Upton Tea Imports

Really nice and smooth. Not higher rated because the more complex flavors faded fast(ish) after 2-3 steeps, and what was left was a bit more vegetable than I’d want. Though sweet and, really, quite tasty.

Not my favorite oolong. It’s the kind of oolong that tastes mainly like roasted barley. It’s much more complex than that, and if you like that flavor in your oolong, then I think this is a fine tea at a great price. It holds up the nutty, toasty, woodsy flavors through many steeps. I will likely keep some of this around, but may not be on my daily list. There’s a bitterness and a sweetness at the same time.

Another Upton sample. I felt like I needed a wake up, so maybe a strong breakfast tea will do the job? The descriptions virtually requires milk and sugar, so I’m a little worried about the potency, but here goes nothing!
Wow, that is astringent on the back of the tongue! Not quite drying like a green tea, but much too strong for my liking! The overall flavor is much fuller than something like a standard lipton tea bag, and I get the raisins and caramel, but the caramel is burnt. Sugar most definitely helps it out!
This is a bold breakfast tea, but I was not equipped to handle it- it feels a little acidic in my stomach, to be honest. I’ll finish my cup, but probably will give the rest of this sample away.

Up early today, and already on my second tea. Melon flavor with wildflower honey. Transcendent? Maybe not. But the first sip momentarily transported me to … I don’t know where. Someplace other than this -10F Great Lakes winter. Marveling that this is essentially the same leaf as the Assam I had earlier. Marveling that I live in an era where I can have 50+ teas in my house from the other side of the world. Marveling at the craftsmanship and care taken to bring me a simple, hot cup of tea. I guess I know why it costs $0.25/gram mail order retail. Same cost as silver.

Brewed Western-style.

The dry leaf is composed of crunchy-looking, twisty dark green leaves, each around half an inch long. The light green liquor has a medium-body, with a thin texture and a flavor profile of grass and roasted rice, maybe also slightly citrus-like.

Nothing jumps out, but this makes a good casual or every day green tea.

My new favorite complement to Thai food is ginger tea. This tangy root certainly fits the bill. I picked this up during *MissB*’s stash sale a while back. It stands up to spicy food without overwhelming or contradicting it. A touch of honey mellows it out nicely. It also resteeps very well. The second steep is still flavorful but smoother and sweeter than the first.

I also enjoyed this blended with dried lemongrass, orange peel, and mint. Ginger + citrus = yay, and the mint accentuates the crisp, fresh aftertaste of the ginger. The lemongrass came from my friend’s backyard, which I think is just super cool. I have no green thumb whatsoever. I tried to grow cat grass a few years ago and it molded, which I didn’t even realize was a thing that can happen. Add my lack of natural talent to the fact that I live in an apartment with no outdoor space, and suddenly other people’s gardening ability just seems miraculous. Also tasty and rewarding. Yay for friends who are happy to share!

sipdown

Very strong smokey flavor and aroma, my first experience with brewing lapsang on its own, I think this would work well in a blend, but not alone. Like drinking a camp fire.

For me, this tastes fine for a greener and less roasted TGY, and it has an amazing aroma, lots of body. But as you keep steeping, it gets kinda vegetal after tasting. Not bitter, just loses it’s pizzaz.

Can I — someone who spends much of her time writing and reviewing performance evaluations for humans, and someone who has never been “taught” how to evaluate tea — rate a single tea as a 100? I’m thinking maybe.

My favorite part of this tea is how well it holds up to multiple steeps, but still keeps its flavor and aroma. It’s relatively forgiving, steep it for 30s, steep it for 3 min… no biggie, the flavor will be different, but to me it’s still delicious. If I do a <1min steep the first time, there’s some floral and spicy and a tiny twinge of earthy. But that still leaves some of those flavors in there for the next steep, since the leaves won’t be fully unfurled. For me, a longer initial steep results in a sweeter, rounder, complex and more amazing first steep. I can breathe the aroma for days and never get tired of it. While drinking it at work, I can attend meetings and listen to vendors and feel so… detached and zen. I like all of the greener TGY I’ve tried — sweet with a bit of fruit — but this one has just enough nutty and enough of that tiny hint of spice/earth — and lasts thru resteepings — that this one has stood out among the ones I’ve tried so far.

Since this is everything I want from a tea right now, and it comes to about $0.42 per big-ish mug (which I get multiple infusions from), I’m giving it full marks.

Love it. Fruit, citrus, and hibiscus herbal tea. They’ve added some flavoring, but I can’t taste anything artificial, which I love.

From the dry leaves, I got a whiff of raspberries along with the mossy and mineral, it smells really delicious. The brewed tea smells a tiny bit toasty, a bit vegetal, and a bit spicy with the mineral-y in the first steep. Forgot to time the second steep (oops). Still good. After the third steep, the leaves smelled entirely of spinach, but the brew was less vegetal in flavor. Mostly sweet and spice.

I don’t know what chestnuts taste/smell like, so I cannot comment on that. But there was a more nuttiness that came out for me after the first steep.

I’ve put this tea head-to-head with the similarly priced oolongs from the company, and this one is my favorite for the price.

This is #3 out of the 5 earl grey samples I got from Upton teas. I’m trying it as my first cup of tea on a Saturday morning. It’s alright, but still not exactly what I’m looking for. The sip itself is good, but there’s a bit of an aftertaste that’s heavy and bitter. I made a pot, and I’ll drink all of it, but I’m pretty sure this isn’t the one for me. I still like the Blue Flower EG better.

This one was okay, but definitely not as nice as the Upton Earl Grey Blue Flower. I only tend to drink Earl Grey first thing in the morning, and I tried this one at night, so that might be why I wasn’t particularly enamoured with it. The flavour was a bit too citrusy and not chocolatey. This is the kind of tea I’d probably have once in a while for something a little different, but it’s not something I’d want to drink on a regular basis.

Up early on a Saturday to work. Needed a wholesome cup of black. I would call this rich but not bold. There’s some subtle (to me) hints of citrus and sweet flavor. No bitterness for me, which is how I prefer it. Whiffs of toast and lemon. It doesn’t slap you in the face. It’s not too complex. Something for me to put in a travel mug for commuting to work.

This one reminds me a lot of the Silk Road Earl Grey that I used to get. It’s flowery, but not cloying, and it’s a nice first cup of the day. I’m not 100% sure I like the aftertaste, but this is only my first cup, so we’ll see how it stands up against the other Earl Greys available from Upton Tea.

A real nice one! Woody but not in a bad way. I am no connoisseur of wood, but I would say it tastes a bit how cedar might taste. Hints of cherry, but not sweet. Texture is smooth, not chalky.