English Breakfast Black Tea

This blend is the first tea I’ve drunk with milk since discovering real tea. I was looking for something to stand in place of the typical English cut-tear-crush teabag tea I would sometimes drink. This blend is just the job.

I finished a sample pouch of this tonight. Yes, tonight. Night. In fact, I never even drank this with breakfast. I did stop by the bougie bakery on my way home from the grocery earlier for a banana bread accompaniment. I don’t know anything about English Breakfast tea beyond teabags drank too long ago to remember the flavor. Forgive me, my English sistren and brethren.

Gone grandpa. 2tsp/Seattle rainy day mug/water off-boiling/nocreamnosugar

This is a mix of Yunnan, Vietnam and Kenya black teas. Sample pouch has spots of golden down from the Yunnan black. Dry leaf smells delicious, like a woody hot cocoa. The brew, from what I can tell is pretty dark and also smells like woody hot cocoa. Tastes about the same, smooth and sweet with a little bit of malt, leather, rose and spice. Mouthfeel is full and very round, slick with cream. I bet some unsweetened almond milk in this would taste divine. Dairy milk or cream might make it too slick. Never sugar for me, but I bet it would be good. Gets a little astringent at the back of the mouth if left to sit but I like it. Spent leaf is bulky, so I recommend against using any kind of teaball doohickie. Got 5-6 top-offs with a definite caffeine kick. Should’ve eaten more food as I ended up getting shaky. I can see it being great for getting moving in cold weather.

I have no comparison to other English Breakfast blacks but this is really good. Thanks a lot for the sample.

This is a really nice breakfast blend. It’s malty and rich, with a little sweetness. Not a lot of the higher-end EBs tempt me away from my usual bagged standards, but this one just might.

I am really glad that I took a “gamble” and ordered a few of the blends that What- Cha offers. When I sniffed What-Cha’s English Breakfast blend in the bag, my eyes got big (like cartoon eyes, I’m sure!) Cocoa!!! Stonefruit!! Malt!! Rah! Rah! Rah! The leaves were large, dark and twisty, a wonderful sign of things to come, I hoped….. and I was right! The blend of Kenyan Orthodox, Assam, Nepal and 2 types of Ceylon creates a dark amber liquor that smells of toasted grains and biscuits, malt, and a “lurking” of cocoa. I over-leafed this tea on purpose, and the cup I poured for myself was STRONG and GOOD. Milk and honey added that comfort feeling that I love so much in UK blends. The Nepal tea brings a woodsy rose note to this tea that is unexpected, and I LOVE that in a tea! This is a nicely rounded cup with some expected (malt, toasty grains, light astringency) and unexpected (woodsy, rose) notes that English blend-lovers should try. The smaller boutique tea purveyors like What-Cha that produce blended teas are helping me understand more about what goes into blends and how creative they can be when done on a small scale. Well done and recommended.

Another from my What-Cha order. The dry leaf smells very malty with notes of chestnut.

Steeped, on the nose it’s very fruity and malty, with a bit of floral notes. Also picking up some soapiness, which makes me worry that I didn’t rinse my tea ware well enough when I did the dishes, but I think I did.

On the palette it’s floral and malty, and very smooth. Three minutes left it a bit on the weak side, but an extra minute has given it more depth.

This is a nice, easy to drink tea. Not terribly distinctive, but enjoyable, and a good first cup of the day.