re reviving this thread, my favourite Ceylon right now is Lumbini Estate from Capital Tea Ltd. I love the chocolate cherry notes. I also like a large leaf one I get at the polish grocery store it is really sugary and fruity. I want to try this one as well.
http://www.capitaltea.com/shop/product.php?productid=247&cat=3&page=1
Thank you for the recommendations. As I think I’ve mentioned in a different post, I really don’t understand Ceylon teas. All of the ones I’ve tried (numerous district versions, mostly from Upton Tea) seem very robust, but not hugely flavorful. I’ve jotted notes like “eh, not so exciting. better with milk.” Several of you are raving about Ceylon teas, so clearly I have just not tried the right ones. Looks like I’ll have to put in an order (oh, woe is me).
Login or sign up to leave a comment.