I was surprised when I opened the sealed pack for this tea because the dried leaves were much greener than I expected! For a black tea (even a first flush), I was expecting darker leaves. But these leaves are definitely a bright green—no hint of darkness to them at all!
I steeped the tea using 4 grams of dried leaves in 12 ounces of near boiling water for 4 minutes.
The tea brewed into a very bright, pleasant liquor—very similar to a Helles beer or even a chamomile tisane. The first aromas I discovered coming from the liquor reminded me much more of a green or oolong tea instead of a black tea. It was a vegetal aroma, with a slight floral and muscatel scent. Very pleasant.
The vegetal aroma of the tea didn’t translate into the flavor, though. The primary flavors I discovered were nutty, muscatel, citrus, and apricot. It also had a very slight buttery aftertaste—maybe an extension of the nutty flavor…? A slight tang to it which reminded me of an oolong, but not as defined.
Overall, this was a tea of excellent quality and flavor—one that I will enjoy having again. Given the low caffeine, it will make a good evening tea for the warm summer months ahead.
NOTE: The package I used had a date of picking noted as 17 March 2017.
Flavors: Apricot, Butter, Citrus, Citrusy, Muscatel, Nuts, Nutty, Vegetal
