A.C. Perch's Thehandel

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 4: Green Cherry Blossom

There was a decent number of rose blossoms in the dry leaf here that I picked right out. No thanks! Thank goodness I did because there was still a not-so-subtle rose flavour that came into the steeped tea. There was a definite cherry flavour up front, with a rose-y taste nearing the end up the sip. The cherry become more and more prominent as the tea cooled, which was nice, but the rose never let up.

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 3: Formosa Oolong

The booklet that comes with our calendar didn’t say “fancy”, but their webshop only had Formosa Fancy Oolong, so I’m adding this note here.

This one is okay. It’s not my favourite or really all that special. It’s fine to drink but does have a subtle hint of cardboard.

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 2: Green Mint

Mint is never really my favourite, but happily surprised here as the mint was blended really well into the green tea base (as opposed to herbal mint teas – of course). The gunpowder base also was a great choice – last year AC Perch had a straight gunpowder tea that was my first try of gunpowder that I also really enjoyed. A lovely and calming cup overall.

History. I’ve had quite the dose of it this year. Everything from standing on the same ground as ancient Greeks to learning about the hundred years of history here in America. Crazy to think that this company is almost as old as America. This is a unique blend. Fruity aroma. I tried to steep it the proper 7 minutes they are asking but I feel the green tea from India takes over far too much. Becoming too bitter with a metallic flavor. But before this, the fruity notes along with the deep woody notes are quite nice.

Fantastic. It is not afternoon here but I don’t care. I smelled this one and I knew I had to give it a try. Thank you to Victoria of the Ta Fairy Brigade for the sample. The dry aroma reminded me of an Icewine black tea I bought in Canada once. The wet aroma is fruity, cranberry, elderberry, and dark cherry. Slightly woody. The woody notes come through more in the flavor. There is also a hint of dark chocolate but mainly the flavors revolve around the fruit. Tart fruits, not overly sweet. The vanilla is present when the aroma of the liquor comes close to your nose but otherwise, I find it not to be a strong presence. A slight bit of astringency as well.

Another from Greenteafairy from a LOOONGG time ago.  Thank you! I really loved it the first time I had it, years ago- a divine raspberry flavor.  I wouldn’t guess this is an oolong from looking at it though – it looks like a green base.   With this great raspberry flavor though, I guess it doesn’t matter what the base is…  Only hints of that raspberry remaining now, which I’m a bit sad about. This gets a Steepster rating of 87 so I think others agree it’s delicious!
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug // 30 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 10 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 24: First Flush Darjeeling

I’m really not sure why this was again the last tea of the calendar – the same as last year. This tea is okay, but it’s nothing special. There were so many teas in this calendar we really loved and could easily have been a lovely ending to the calendar. This choice is lost on me!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 24

A day late for this tea, but I hope everyone had a lovely day (if you celebrate today), and a lovely day regardless!

This tea is quite nice. I steeped it a bit lower and shorter than recommended (yesterday I steeped it as recommended and there was a bit of bitterness I wasn’t fond of). There is a floral-ness that’s very Darjeeling-esque here and it’s quite lovely. I didn’t pick up too much else, but overall enjoyed my cup. Plenty more to enjoy as this came in an oversized container for day 24!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 23

I left this a wee bit too long on the sidetable as I worked, so its’s more lukewarm than actually warm, however!

The taste is really lovely. I don’t know if I would call this a chai, but it’s really tasty. I wasn’t really in the mood for chai this morning, so I’m secretly happy the taste is more muted. There’s some spices in there, with the vanilla overlain. The taste of the rooibos is not intrusive and works well with the spices added. Also, the vanilla isn’t upsetting my stomach, which is often does in other teas. Finally, this is yet another smooth tea!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 22

This is a fine tea, very smooth. I’m not a huge fan of most green teas, so I wasn’t really paying much attention.

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 18: Raspberry Oolong

Another bleh tea for today. My notes from last year stand for this tea. We had five teapots and all five were dumped. What a day.

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 21

This one has quite a strong raspberry(ish) perfume-y scent while dry which lessens slightly once steeped. The perfume doesn’t really translate to the taste, but because I can still smell it, it’s difficult to differentiate. There’s perhaps a slight raspberry flavour here, but I find it mostly in the aftertaste. The base tea is fine, smooth and non-intrusive.

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 20

Another jasmine tea! But this one is wee pearls!

As has been the theme, a very smooth tea overall. The jasmine is quite present, but really lovely.

