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Tea ordered on Sunday night and arrived Tuesday morning. The service I have had from Canton Tea Co. has been superlative throughout my dalliance with them and their products. So, what does one do when the tea arrives so quickly? The answer has to be “drink it.” Given my predilection for Darjeelings and my dearth of same over the past few months, there was clearly only one choice for my first taste of this new batch of teas: Arya Diamond. I have tried and enjoyed all the other Arya jewel teas, so I was particularly excited about this one.

The newly opened packet did not disappoint. An earthy, floral aroma wafted out and got my taste buds tingling. The leaves I deposited in my teapot reminded me of an autumn forest: light greens, russets, dark browns. The colour was delightful. Then I brewed it. the leaves all turned a mid-reddish brown. If only I had my Munsell chart, I could have given you an exact colour match. The tea itself has the taste of Autumn too. It is fruity with a slightly heavy muscatel feel to it and there is a nuttiness behind all that. Probably not enough nuttiness to persuade my beloved to ignore the floral elements, but it does provide a beautiful contrast. As it cools, an astringent note creeps in, but nothing too distracting. The aftertaste is lovely too. I feel like my breath is now all sweet plums and red grapes. Yes, I like this tea and think it belongs near the top of the list of my favourite Darjeelings. It’s tough to say which is my absolute favourite though. I think I need to go back and taste them all in rapid succession. Now, where did I put my credit card?