It’s wednesday, my regular day off and I’ve taken the rest of the week off as well. (This, btw, has nothing to do with illness, it was already planned, so no worries there). After the restorative power of yesterday’s Assam, I felt like giving this on the that TeaEqualsBliss sent me.
I didn’t really find any aroma to speak off, but my nose feels a bit like it’s considering acting up a little bit, so I don’t fully trust my sense of smell. I don’t think it’s all there at the moment.
The flavour, however, reveals the cardboard-y note of Assam. I probably wouldn’t really have picked that one out so easily if it hadn’t been for yesterday’s Assam and the revelation that was the cardboard note. (Sometimes I feel like I’m nicking all of Auggy’s words, but they’re such good words!).
It also has a surprising sweetness. Smooth, almost creamy. I’m not the sort of person to put milk in anything, even if it is recommended to me. I always try it plain first, and usually that’s the way I’ll drink it. Milk is an added occasional luxury. Maybe that’s why, to me, it doesn’t take very much for a tea to taste like it already had a drop of milk in it.
Maybe it’s some sort of phantom flavour. Like phantom pains where a patient may still feel the sensations of the amputated limb. I can almost taste the flavour that isn’t there. Or something.
It’s not really something that I would connect with a Ceylon, though, so I think that’s because of how the blend is coming together.
Funny thing is that if I were to break this apart and have the Assam on its own and the Ceylon on its own, then I don’t really think I would be more then fleetingly impressed with either of them. But together it’s a different story and they come together quite well.
I have a good amount of this and it could easily become one of my stable teas, but I have put the Irish Morning Tea from A C Perch’s on my shopping list for when I run out. The European Adagio shop carries the Irish Breakfast, but I thought it would be nice to get some comparison and some
different perspective on it. (Besides A C Perch’s is probably quicker and cheaper for me, what with being a danish company. Especially since I’m shopping there anyway)
Of course I had to add the A C Perch’s blend to the site first, and then I unleashed the full force of OCD on the A C Perch’s teas already in the database. They all have pictures and proper descriptions now, except the one that I couldn’t seem to find. (I hope I didn’t accidentally step on anybody’s toes with this) I even discovered that the genmaicha I had from them wasn’t their genmaicha at all, but a variation. The things you learn…
Anyway, this Irish Breakfast. Quite surprisingly yummy. I don’t know what’s going on with that, I’m supposed to prefer Chinese!
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Nick away! It makes me feel loved! :) Lena sent me some of this a while back (sadly all gone now) and I really liked it. It’s a good blend, I think – and soooo much better than Republic of Tea’s IB (at least for me) – and is the one that made me feel daring enough to start getting more into stout breakfast blends! (Though I still love my Chinese blacks)
I saw your Scottish one. :) I seem to recall having seen a French and a Russian one around the place a while ago. It would be cool if someone would do a breakfast blend sampler set. I haven’t tried RoT yet, except I think possibly a single bag from swaps and such, so I can’t compare there. Once upon a time I had a few bags of IB from Twinings, but they were bagged, and I can’t really remember what they were like. Also that was before I learned to properly taste what I was drinking.
I hope A C Perch’s can live up to this one.
Ooh, I like the breakfast blend sampler set idea. I don’t know why I’ve become such a sucker for breakfast blends but I have. I thought Golden Moon’s Irish Breakfast was particularly yummy. And Samovar’s English Breakfast was good, too. Most breakfast blends I’ve run across though tend to be on the meh side of good. But there are good ones out there (like this IB!) so I hope AC Perch’s will be one of the awesome ones!
I haven’t yet managed to find a truly yummy EB. Shame AC Perch’s doesn’t offer samples. I have to get 100g minimum from them. They have, however, been fairly consistently a good experience for me. GM and Samovar are both out of reach for me, so I can’t try theirs. But hey, maybe I’ll get lucky when the TTB returns to me. ;)
Me either, actually, as far as not finding a truly yummy EB. But I will keep looking! (And that’s probably half of the fun!)
