52 Tasting Notes
This is one of the better, if not the best, Darjeeling teas I’ve had. I’ve not had enough to know if I like first flush, second, or some other option, but this is good. I still like Assam teas better, but this is very enjoyable.
It is more astringent than the Assams I usually drink, which may be why I lean more toward those, but this has a great taste while drinking it and a lovely aftertaste, too.
Preparation
As described by MF, this is a very good morning tea. I don’t know that it awakened the warrior in me, but it was a smooth blend in which no one type of tea stands out to me. The crushed leaves allows more flavor to come out because there is much more surface area, but I suspect it also allows for the use of lesser quality teas. It also didn’t require quite as much as a teaspoon per cup when I weighed it on my gram scale.
Preparation
The MF description is “over the top” and makes this sound like one of the best teas ever. This is good, but it is much more like a green tea than I expected. It has a lot of depth and many good features, though, and it is a tea I will enjoy many more times.
Preparation
This is a very good Assam tea. It should be at the price MF charges for it. It was not as malt-forward as many Assams, which at first caused me to question whether it could be my “favorite” Assam tea. Its astringency is less than others, too.
This first time, I followed the Mariage Freres instructions. I suspect that the five minutes step time may have been too long for my tastes, I’ll look forward to another taste soon.
The second infusion of this tea was for 6 minutes. It had more of the initial malty flavor like most Assam teas.