Eighth contender

I'm hoping to find the right steep time for this tea. The first time I tried it (yesterday), I forgot to set my timer (this is pretty typical for me, just ask my husband), and remembered about 15-20 minutes later. Note: 15-20 minutes is too long to steep!

Name: Lords and Ladies Tea Blend
Source: Gong Fu Tea
Price: $9 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes
Comments: This is a blend of Ceylon, Kenyan and Assam, though I wouldn't have been able to distinguish any of them. Upon my second attempt at a first steep (see above), 4 minutes was not enough time. While it was Waaay too strong at 15 minutes (see above), I had high hopes for the flavours. There was a slightly bitter aftertaste, but that's to be expected from over-steeping. At the 4 minute mark, the flavour was much too weak for my taste. It reminded me of the everyday Tetley tea bags that do sit on my counter for days when guests don't want to wait 4 minutes for good tea...I've stopped drinking it though...sorry if that makes me sound snobby. Anyway, not the greatest comparison. I wasn't terribly impressed, but I'll try 5 minutes next time.
2nd Steep: For the second steep, I left the infuser in for 5 minutes, and it tasted the same as the first steep at 4 minutes (at least it holds well). To clarify, the second steep I'm referring to is using the same tea leaves that have already been steeped. It may sound confusing in this post.
Rating: 2.5 cups (Hoping for a 3 with 5 minutes...)

Seventh Contender

Name: Keenun Concerto
Source: Adagio
Price: $12 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (4 for me)
Comments: Another outsider in contention... I'd never had Keenun tea before, but as it came with the black tea sampler from Adagio Teas, I thought I'd give it a try. I also tried Keenun with lichee fruit from Gong Fu (a sample in their store, I won't review it here), which I quite liked. Anyway...this one was also good. Don't oversteep! It was a little bitter for me at 5 minutes. Familiar and different at the same time. Very hard to describe here! It's what I think of as a black version of Chinese green tea. Does that make any sense? I tried it black and with milk, and I actually preferred it black. The more I drank it, the more I liked it. It won't be an every day tea for me, although I found myself craving it yesterday and treated myself to a cup! I will write some information about Keenun soon.
2nd Steep: Good the second time around too.
Rating: 4 cups

Sixth Contender

Name: English Breakfast
Source: Gong Fu Tea
Price: $9 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (4 for me)
Comments: Perfect!! Exactly what I like in an English Breakfast. Strong without a hint of bitterness. Holds up well to milk. Their tea description says, "We searched long and hard for a high quality English Breakfast tea that we would be proud to serve to our customers. This blended black eye-opener truly fits the bill. Never mind breakfast, this tea is an excellent choice all day long. Hat's off to our friends from across the pond!" Although I was looking for an everyday Ceylon, I think this tea is a winner!!
2nd Steep: Steeped for 5 minutes, it had the exact same fullness of flavour and still stood up to a bit of milk. I snacked on fruit and a cookie with my afternoon tea, and the tea's flavour jumped out at me. Soooo good!
Rating: 5 cups

Fifth Contender

Name: Organic Ceylon Black Tips
Source: Gong Fu Tea
Price: $9 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (4 for me)
Comments: I had high hopes for this one. Nice aroma. However, it did not taste like ceylon to me. Much more like Earl Grey. Or a Ceylon-Earl Grey mix. Nice enough, just not what I'm looking for.
2nd Steep: Same taste but weaker.
Rating: 3 cups

Fourth Contender

Name: Assam Melody
Source: Adagio
Price: $8 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (4 for me)
Comments: An outsider among the ceylons, this came in the black tea sampler from Adagio, so I thought I'd give it a shot. I haven't been a fan of assams in the past. I take back what I said about maltiness in the other ceylon tea...THIS was malty! It reminded me of my dad's beer brewing when I was growing up...and I hated that smell!! Anyway...this wasn't too bad, but I think I stand by my general dislike of assams.
2nd Steep: Actually a lot better! The malt flavour was gone, making it tast more like a familiar English breakfast. This one might be worth steeping and dumping...at least with the rest of the sample tin I have!
Rating: 2 cups

Third Contender

Name: Ceylon Sunrise
Source: Tea Desire, Southcentre Mall, Calgary, Alberta (take note, Calgary friends!)
Price: I can't remember. I bought the tea last summer. I think it was reasonable. (Will update if/when I have a replacement bag!)
Recommended steep time: I can't remember. I steep it for 3-4 minutes.
Comments: Subtle flavour, excellent every day tea. Closest match to Savoure's Ceylon! Yeah! Unfortunately, I do not live in Calgary. They have many varieties of Ceylon, so friends and family now have a good gift idea!!
2nd Steep: Loses a lot of flavour on the second steep. Longer steep required (5 minutes), but it doesn't become bitter.
Rating: 5 cups

Second contender

Name: Ceylon Neeraja Black Tea
Source: Teavana (bought at the mall; convenient location, so I'm hoping I like something at this store!)
Price: $24 for 4 oz. (yikes!!)
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (!)
Comments: Very malty and earthy. Odd after-taste. Metallic? I did not like this tea. I have not made a second attempt with less steep time though. Maybe it will be better at 3 minutes?
2nd Steep: Much better on the 2nd steep. Maybe I'll just dump the first steep? Such a waste of money!
Rating: 1 cup

First contender

Name: Ceylon Sonata
Source: Adagio Teas
Price: $7 for 4 oz.
Recommended steep time: 5 minutes (!)
Comments: Slightly malty flavour. For my second cup full-strength (not second steep), I steeped for 4 minutes, which was better. Still an odd flavour, and not quite what I'm looking for.
2nd Steep: Only slightly less flavourful. Good second steep.
Rating: 3 cups (out of a 5 cup rating system, just for fun!)

The Great Tea Search 2009

My beloved Savoure Tea in Eugene, Oregon is closed. Had I known this was a possibility, I may have been able to stock up a bit! They went offline in October 2008, but the store had closed a few months earlier. The salon, a taste of High Tea in downtown Eugene, was my absolute favourite place to go when we lived there, and I was sad to see it go a few years ago. Anyway, I've recently become Ceylon-less, so I need to find myself a good replacement. I will try anything, so comments are welcome!

I love tea, but I may be a little out of my element in trying to review them! This will be mainly for my own purposes to help me sort out the losers as I search for a replacement Ceylon. Nothing educated here--just my own subjective palette!

What is in a good Ceylon? Well, Savoure may not have been the Ideal, but it was my first exposure, and the more I try other versions, the more Savoure's Ceylon seems more like an English breakfast. It's not complicated, and some newer ones I've tried have more of a malt or earthy taste than I like.

Come along for the ride, but be forewarned, I'm just talking Tea here! :) Maybe at some point, I'll be more reflective. In searching for a good title for this blog, I found many had been taken and subsequently abandoned after one post!! Some potential blog names (taken) were: Tea for Two, The Tea (French/English), Teaspoon of Sugar, Cup of Tea, Lovely Tea, Tea Time...

I thought I was so clever with Steep Thoughts...and that was taken. I guess I'd given myself too much credit! I was pleased to discover this blog though--one actually updated regularly! I will drop by occasionally!