Michelle Butler Hallett Send Message

1.25 tsp for 250mL water @100C. Drunk bare.

I have no idea if my city’s water is hard or soft. I can tell you it comes directly from a lake, with minimal treatment. The City might up the chlorine in summer, but otherwise my tap water tastes very clean: a bit reedy, with some faint mineral notes. So far, it’s never let me down when making tea, so I don’t bother with expensive and, frankly, bothersome 18.l L jugs pf springwater.

So I can’t say if Scottish Blend is any good for hard or soft water.

I can say it’s a very acceptable black tea blend, lighter than I expected, and one I would serve to my late Geordie grandmother without fear. I got a 250g package of it from a friend in Edinburgh, along with some Scottish sweets. Am I spoilt, or what? Scottish Blend smells malty and a bready, but the liquor is a medium reddish brown and quite clear. It’s more confident than assertive, and not bitter, even with a long steep. The body is light, which surprised me. There is a malty pucker at the end of a sip, but I’m thinking this is more Kenyan tea than Assam. The leaves are tiny, little CTC pinheads,and they don’t expand much. This tea would totally stand up to milk. I like it much more than I thought I would. Scottish Blend 1, Tea Snob 0.