652 Tasting Notes

85

1.25tsp steeped 4 minutes in 80C water, drunk bare.

Okay, first off: I over-steeped this. Instructions suggest 3-4 minutes, but 4 may be too long for the green in this blend, which I’m finding bitter. Adding some water really helps there; I’ll do a shorter steep next time.

Apart from the self-inflicted and easily-solved bitterness, this is a beautiful mint green tea. The spearmint scent on the dry leaf is strong, almost overpowering. The steeped tea is much more balanced between what looks and tastes like a gunpowder green and gorgeous, vibrant spearmint.

Mint can help clear my head, so I am finding this a grounding, soothing cuppa.

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90

6.5 tsp for 1200mL water, steeped four minutes 30 seconds at 90C in a Breville, with the basket set to go uppy-downy.

I’ve reviewed this gorgeous blend as a bag in a cup, after which I promptly ordered myself a tin. I’ve just made a pot of it in my Breville, and the scent is wafting everywhere!

Brewed from loose leaf in a pot: everything I’ve said before, only even better. The licorice — very subtle — and the balance of spices, orange, and tea are nigh-on perfection.

I had my doubts about the hype around Kusmi teas, doubly so about the hype around Tsareva. I am happy to say I was wrong.

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90

1 sachet for 250mL water 90C steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.

So I had one lone little sachet of Tsarevna as a free sample in a recent Kusmi order. Ho hum, I thought, another spiced black tea, probably just some stale cinnamon. Another spiced black tea with orange — Stash is hard to beat there. Another chai wannabe that just fails. Another …

Then I opened the sachet.

Somehow, Tsarevna smells like no other orange spiced black tea I’ve ever had.

The licorice is really good here, subtle (for liquorice) and playing support for the other flavours: sweet, sweet oranges with no bitter pith, really warm cinnamon, and some cardamom.

It’s not a chai. It’s not an orange spiced tea. It’s entirely itself.

The tea base is light and not at all tannic, light-bodied, no bitterness or astringency, so I’m gonna guess it’s a China black tea. And that’s just fine, because the tea plays well with the orange and spices, and, most amazingly, neither dominates the other.

Impressed.

ashmanra

Sounds nice!

Michelle Butler Hallett

I promptly ordered myself a tin of it.

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85

2.5 tsp for a 500mL pot, water at 90C, steeped 4 min 30 seconds, drunk bare.

WOW.

Dark copper liquor, almost red, definitely India tea in the base as well as China, maybe some Ceylon heft and smoothness? This blend’s got bergamot oil, orange oil, and, unusually, mandarin oil, which really lifts this blend into something special. The citrus notes dance; the tea base soothes and fortifies.

This is my favourite yet from Kusmi … and it was only available in refill bags instead of a tin, so I’m worried it might be on the chopping block. I’d happily serve this at a holiday gathering, and I’d also happily drink it every day. And I’d most certainly offer it to an EG lover who’s just come in from the cold.

(Please, Kusmi, don’t lose this one.)

ashmanra

I love this, but I thought it was discontinued. If it isn’t, I have a last minute addition to my Christmas list!

Michelle Butler Hallett

Yay! I can get it through Kusmi Tea Canada and ten mail it to you
if you run into any trouble.

ashmanra

Found it! I guess it was out of stock for a very long time when we last looked for it. It looks like you have to order a 100 gram bag, but that doesn’t scare me. Ha ha!

Shae

I just looked for this one, but I guess they’ve already sold out again!

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90

1 sachet steeped 4 minutes in 90C water, drunk bare.

And now, the last new-to-me sachet from my Kusmi Earl Grey sampler …

Oh. Oh, my. Well now.

An amazingly well-balanced blend. A light-coloured and light-bodied liquor serves up a bright and mineral … I want to say Ceylon-led-blend? Not sure. Bergamot is soft and subtle and charming, definitely on the light side, and that’s just fine here. The vanilla flavour is very subtle, thank goodness, and only announces itself in a whisper after you’ve gotten bergamot and orange, at least. I also caught some grapefruit notes. A very gently warming spice taste at the end: cinnamon maybe?

Wow. An utterly lovely blend, and, in my experience, unique. I look forward to trying this one made with loose tea.

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1 sachet for 300mL water @ 90C steeped 4 min 30 seconds, drunk bare.

My second-last new-to-me from my Kusmi Earl Grey sampler …

I expected to dislike this one, truth told. Once we start adding berry flavour or scent to a tea, it’s either fakey-fake sweet-almond from cheap 1970s hand lotions or tear-your-tastebuds-a-new-one hibiscus. I avoid hibiscus. Sure, it adds authentic colour and tartness, but it also dominates.

So there’s no hibiscus in this one, but I do get that fake-almond thing from the berry, vanilla, and caramel flavours. The bergamot cuts into them in the finish. That finish is sweet and a bit cloying, like a cookie that’s crumbled in your mouth and you can’t quite swallow yet.