True. :) This one made me about ready to start searching properly. I wish I had the opportunity and means to get a sample of a load of different ones and set up an entire sampling array of EBs. I’d have to buy a load of tiny teapots too! What’s not to love?! :D
This one is a totally decent IB. I have been in a Breakfast tea mode too! Irish, English, 2 different types of China Breakfast…
I’m waiting on my Samovar order to try their Breakfast blend. I have high hopes.
Maybe that’s the newest trend? Breakfast Buffet? I had one, Auggy had one, JacquelineM had one and you’re in the mood for it too. And I’m currently having the genmaicha-that-wasn’t-the-genmaicha, which is almost breakfast-y. :)
What goes in the China Breakfast blend typically?
I think China Breakfast is just strong Yunnan black teas.
Cool. Yunnans, that’s another category I want to explore. I should make notes of this, because when I’m buying I always seem to end up having my head turned by OOOH Shiny!
Lena, I’ve only broken into Samovar’s Breakfast blend once but I keep craving it so I think it’s pretty good! (I’m trying to stretch it out a little though and get rid of some other teas, thus just the one visit with it so far).
Nick away! It makes me feel loved! :) Lena sent me some of this a while back (sadly all gone now) and I really liked it. It’s a good blend, I think – and soooo much better than Republic of Tea’s IB (at least for me) – and is the one that made me feel daring enough to start getting more into stout breakfast blends! (Though I still love my Chinese blacks)
I saw your Scottish one. :) I seem to recall having seen a French and a Russian one around the place a while ago. It would be cool if someone would do a breakfast blend sampler set. I haven’t tried RoT yet, except I think possibly a single bag from swaps and such, so I can’t compare there. Once upon a time I had a few bags of IB from Twinings, but they were bagged, and I can’t really remember what they were like. Also that was before I learned to properly taste what I was drinking.
I hope A C Perch’s can live up to this one.
Ooh, I like the breakfast blend sampler set idea. I don’t know why I’ve become such a sucker for breakfast blends but I have. I thought Golden Moon’s Irish Breakfast was particularly yummy. And Samovar’s English Breakfast was good, too. Most breakfast blends I’ve run across though tend to be on the meh side of good. But there are good ones out there (like this IB!) so I hope AC Perch’s will be one of the awesome ones!
I haven’t yet managed to find a truly yummy EB. Shame AC Perch’s doesn’t offer samples. I have to get 100g minimum from them. They have, however, been fairly consistently a good experience for me. GM and Samovar are both out of reach for me, so I can’t try theirs. But hey, maybe I’ll get lucky when the TTB returns to me. ;)
Me either, actually, as far as not finding a truly yummy EB. But I will keep looking! (And that’s probably half of the fun!)
True. :) This one made me about ready to start searching properly. I wish I had the opportunity and means to get a sample of a load of different ones and set up an entire sampling array of EBs. I’d have to buy a load of tiny teapots too! What’s not to love?! :D
This one is a totally decent IB. I have been in a Breakfast tea mode too! Irish, English, 2 different types of China Breakfast…
I’m waiting on my Samovar order to try their Breakfast blend. I have high hopes.
Maybe that’s the newest trend? Breakfast Buffet? I had one, Auggy had one, JacquelineM had one and you’re in the mood for it too. And I’m currently having the genmaicha-that-wasn’t-the-genmaicha, which is almost breakfast-y. :)
What goes in the China Breakfast blend typically?
I think China Breakfast is just strong Yunnan black teas.
Cool. Yunnans, that’s another category I want to explore. I should make notes of this, because when I’m buying I always seem to end up having my head turned by OOOH Shiny!
Lena, I’ve only broken into Samovar’s Breakfast blend once but I keep craving it so I think it’s pretty good! (I’m trying to stretch it out a little though and get rid of some other teas, thus just the one visit with it so far).