Fortnum & Mason

I’m a little bit scared because this tea tasted different and a bit off to me today. I’m hoping that it was just my taste buds or washing my teaware and not that this tea is going bad. I steeped this for 3-4 minutes at 212 F as usual, and everything seemed to be going well. However, when I tasted the tea, there was a bit of minty flavor that I have never experienced with this tea. It didn’t taste bad necessarily, but it just made me apprehensive because I have not tasted that in this tea before. The peach and black tea flavors were still there, of course. I’ll have to give this another shot later, but if it happens again, I may need to take a closer look and perhaps throw it out (gasp!). Fingers crossed.

I cold brewed this for the first time with 2 tsp in my water bottle for a bit too long (prob over 12 hours). At the first sip, it really reminded me of Peach Snapple Iced Tea except without the crazy amount of sugar that they put in there. As I kept drinking, though, the peach flavor did come off a little medicinal-tasting, but not too strongly. Anyway, it was a nice fruity tea where I could still strongly taste the black tea base. Not bad!

Brought it to school today, but it was not as juicy as the last time that I drank it. Maybe I didn’t get as many peach bits or something. Anyway, it’s a reliable tea that a go to for me when I don’t want to think much in the morning and/or am running low on time.

I haven’t had this one in a while, so I brought it to class yesterday morning. I love how juicy and sweet the peach taste is, yet not artificial or too candy-like. And this is one of the teas that I can actually smell through the lid of my tea tumbler. Hopefully that doesn’t mean the smell will stay in it, though. I guess I’ll find out tomorrow!

First day of school and I had morning classes, eek. As a non-morning person, I made sure to bring some of this tea on the go in my handy new Aladdin travel mug. I have found that the little basket in my mug tends to droop, leading to some unintended extra steeping time. However, unlike Precious White Peach (Teavana), this tea was a lot more forgiving in terms of bitterness. Of course, the other tea is a white peach tea, so I don’t know how that factors in. I just know I love peachy teas. Anyway, I have some down time between classes, so I’m going to go hunting for some hot water to resteep!

I’m really liking Fortnum & Mason’s black teas with fruit. This peach one had a stronger peachy taste than the apple one, which I enjoyed. Has a very nice, clean taste to me.

I realized today that I have these three Fortnum & Mason flavored teas that are getting a bit old. Thankfully, they are in pretty airtight tins and away from sun, so they still taste fine. I can tell that the flavors are getting weaker, though, so I’m going to make a more conscious effort to work on sipping them down. On that note, I had a cup of the apple black tea today. It seemed very fall appropriate. Like I said, the tea was weaker than I remembered, but still smooth and delicious with a nice balance between the apple flavor and black tea base. I might try cold brewing this one and seeing how it turns out.

So I’m making my rounds back through my Fortnum & Mason fruit black teas. Today I brought the apple black tea to class. I like that the apple is sweet enough to not have to add anything, but not so overpowering that I cannot enjoy the tea underneath. Anyway, I don’t remember what I’ve said in my previous tasting notes for this, so I might be getting repetitive. Overall, love it!

Backlogging this from yesterday. I have been in the process of moving across the country, but I finally took a break from all the boxes of stuff I forgot I had to have some tea. I usually don’t really like unflavored teas. That being said, I like this tea because while it is flavored with apple, the black tea is the main star of this one. So it almost feels like I’m drinking a straight black tea but I still get the benefit of the flavor. Anyway, it was a nice tea to re-energize me and get me back up on my feet and unpacking!

Very clean taste without anything added. The apple flavor is very subtle.

Another tasty tea from NofarS.
Sorry, I know my reviews are lame right now. I promise they’ll get better soon. :)

Another tea from NofarS, this was my first cup of the day.
A nice bold Assam, I steeped the leaf twice, first @ 3 min & then again @ 5. It’s been a few hours since I drank it, so all I can really say is I enjoyed it & it was nicely satisfying. Thanks Nofar!

Another Sipdown from my trade with NofarS.
I think I’m starting to get the hang of Darjeelings. I steeped this at 190, & it’s not bad. I think I gave it 2 mins. The aroma reminds me of something, but I just can’t say what it is. The tea a little on the astringent side, but also kind of sweet & savory at the same time.
Not something I would want to drink regularly, but worth trying.

I have this amazing & generous box from NofarS, loaded with mostly black teas, & a few others for variety. They are ALL teas I’ve never tried!
I’ve only drank one of them so far. There are just so many in there (38) that it’s hard to pick one, LOL.

I reached in & drew out a silver needle…put it back because I’m just not in the mood for that. I reached in & drew out sweet almond & orange black. Not now. I reached in & drew out an earl grey, & put it back. I reached in & drew out this Darjeeling. That works. I just wanted one more cup of black tea.

I’m still getting to know Darjeelings. I’ve drank quite a few, but am still developing a vocabulary for them, I guess. This is a nice afternoon tea, not nearly so bold as an Assam. There is a earthy & fruitiness to it, which I suppose is the muscatel taste everyone talks about. I’ve never had muscatel wine or grapes, but I smelled the grapes once & the aroma was a turn off for me.

Thanks NofarS. I really AM gonna start drinking these wonderful samples more often! :D

Thanks, adagio breeze for swapping!
I used this to make a Lapsang baked tofu. (Recipe from here: http://www.guavarose.com/2012/03/lapsang-souchong-tofu-4/)
It turned out great! This was the perfect Lapsang to use – strongly smokey with a good amount of depth. Tasted awesome with the saltiness of the shoyu mixed in. It’s making me very tempted to add some salt next time I drink a cup!

A bright, light bodied tea, with a light malt and prunes flavor,and a little astringency. Not sure that it has enough body to hold up well against milk. My mother likes light teas, and I’m drinking this at my parents’ house. It’s a solid-but-not-so-exciting tea. Suitable for drinking in the afternoon, during a Friday visit to your parents, with the sound of children playing bouncing up trough the window

Woke up early to go for a run (yes, on a Saturday. I know), and had a strong cup of this brewed with milk-and-sugar to give me a good morning kick.
It’s an OK tea. For the price, I was expecting something with more of a “wow” element to it. I like it better brewed with milk and sugar than plain, but in a pinch plain will do as well.

Not one of Fortnum and Mason’s best blends, the Ceylon here does nothing but create a cacophony with the Assam. The result is no more than an OK tea, and if there was something better at my parents’ house, I’d probably reach out for that first.
Bottom line: I need to restock the teas at my parents’ house, for when I visit (they insist on drinking from teabags).

Had this with milk and sugar, and blueberry muffins that I just made. This tea is rather on the rough side without milk, and improves immensely with it

This is OK for a breakfast brew, with some spicy tanginess and a bit of a kick to give it some interest, but otherwise, a not-that-interesting-tea. Great caddy, of course.