Sampler Sunday! I’m having a migraine today, and after sipping down my White Thunder (a white mint tea) this morning, I decided to try what my doctor suggested and pair pain medication with caffeine this afternoon. Caffeine has never really affected my migraines one way or the other (it’s not a trigger, and has never really helped with vasoconstriction, either) but he thinks during the attack it could help get my pain medication to respond quicker. I’m having major problems getting triptans, the only real abortive therapy out there for migraines, to do anything for me lately.
So, this freebie teabag of Earl Grey from Lupicia. The dry leaf has a strong citrusy scent that reminds me of grapefruit. I probably steeped it a bit longer than I usually steep black teas, so I expect this to be a bit more astringent/stronger than usual and than I typically prefer, but the idea was to try to get a pretty caffeinated cup. It was a nice reddish-brown color and still strongly citrus in aroma.
Surprisingly, the tea itself is pretty smooth, and even has a bit of a malty aroma beneath the strong citrus of the bergamot. The bergamot in this Earl Grey is pretty strong, and I usually prefer bergamot on the lighter side, but I am not finding this unpleasant. The bergamot has a strong lime note to it, with a touch of a tangy lemon zest. It’s hard to pick out the flavors of the black tea beneath the strong bergamot, but I’m getting a bit of malt and molasses. Overall it’s a fairly nice cup for a plain EG.
Flavors: Bergamot, Citrus, Lemon Zest, Lime, Malt, Molasses