Black Tea

Backlog:

I’m not sure if the leaves for this tea were actually roasted, but they do have a distinct roasted flavor to them. The roasted flavor reminds me a bit of coffee, but without the coffee bitterness (and the coffee side effects that I usually feel a couple of hours after drinking coffee.)

Rich, earthy, malty, and sweet. There is a slight “cocoa-ish” sort of flavor to it too that is accentuated by the roasty notes. Caramel notes, nutty tones, smoke, toast, and earth. It’s a really enjoyable, complex cuppa.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/01/30/black-tea-shan-valley/

I did 1 1/2 tsp/10 oz for this one, and since it was already pretty dark I went with a short steep. This is…not for me, I think. The leaves are small and it brews up dark, almost like coffee. The taste is malty and strong and I can almost taste the caffeine, but the overall flavor is kind of boring. It’s not offensive at all, and it’s smooth and not bitter like I expected, but that’s about all I can say. To the swap pile the rest goes.

This tea was earthy and sweet with nutty notes and a mild fruitiness. Smoky notes in the background rounded out the flavor profile, adding a nice balance. It had a bold astringency but did not become bitter when left to steep for too long the first time around (oops!).

http://www.teaformeplease.com/2013/10/shan-valley-black-tea.html

Let me start by saying that I am not a huge fan of basic black teas. I tend to like fruity, flavored and spicy teas. The aroma is fresh and roasty. I also think I smell some vegetal maybe even asparagus. Interesting. The liquor is dark and looks like coffee. The first taste I had was strong and coffee like. Steepsterites who said that this would be good for people changing from coffee to tea are not wrong. I feel that this has similarities with coffee with out the astringent/bitter taste I associate with coffee. This tea is a bit astringent without being bitter. When I drink most teas I add a sweetener and I felt that I needed to try it with sweetener. I used Stevia which has no calories. I still smell and taste the hint of asparagus, as well as a nice roasty taste. The sweetened black is full bodied and tastes fresh. I wonder how much caffeine in this? I’m betting a lot. I would drink this in the morning but would be a little afraid to drink it later in the day. The bag doesn’t have any instructions for brewing, but it’s not tricky to figure out. It is a black tea after all :D

and the last time….

“I’ve debated a long time about writing this review. I got sent these teas by DCS, because they weren’t to her liking, and I then passed it on as it wasn’t to my liking. This is perhaps the best thing about Steepster. The community.

So, 10 is the grade I would rank for standard tea bag tea. I would rank this tea below that. Probably around a 11. I’m holding off on ranking as I would like to see some more reviews of this tea before I leave such a drastic mark."

Wow, this one packs a bit of a punch! I definitely see the comparison to coffee – the flavor is very bold, and does have a roasty taste. The leaves seemed ground, they were so small, which might account for such a strong flavor. Next time I will try using less leaf, and see if I prefer it. I like strong flavor, but this was a bit intense for me as is! Recommended for people who like a bold cup, or converted coffee drinkers.

Edit: Even using half a teaspoon, the flavor is not really for me. I do see how it could be appreciated, and I am sure coffee drinkers would LOVE this one, but it is a bit too strong for me!

Smells malty, rich, tannic, and robust.

First sip, while hot, tastes bright, light and ends with astringency.
After allowing it to cool, it takes on a fuller and mellower tone with chocolate and coffee notes.

T&C TTB Round 2

This may have suffered from being in the TTB, I don’t know. Initial thoughts on smelling the liquor is pu-erh. Being CTC it was pretty much an insta-steep. As soon as I got the water in the cup I took out the infuser basket. It was okay. I didn’t get much of anything like others have noted. It was just similar to some not very good pu-erhs (the reason I haven’t expanded much into them). Dusty, odd and drying.

Thank you to carol who for this sample tea. I am sorry it took me so long to get around to trying it.

I decided to steep this at 175 F for 3 minutes. I was a bit nervous as the tea is a fine CTC and sometimes they can be very robust but the lower steeping temp. probably helps. This tea has a lot of interesting flavors in the cup. There is a bit of smoke, spicy flavor and some apricot fruitiness as well. I can drink this plain, which is good! I get a hint of tobacco flavor too but it doesn’t seem bitter. Overall, a very interesting tea which makes me want to try more things from Shan Valley. Thanks again — Carol!

This sample came from KiwiDelight. I don’t have a lot of experience with CTC teas, and to be honest, they intimidate me a bit… This one is dark chocolate brown in color and has that coffee grounds look. Dry scent is super mild but I can smell a hint of apricot. I steeped the teaspoon of leaf for 2 minutes in 10 ounces of 200 degree water (I was worried about it being too strong).

The liquor has a surprisingly fruity aroma (apricots) with malt and a touch of mineral. This actually came out a bit weak, which surprised me. The most prominent notes are apricot and malt, and there is a bit of a mineral taste. I realize I used too much water with this one, but I much prefer that to it coming out a bitter mess. Pretty tasty. :)