Turkish Delight

A new shipment of tea from Upton Tea arrived today. They are very quick to ship! And just in time, as I was perilously low on my black tea for my first morning cup. (Dave would look in the cupboard and say I'm crazy, but I'd just point out to him that he was grateful I had a tea obsession instead of shoes or expensive handbags...)

I'll admit I don't know anything about what makes a "Turkish" tea, but after this lovely tea from Upton Tea Imports, I'll do a little investigating. Based on their description, I went out on a limb and bought a 80 gram (2.8 oz) packet instead of just a sample packet. So glad I did!

Description: A proprietary blend of Ceylon teas created to mimic the style of tea produced in Turkey, which is rarely, if ever, exported. The bold leaves have the faint aroma of vanilla which is also present in the creamy-smooth cup. Infuse for 4-5 minutes to drink straight, or longer if the addition of milk is preferred.

Now I know to avoid the words "malty", "smokey", "brisk", "strong" in my teas, and go for smooth smooth smooth. I could smell the vanilla in its dry form, but I couldn't taste it in the tea. It must have rounded out the Ceylon flavor nicely. The cup was smooth from first sip to last drop and had a pleasing aftertaste. I would have this first thing in the morning, but it's so nice any time of day. Next time, I'll make sure to make a full pot!

Name: Turkish Style Blend Ceylon Tea
Source: Upton Tea
Price: $7.98 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 4.5 min.
Comments: Round, smooth flavor. New top choice along with Kenilworth.
Rating: 5 cups

Kenilworth Estate

This may be my new favorite Ceylon tea! This comes in Upton Tea's Ceylon Sampler pack, which is a terrific value and a great way to try several teas. It's especially good for moms like me. Their smaller samples have about 3 cups worth of tea in them, but these tins (approx. 35 grams or 1.2 oz) give you more tea to try. So when you brew a cup of tea expecting to enjoy it, and instead it sits growing cold while you tend to the baby that woke up early from his nap, and you have to reheat it in the microwave 10 times in the course of the next two hours, and you finally think, "is this really the quality of tea I would be tasting upon first brewing this cup?" and you answer "no, most definitely not...let's try again tomorrow," then you have more tea in your sample tin to try again. And you have a cute little tin to use for paperclips...or one of the dozens of sample tea envelopes that litter your cupboard.

Name: Kenilworth Estate OP
Source: Upton Tea
Price: $5.80 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5-6 minutes
Comments: Smooth flavor, no bitter aftertaste. I enjoy milk in my black tea, giving a creaminess and often cutting back any bitterness that may be present, but this tea tastes lovely without milk as well. Lovely Celylon flavor, any time of day. Because of the size of the leaf, 5 minutes worked well for a steep time. I'll definitely be re-ordering this tea! My new standard! (Where were you when I was on my Ceylon search last year?)
2nd Steep: ok...really a one-steep cup. Steeped for so long the first time, there's not much flavor left for a second cup.
Rating: 5 cups

The name's Bond

Name: Bond Street English Breakfast Blend
Source: Upton Tea
Price: $5.80 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 3 minutes
Comments: Good strong tea. Nice blend of broken-leaf Ceylon and Assam. Good flavor without the maltiness I normally associate with Assam. Stands up really well to a good amount of milk, and it could even use a bit of sugar. Slightly bitter aftertaste. Much preferred to the Ceylon English Breakfast, but still a little strong for my taste.
2nd Steep: (Will try)
Rating: 3 cups

New tea blog

I started following Upton Tea Imports on Facebook and found a new blog that is a new must-read for me! I don't actually mention my tea blog to many people, as I'm new to tea "reviews", and my descriptions are not as detailed as they'd need to be for someone other than myself! I'm trying to refine my palette and explore the different subtleties of many kinds of teas, but I'm lacking in descriptive terms. Well, this new (to me) blog is fantastic. I think by reading it, it will really help me to look for similar characteristics in the teas I drink and review here. It's very well-written with gorgeous photos of the teas (leaves and cups) she's reviewing. Delightful, like a good cup of tea!

Art and Tea

Tea for bedtime

I just brewed my last cup of this tea, and since I liked it, I want to write down my thoughts so I know to buy it again. I got this tea on the store's recommendation when I was pregnant with Baby #2 and had mega heartburn every day and all night. This was supposed to be good for digestion, and it did calm my heartburn a bit when I was up at 3am.

Name: Swiss Vervaine Melange
Source: Teavana
Price: $14 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5-6 minutes
Comments: Notes of ginger and peppermint, and although no chamomile is listed, I tasted that too. Very calming pre-bedtime tea. Definitely need to re-stock.
2nd Steep: Never tried.
Rating: 4 cups

Ceylon-errific

I must admit, this is the third or fourth time I've had this tea, but something always thwarted my attempt to sit down and review it!! At least I know I like it, as I've given it a 3rd or 4th try!

Name: Ceylon Dimbula District BOP
Source: Upton Tea
Price: $4.60 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 3 minutes
Comments: From the catalog description: "For a smooth, mellow cup of tea. Classic Ceylon flavor." It's only smooth and mellow if you don't steep it for any more than 3 minutes. Also, this cup was the best yet, and I think it's because I had slightly less than a teaspoon! It was a little stronger than I generally like, which makes me think their descriptions of teas that are "smooth and mellow" are strong enough for me. I'd better look out for "strong" and "bold" descriptions. I'll need to order more of this one though, because it's really growing on me and I only have enough for one more cup!
2nd Steep: Much weaker. Not great. It's a one-steep cup.
Rating: 4 cups

Orange Spice

I love flavoured black teas. Vanilla, chocolate, caramel, fruits: yum. Anything that has "Holiday" or "Christmas" in its name, and I'm bound to like it! I knew I'd like this tea...

Description:

Generously scented black tea, with cinnamon, orange peel, vanilla bean, and a bit of clove.

Name: Orange Spice Imperial
Source: Upton Tea
Price: $5.80 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 4 minutes
Comments: This is an absolutely delightful tea. Very heavy aroma of orange and clove in its dry form, but it's perfectly balanced once brewed. If you like spiced teas but think they're too sweet, this is for you. There's no sweetness, but no bitterness either. Not "spicy" at all, just that warmth of clove and spices that lingers after you've had the last sip. I'm so glad I bought the 125 gram packet instead of the sample size! I will definitely buy this again!
2nd Steep: Still great. Steeped for 8 minutes.
Rating: 5 cups