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 13: Organic Green Christmas

This one is fairly tasty. The cinnamon smelled quite strong in the dry leaf but is significantly mellowed in the taste. I would say the spiciness of the cinnamon is almost on par with the green base itself. Another smooth cup from A.C. Perch!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 19

This one smells like H&S Cinnamon Spice, wow. Extreme cinnamon heart candy! I never got too excited for green teas, but let’s see how this one pans out – thus far A.C. Perch has impressed me.

It looks like Angrboda mentions clove and I’m not seeing that in the ingredients — perhaps they’ve changed the recipe for this tea over the years.

The taste is actually much more subtle and light. Granted, I lowered the steeping time from 5 to 3 minutes, so perhaps that’s playing a part in how subtle the flavours are. It’s delicious! There’s a cinnamon heat paired with a cinnamon sweetness, but it’s not in your face at all (not liquified cinnamon hearts). The green tea base is unassuming, yet smooth. Really lovely tea!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 18

The ingredients here mention almonds and bitter almonds. I’ve never heard of bitter almonds, but I’m intrigued!

This one smells like a fairly strong black base with very subtle marzipan, but not quite marzipan (maybe that’s the scent of bitter almonds?) once steeped.

In the taste, there is a very subtle marzipan/not quite marzipan flavour, but also a lovely sweetness from the mid-sip onward. The base again is incredibly smooth.

I really enjoyed this one and would consider ordering it!

P.S. Naturally, I spent far too much time learning about bitter almonds while drinking this tea instead of writing up my final project of the term that’s due Monday. XD

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 17

The dry tea has a scent of rose, but not like other teas with rose. There’s something different — perhaps a scent of green apple as well.

The flavour is very light and subtly sweet. The scent of rose is just as strong when steeped. The base tea is smooth and non-intrusive. I got so busy with work, I didn’t manage any other notes – oops!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 16

I was so excited for this one! At first taste, it’s very smooth and there is a definite cream aspect and maybe caramel? But as I drink more, the cream/caramel taste has turned slightly metallic in the aftertaste. Hmm, maybe not a favourite, but there’s potential!

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 15

Wow, this tea is really lovely! It’s so incredibly smooth with none of the mineral-type flavours that some roasted-type oolongs have (though this isn’t roasted).

There is a delightful sweetness here, but yet it’s more of a light-medium body and not too heavy.

Lexa says “It’s light, elegant, delicious.”

The second steep almost smells like a black tea! It’s lost some of the magic, but still a good cuppa.

1st steep: 6 minutes
2nd steep: 7 minutes 30 seconds

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 13

This one is fairly tasty for a flavoured green tea, which I generally do not gravitate towards.

The flavouring is not overwhelming or in-your-face, which is lovely. I’m not completely able to detect which flavours these are, which could be user error. There does seem to be a slight sourness around the edges of the tongue, which could easily be green apple. There is a slight chalkiness, but I lowered the steep time to 4 minutes and it seems to have helped a bit (last night I did a 5-minute steep and the chalkiness was more apparent).

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 14

I could smell hints of smoke in the dry leaf, so I was already worried. Steeped, that subtle hint of smoke was still present.

I managed to get halfway through my cup (frankly a miracle for me with any hints of smoke) and the subtle smoke was in and out with each sip. The base was very smooth and this was similar to a breakfast tea, but not quite as bold as some.

A.C. Perch 2022 Advent Day 9: Organic Black Christmas

We’re three teas behind, but hopefully can catch up over the weekend.

Ah yes, I recall this one from last year. While the base is smooth, the clove is the most prominent flavour, and a clove black tea is not really my favourite. Nonetheless an easy enough cup to polish off.

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 12

This one came in a larger tin that can be repurposed as a wee ornament, which I love. We decided to do a teapot since there was more tea.

I found this one interesting as a Christmas tea, since it was just clove and orange and the majority of spiced holiday teas I’ve come across usually also have cinnamon.

I would say this one was more clove heavy and I had a bit of trouble picking out the orange. The base tea was again incredibly smooth with not even a hint of astringency. Lots more to experiment with of this one, so hopefully I can tease out some more orange here.

A.C. Perch Advent 2021 Day 11

I can’t tell you how happy I was to hear that all my married-in Italian family was so excited to see another African black tea (like the Kenyan a few days ago)!

This one is quite tasty as well. Absolutely no astringency (how!) and overall a smooth cuppa. This is a strong black breakfast-type tea, and the perfect way to start a Saturday of paper-writing. This one has that hint of syrup flavour that I find in some English breakfast teas (and I generally prefer a cleaner taste), but it’s quite subtle here.

If I had to choose, I would take the Kenyan tea over this, but I’m quite happy with both.