73

I went to Haig’s Middle Eastern today which is a deli/food store full of wonderful things. In addition to food they have lots of bulk spices and the cheap Russian tea Czar Nicholas II which the BF loves for some reason. Anyway I got him some of that and I got this for myself, I am almost out of my other breakfast tea.

This says it’s a blend of Assam and an African tea, perhaps Kenyan? My cup is a dark reddish brown. At first I liked this a bit more but there is a definite bitterness present in the finish. I had to take this with vanilla soymilk this afternoon and then it was better.

This is for sure very stout and malty and will hopefully provide me with a bit of a kick in the morning even though I’m not in love with the flavor. Honestly sometimes I’m too sleepy to notice or even care. I can’t say I would ever go out of my way to find this again but at least it was inexpensive.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec
Bonnie

Ha Ha I like Czar Nikolas too…but only fixed the Russian way with sour cherry jam in it…or with a little L.S. for a smoky zing too. It is cheap! Good counter for dark chocolate. BF might like that.

TeaBrat

This has SO much bergamot and other flavorings in it, it’s like Earl Grey on steroids! I just don’t care for bergamot much myself. But it’s insanely cheap – I think I paid $8 for an 8 oz. bag.

ScottTeaMan

Did they have this blend?

http://www.amazon.com/Taylors-Harrogate-Blend-Loose-4-41-Ounce/dp/B004IS26E8/ref=dp_cp_ob_gro_title_0

This supposedly won awards for best cup of tes in Britain several years ago.

TeaBrat

Scott, I don’t remember…

Barb

Funny, I am having my first cup of loose tea from this blend, after years of drinking the bagged version. I think I didn’t steep it the full time because I was curious/impatient – maybe 3+ minutes? And I do always add 2% milk. Anyway, not getting the bitterness you describe.

Barb

(The Scottish Breakfast blend, I mean!)

TeaBrat

Barb, I definitely could not drink this plain. Maybe I will try a shorter steep next time. Everyone’s flavor palettes seem to be so different..

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Comments

Bonnie

Ha Ha I like Czar Nikolas too…but only fixed the Russian way with sour cherry jam in it…or with a little L.S. for a smoky zing too. It is cheap! Good counter for dark chocolate. BF might like that.

TeaBrat

This has SO much bergamot and other flavorings in it, it’s like Earl Grey on steroids! I just don’t care for bergamot much myself. But it’s insanely cheap – I think I paid $8 for an 8 oz. bag.

ScottTeaMan

Did they have this blend?

http://www.amazon.com/Taylors-Harrogate-Blend-Loose-4-41-Ounce/dp/B004IS26E8/ref=dp_cp_ob_gro_title_0

This supposedly won awards for best cup of tes in Britain several years ago.

TeaBrat

Scott, I don’t remember…

Barb

Funny, I am having my first cup of loose tea from this blend, after years of drinking the bagged version. I think I didn’t steep it the full time because I was curious/impatient – maybe 3+ minutes? And I do always add 2% milk. Anyway, not getting the bitterness you describe.

Barb

(The Scottish Breakfast blend, I mean!)

TeaBrat

Barb, I definitely could not drink this plain. Maybe I will try a shorter steep next time. Everyone’s flavor palettes seem to be so different..

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Bio

My profile pic is of a pink dahlia at Golden Gate Park.

Hobbies include: tea, making art, animals, vegan things, buddhism, nature, creativity, books, writing, cooking, meditation, yoga.

I am a fan of many different teas but my favorites are blacks and oolongs, chai, also like darjeeling and pu-erh. I’n always learning and expanding my horizons!

Dislikes include: bergamot, jasmine, highly tannic or bitter teas, overly judgmental and bitter people. :)

Live in San Francisco, I’m a SINK (single income, no kids) and love the urban life, but traveling out to the middle of nowhere is always fun too.

I tend to not drink things I know I will hate so a lot of my tea ratings are on the higher side. Here’s my rating system, sorta

95-100 I love this tea and would like to keep it around

94-90 An excellent tea which I may or may not repurchase

89-80 Pretty good, above average

79-70 Acceptable

69-60 Mundane – Will probably drink it if I have it

59-50 Ick

49 and below Nasty

Location

San Frandisco

Website

http://sanfrantea.teatra.de

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