Premium Keemun teas from China blended with high elevation Ceylon teas. I drove 70 miles to pick this tea up at the warehouse. I am not disappointed. This is a loose leaf rotovane tea but it is not dust. This is quality tea blended to perfection. The leaf smells very rich and sweet like fruit and reminds me of a good tobacco. I don’t smoke – that is not the point. It smells so good I could inhale it all day but then I would miss drinking it. The brew is a very clear medium dark and there is no sediment in the bottom of the cup. I am not a big fan of straight black teas. This is one of the few I could drink everyday. I haven’t tried it iced but it would probably be great. There is no bitterness. There is no heavy aftertaste. The Ceylon is a solid foundation for the Keemun to build upon. It adds a fruitiness after the sip. I can chug this or sip it. I can drink it hot or let it reach room temperature. It is just good. Highly recommend especially if you think you don’t like unflavored black tea. You can get two cups from 1 tsp by steeping the first cup 3 minutes and the second for 6 minutes, with only a little flavor loss on the second cup.
I have to add an addendum. I went looking for this particular tea because I had a box of Twinings English Afternoon I really liked. It’s a bagged version of Ceylon Keemun blend. I wanted loose. After drinking two cups of ETS loose, I brewed a cup of Twinings to compare. It is kind of like chimpanzees and humans. We may share 97% DNA but that 3% makes all the difference in the world. The Twinings dust colored the brew almost immediately. It lacked the fullness and range of flavor but left an aftertaste. It had an annoying bite felt on the sides of the tongue and roof of the mouth. I poured out about half a cup. Just couldn’t finish it. This is a bit of an aha moment. For about the same money, Empire Tea Services blew the doors off Twinings.
