The Earl's Garden

Toted 16 oz of this along with me to tutoring today after dressing it up with a little milk and the juice of a tiny wedge of lemon. The blend itself is gorgeous and seeing the little blue petals fall out of the bag I’ve left untouched for nearly a year had me wondering how I could have avoided this one for so long.

I really care for bergamot in general, and it’s there with a perfume-y presence right at the nose, both with the dry blend and the lingering scent of the brewed tea. The lemon wedge brings this fragrance through to the taste, and the milk offsets the acidity of the black leaf. The drinking experience, with the dairy factored in, is something of a Strawberry Creme Saver—remember those?

This is definitely one of DAVID’s better blacks, but I think I’d like to sample higher-end earls before purchasing this one again. Any recommendations out there?

I was starting to resent this tea. This tea was keeping me from drinking better teas. This tea was keeping me from drinking newer, better, more interesting teas. It was taking up valuable space in my cupboard! It had to go.
And so, today, it did. I brewed it up, and kicked it to the curb.
Bye bye, Earl’s Garden. Get lost.

Cold Brew from yesterday…

This one doesn’t have the worst flavour in the world, I just wish that the strawberry notes were a lot less artificial tasting. Add on top of that the fact that, even as a cold brew, it comes out astringent as heck.

Need to start looking for a new flavoured Earl Grey alternative… Suggestions?

So fruity and strong! So so so good.
Not bitter or astringent at all. Aroma is intense!
Second steep was great. Probably could’ve gone for a third.

A delicious fruity earl grey. I love it with milk and it’s also divine in earl grey shortbread cookies.

The strawberry flavor is strong with this one. Colleagues can smell it when I am drinking a cup in the same room.

I’m on a huge earl grey kick right now. I’m also pretty passionate about floral teas. What could be better than mixing two of my favourite things?

Lots, probably. It’s not something I was thinking of when I delved into the 100g can right from the get-go. Note to self: Samples are always a good way to go.

This is a backlog tea. I’ve had it several times cold-steeped and hot-steeped.

Nose: Can someone bottle this up and sell it? It smells divine.

Flavour (boiled): 1.5 tsp per cup of boiled water. This tea started off well, like a sweeter, tangier earl grey. Then, a wall of astringent bitter strawberry flavour hits me. I like my earl grey with milk and sugar. This one, no. Berries and milk do not mix. It’s like a warm, sour strawberry milkshake. No, no, no. Never again with the milk.

Flavour (cold-steeped): 3tsp per 2 cups of cold water, left to steep in the fridge overnight. The astringent taste is much more muted. It’s intensely flavoured. There are bits of floral and bits of bergamot. I like this one with a bit of sugar. I think the sugar tastes a bit like rock sugar with the sweet undertones of the tea. It would definitely make a lovely iced tea.

I think I’ll save this one to do cold steeps only, or I’ll try lowering the water temperature. The hot water seems to mess with the flavours.

EDIT: I’ve just learned that DAVID’s perfect tea spoon is meant for two cups of water, not one. I think I’ve been steeping the wrong amount for the past two years.

Steeped with the proper amount of leaves, it’s alright. I think I’ll just finish the tin and return to my regular earl grey.

I liked this one. It’s fruity and refreshing and tasty and light…. love it!

I tried this hot, but I think it would be much better iced. The floral notes overpowered the fruity ones a wee bit, and I couldn’t taste the bergamot at all. It was however sweet and pleasant. Reminder to self : Iced tea is OK. Tea pop is not.

I tried a sample of this despite the fact that I’m not a fan of Earl Grey. It’s not bad. I wouldn’t purchase it because I’ve recently discovered that I don’t enjoy the combination of strawberries and black tea. Also, holy bergamot, Batman! It’s strong, so strong. My cuppa was really bold, despite all the additional flavors/ingredients. I added sweetener and quite a bit of non-dairy milk.

I think I over-steeped it but not toooo much, it’s still good. The black tea tastes is smooth but I dont taste the strawberries that much. It’s nice :)