I’d serve this to someone who said they liked a “cream” Earl Grey, but I won’t go our of my way on this one for myself. That’s no comment on the quality of the tea. It’s just a subjective thing.

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86

1 sachet for 300mL water @90C, steeped five minutes.

I’ve been utterly ruined for Earl Grey by TeaBox’s Earl Grey Citrus, which remains the most fragrant and delicious EG I’ve ever had — probably because it’s so very fresh. Stash comes second, especially with their double bergamot EG.

So I admit, I was expecting the bergamot here to light may fire.

Well, it blows on the embers nicely. I would hardly call this an “intense” EG, more of a medium-to-strong EG. The tea base is quite good, which can make or break an EG, no matter how much or how little bergamot is used.

It’s delicious. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a lovely, sparkling bright Earl Grey with a good tea base, and a very smooth finish. I would happily serve this to someone I know likes a good EG, and I would buy it again.I could drink this all day. For intensity, though, TeaBox and Stash are way ahead.

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82

1 sachet (full leaf within) to 300mL water @90C steeped 4 minutes, drunk bare.

Definitely not getting the soapy thing that many others have. Then again, the floral scent here, ylang-ylang, is in just about everything from soap to body wash to lotion to shampoo …

The citrus gently cuts the floral, and the black tea base is, once again, decent-to-good, as it should be for the price.

I love floral teas, so this totally works for me, The contrasts blend into one delightful and very smooth yet complex tea.

I’ve kept the bag in … at 5 minutes, the tea really starts to take over.

ashmanra

This sounds delightful!

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84

1 sachet (full leaf within) to 300mL water steeped 4 minutes at 90C, drunk bare.

I’ve got a sampler! I love samplers! And it’s an Earl Grey sampler from Kusmi, so it’s bergamot forever here at my house today.

After s subtle and gentle start with Kusmi’s basic Earl Grey, it’s up several notches of brightness with a good Ceylon and China base, bergamot oil, lemon and lime oils, and orange blossom flavour! The first sip is very citrus, but not rudely so, and the orange blossom gives it all a soft finish that I could get really get charmed by. This blend is supposedly named after Anastasia Nikolovna Romanova, the youngest daughter of the last tsar and tsarina, and she was impish and playful, very bright and loving.

I’d call this a soft-to-medium EG. The orange blossom flavour really mellows things out at the end. I’d drink this any day. No bitterness — I expect using 90C water helps there.

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81

1 bag steeped 4 minutes 30 seconds in 90C water. Drink bare.

Kusmi is new to me, and I’m a student of Russian history, so how can I resist?

I’ve come to enjoy black teas, especially Darjeelings, brewed at 90C instead of 95C. It’s often makes for a smoother tea.

I’m also on an Earl Grey kick — can’t get enough bergamot. TeaBox’s Earl Grey Citrus might be the best I’ve ever had, so fresh and vibrant — it scents my whole study — with Indian teas in the base. Andrews and Dunham Damn Fine Tea Mount Grey is also excellent. So is Stash’s regular (yum) Double Bergamot (oh mah GAWD) Earl Grey. That said, it’s actually hard to find an Earl Grey that uses a decent tea base and doesn’t just cover up poor quality tea with bergamot perfume (Twining’s, I’m looking at you — and don’t get me started on supermarket’s own brand EG teas.)

So I’m a bit picky about Earl Grey.

I’m hitting a Kusmi Earl Grey sampler today, everything from their basic Earl Grey to the spicy and vanilla Earl Grey they call Prince Vladimir. I love samplers — always a great excuse to make MOAR TEA. One at a time, though, one at a time.

Kusmi’s Earl Grey is a gentle soul. Liquor is a beautiful copper, and the mouthfeel is exceptionally smooth — a bit odd for a citrus tea, but I like it. The bergamot is subtle, which adds to the smoothness, and the tea base has some Ceylon, I think, so the tea base is decent.

It’s a competent and delicious Earl Grey, if a very smooth and subtle one. I doubt I’d go out of my way to buy it again, and perhaps Kusmi’s Earl Grey Intense will suit me better. If you’re introducing someone to Earl Grey tea, maybe try this one, but in my experience, those who love EG love it a lot and want more bergamot, not less.

One complaint: the tea comes in those plasticky sachets instead of muslin or paper. Not impressed there.

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Bio

Writer and tea fiend. Author of CONSTANT NOBODY, THIS MARLOWE, DELUDED YOUR SAILORS, SKY WAVES, DOUBLE-BLIND, and THE SHADOW SIDE OF GRACE.

I prefer straight teas but will try almost anything … so long as it’s not tainted with hibiscus. I loathe hibiscus.

Floral oolong and complex black teas are my favourites.

Location

St John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

Website

https://michellebutlerhallett...

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