Black Bear Tea Company

Tastes bad man. I already hate black tea, and the orange in this tea didn’t distract me at all.

I picked up this delacacy while in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, at the recommendation of Kappi, a very nice and accommodating salesperson. The Black Bear tea company is worth visiting in the mall.

It is a broken grade tea, I wasn’t expecting too much from the character of the leaves. This can be quite deceiving in broken grades of tea, and in this case, it most certainly was. I was treating my palate to a wonderful peach undertone with this tea, followed by a caramel-malt finish. It had a very full mouth feel, yet managed to retain a delicacy I was not expecting for the grade. I belive the website describes it as ‘self-drinking’, and rightly so – I empty a pot very quickly! I do wish the third brew was a touch stronger, but I was pleasantly surprised at the flavour of the second, whereupon I found the peach a bit more distracting.

>NOTE: For those of you who would like to, stop by the Aegis area at World Steam Expo, where this is one of the teas I’ll be brewing for the heck of it. In fact, bring by teas to share, and I’ll share some of my own!

I honestly don’t understand all the hype behind Earl Grey tea. I dislike the taste of bergamot that is used in the Earl Grey recipe. It tastes more like licking a rusty pipe than it does an orange. That is why I have been on the hunt to find a really good orange flavored black tea.

While vacationing in Tennessee last week, I came across the Black Bear Tea Company in the Mountain Mall in Gatlinburg. As soon as I spotted the Black Orange tea, I picked it up… no hesitation.

I am home from vacation and finally get to see if I made a good purchase. Indeed, I did! The taste is quite mellow for a black tea. The orange is obviously the key note but it is not overwhelming – I can still taste the black tea. The brew is sweet and tangy, not bitter, but a little astringent. I bet this would be incredible iced!

The only bad thing is… I can’t find this blend on their website. :(