Upton Tea Imports

Very astringent, but not bitter. Definitely a tea for milk. Nice beginning to the day but not destined to be a favorite.

Wow, talk about an unusual looking tea. Just look at the picture of the leaves, or in this case, maybe stones is more appropriate. It’s a dull green color, and looks exactly like the foam that florists use to make arrangements. It has a chalky (not shiny) appearance and each stone is the size of a large pea. When you brew it, you expect it to unfurl right? Well it doesn’t! The tea is named Oolong but obviously looks green.

How does it taste? Like a very very light oolong with a hint of ginseng but also some green tea attributes. It has a hint of spiciness (the same way ginger is spicy) that rubs the back of your throat. I normally don’t think tea has much of a smell or at least anything to write about but this one has a nice floral aroma!

A must try!

Not loving it as much today as before. I don’t know if I am just not in the mood or what. Bumping down a bit. I did have this with stir-fry a few nights ago and thought that the food overwhelmed the oolong.

I love this oolong. It’s the kind of oolong that reminds me of sitting in a Chinese restaurant drinking cup after cup of tea. I was worried what it was roasted and thought it would be smoky verging on bbq but it is not all. There might be a little smokiness in the background but it is not a big component. There is a bit of peach and jasmine flavors. There is no grassiness in the taste. The smell is a little smoky and a little vegetal. Really a nice oolong.

I’m gonna save the rest of this sample for stir-fry dinner later in the week (and I’ll pull out the chopsticks too).

I got this as a sample when I ordered some supplies from Upton. I think I will order more of this one.

I didn’t realize I had tasted this about a year ago but here’s a new harvest/batch. The leaves are quite large so it brews exceptionally clean/clear. Color is a light molasses or a dark honey, depending on your experience. Pleasing aroma but it’s very faint. There’s a slight acidity at the back of my tongue. Little to no aftertaste. I am really enjoying how approachable this is. Would be a good tea for people getting into Darjeelings.

4.5 grams for an 8-10 oz cup of boiling water. This is an intense tea. Dark and malty with heavy tanins on the back of the tongue. Medium viscosity, good coating. Definitely a morning wake up tea, that’s why I am having it right now (1030A). The color is dark caramel but almost red in hue. Great Darjeeling.

I love Moroccan mint tea. I can’t deny it. I have to admit I think it’s very suspect of Upton, whose tea I drink almost exclusively, to source their mint tea from Germany. I am sorry but what does Germany know about tea? Anyway, this is actually a good tasting tea. It’s a blend and my feelings about tea blends are similar to my feelings about Scotch blends, though I am easing up on both. This tea brews up very cleanly – little to no residual leaves or “dustings” at the bottom of the mug. The color is a light golden and there’s a hint of acidity on the front of the tongue. There is an underlying tone of tanins but nothing like you’d get in a darker tea. The mint is very subtle but is definitely present. This is an extremely relaxing tea and I wish I could on a comfortable sofa right now instead of my office chair.

Backlog:

There are two listings for this tea here on Steepster, but since I’ve already written about this tea on this listing, I went with this one.

I like this tea quite a bit. Yeah, it’s on the smoky side, but the smoke notes are soft and don’t interfere with the bergamot notes. A slight malty note to the tea as well, with hints of chocolate. Notes of grapefruit are slightly stronger than the bergamot notes. It’s a really nice medley of flavors.

Finishing up the last of this sampling that Doulton sent me. Thank you! You are so kind!

I really like this tea – I think I may even like the smoky quality to it! And that’s not an easy feat. I notice that the smokiness is more in the aroma than in the flavor though. If I smell the tea before I sip (which I normally do) the taste is much smokier than if I sip without a deep inhale. But… I don’t find the smoky flavor here unpleasant – quite the opposite, actually.

I use a little extra leaf and steep a little less time than the brewing parameters suggest… and the tea comes out perfectly for me.

Another gift from Doulton – What a great package she sent me!

I was a little concerned when I first read on this tea, as it is a “Russian” Earl Grey – and that typically communicates to me “smoky.” But, after smelling the tea I could detect no strong smoky scent – a slight smokiness, yes, but, not a strong smoky scent – I decided to go ahead and brew some and give it a try.

I’m glad I did! This is delightful. As the company description reads on this tea – it’s a departure from traditional earl grey. I can taste the grapefruit notes, which are in perfect harmony with the bergamot! The slight smoky scent translates into the brewed liquor as well, but again, it is not a strong, smoky flavor.

Pleasantly robust with a bright, vigorous flavor – this would be an excellent tea for one of those mornings that I’d rather not be awake, but have to be! (Kind of like this morning was! haha) A dry astringency to the tea, but not unpleasantly so.

I did not brew it as long as the steeping suggestions recommend – and I’m glad I didn’t. I feel that at 2 1/2 minutes, this tea is strong and flavorful, but, I fear that at 5 minutes I would have had a bitter tasting cup.

This is one that I would consider buying – but you know what? It’s not one that I would have considered buying before this tasting. I MUST get over my predisposition to automatically dismiss a Russian blend. Russian blends are good!

A white tea with a hint of vanilla in the background. The vanilla is very very subtle. The smell is a little grassy. The aftertaste is a bit sour. I thought I would like this one more. Glad it is only a sample size.

I was worried since there are rose petals in the tea, but those don’t seem to add any flavor and just look pretty in the mix.