Elephant Chateau

Elephant Chateau’s Nuwara Eliya is a superb quality Ceylon Tea. You get an intimation of this from the beautiful black envelope-package in which it comes. The reason it is a large envelope is because the extremely fresh leaves inside are fluffy and full. This is unusual to find in many Sri Lanka teas, and Is a good sign. More frequently, Sri Lankan teas in the marketplace are broken leaves, often broken into little pieces, or even fine pieces. The one exception to that for me has been New Vithanakande, but this tea presents an even better leaf that speaks to its quality.

The tea is light when brewed, and quite refreshing, no doubt in part to the freshness, but also the unmistakable quality. I have had two distinct types of Nuwara Eliya, one with a sweet Assamica roundness, and others with a Sinensis (China) astringency and clarity. This tea (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07MG569D5) falls into the first category, with a tempered “fullness” and sweetness that you’ll find in a First Flush Assam. I found that when you use less leaf you get a lighter taste, reducing the maltiness, but still with satisfying flavor.

Ok, full disclosure. This tea was given to me as a free sample from ECT. Here is my honest review.

I was initially concerned upon opening the tea. The loose leaf had a strange smell to it, but I attributed it to my not being familiar with Ceylon Black tea. So I brewed it at the following parameters. 2.5 tsp for 16 oz water, boiling temp for 4:30 minutes.

Taste is… well it is certainly tea. I’m getting metallic undertones, but the base flavor is decent. I’m getting hints of cherries, tannin flavor, sweet potato, roasted notes, and something I can’t put my finger on. The more I drink it the more I like it. As it cools down, the metallic undertones are fading and it’s taking on a bold yet somewhat mellow flavor. Strong black tea flavor in this one. Hmm, overall, I would likely drink this again when I wanted a change from my traditional golden tips. It’s not bad. It’s not the best tea ever either, but not bad. I would rate it a solid B.

Disclosure: This was a freebie from the company, promoted in the Steepster forums.
I added nothing to it. It’s very smooth, with caramel and floral notes. It has a nice complex flavor for a black tea brewed western style. Thanks for the free tea!

First attempt at low temperature brewing of this black tea with 4 infusions (30 seconds each) to explore the profile that emerges.

I am pleasantly suprised by the outcome at 90 degrees (which I hear is quite a low temp for black tea).

- Personally enjoyed the 2nd and 3rd infusions the most at these temps especially.

- The bitterness and astringency I generally associate with black tea is non-existent with this high altitude variety at this temperature and the hidden aromas-flavors (flowery bouquet) are easier to appreciate.

- I get a very light citrus, mostly floral flavor with a beautiful light orange colored syrup. Very smooth, which is characteristic of the region this tea originates from (Nuawara Eliya from the product description).

Next attempt I will be using a variable temperature tea kettle to really pinpoint some other temperatures and will expand more on the details of each infusion.

Very floral and fruity, much more than I initially expected. A morning tea favorite at our house.