Murchie's Tea & Coffee

2024 sipdown no. 51

Thank you Cameron for all the teas! <3

This one is maple-y, though I’m always left wanting with these maples teas — I wish for proper maple, not ‘maple flavour’ (perhaps too maple snobbish on my part) :P. The base is smooth enough with no noticeable atringency, though there is no cranberry or apple to speak of.

Sipdown! (2 | 121)

Finished this one off with sugar and oat milk. I don’t know whether they’ve changed the formula for this tea or what, but I was shocked to see multiple reviews calling the maple subtle? To me, it’s very strong and buttery-tasting, like maple leaf sandwich cookies. With the oat milk, it’s a decadent fall treat.

Probably not one I would reorder, just because I don’t tend to reach for desserty teas at this point. Plus they have other maple teas that I like better.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Murchie’s definitely seems to excel at black-green blends, which is something I’ve never really liked in the past. This one has a soft smokiness from the Lapsang, which I don’t generally reach for, but here the citrus and jasmine help to smooth it out and brighten it up a bit.

Very nice everyday mindless sipping sort of tea. When I get around to reordering from Murchie’s, I might have a difficult time deciding which black-green blends to get. I think this one is quite similar to the No. 10, which I also enjoyed. But this has the addition of the lapsang and apparently Darjeeling. Will be interesting to see how the loose leaf compares as well, since all the ones I’ve tried have been in teabag form.

From Cameron B!  Thanks again!  I can’t complain about the lack of strength to this black tea!  It’s a kicker.  It tastes like a mix of Ceylon and Assam.  Might be TOO strong for afternoon… but I don’t think I have that problem.  Then there is a nice sweetness to it, with a maple flavor.  I definitely think this is more of a breakfast tea. I forgot there was green tea included here… I didn’t notice it.
Steep #1 // teabag for a mug // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 4 min

Thanks again, Cameron B! I had to read the description again while drinking this - and then realized the problem might be a muddling of too many flavors. There is a lot going on, which kind of leaves my tastebuds confused. This has some rose flavor. Then some fruit, which I didn’t figure out was raspberry until I read the description. It’s an okay raspberry flavor- not the best. Then there should be some bergamot which I think is hiding behind the rose and fruit. The flavoring might be acceptable if I liked the base black tea, but of course the base is hiding behind all the flavor too. Maybe this blend isn’t working for me because I don’t think I ever described myself as “a princess”. :D

Thanks again, Cameron B! I love when a strawberry tea actually has flavor, and this one does! It’s strawberries and cream for sure. It surprises me that this black tea consists of Ceylon and Keemun… it must be only a few tiny leaves of Keemun in the entire pouch, as I’m not noticing any keemun qualities at all. But I’m fine with such a light black tea being a bit disappointing in this case, because the strawberry cream flavor is so spot on and so delicious. Yuuum. I think my short, tame steep time really works on this one.

2024 sipdown no. 49

I used two teabags for my 15oz mug of this tea. This one has that similar apricot-perfume scent as H&S, but more toned down. The flavour is subtle apricot and the base isn’t as bitter as the Murchie’s blackcurrant. This one isn’t bad, perhaps not overly memorable.

I cold steeped a single teabag in a smaller mug and the apricot is more washed out, resulting in very little flavour and a relatively un-noteworthy black base (no bitterness).

2024 sipdown no. 48

My colleague shared a few teabags with me of this (and Apricot). I steeped two teabags for my 15oz mug and it’s underwhelming. There’s a bitterness with some blackcurrant in the background, but more like dried blackcurrant that’s been sat in the back of the cupboard for too long. As far as a bagged blackcurrant, H&S has this one beat.

I cold steeped a single teabag in a smaller mug and it tastes very similar, though with less bitterness. This variation is overall a nicer cup and more refreshing.

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So this wasn’t my favorite. I like the idea of it, aside from maybe the rose. But something is tasting quite powdery to me, and I assume it’s probably the fruit flavoring. Berry flavors can often taste chalky to me for some reason, so that’s likely the case here.

That being said, I still sipped my way through the bag, and I think the levels of smoke vs. fruit are spot-on. It has a nice raspberry tang to it as well, and I don’t get a ton of rose.

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Quite enjoyed this one, it’s my favorite of the green-black blends I got (though I haven’t tried Queen Victoria yet). Just a nice, easy-drinking mix of a lemony Earl Grey, earthy gunpowder, and sweet jasmine. Very well-balanced and nice for the morning or afternoon.

Whenever I end up ordering from Murchie’s again, I think I might give this a try in loose leaf form (I had a 10-pack of teabags this time).

So I wasn’t expecting much after the other black-green blend I tried (Library Blend I think?), but this is quite nice. I really like the combination of the light jasmine and bergamot flavors together with the mixed bases. I get a bit of the gunpowder’s mineral earthiness for sure, but there’s some black tea adding a touch of heft as well. I also enjoy the bergamot that Murchie’s uses – it’s almost lemony and not perfumey at all.

I might have to put this one on the list to try in loose leaf… :)

This was a risky choice for me, as it’s described as raspberry and rose with a hint of bergamot. Not being a rose lover, not sure why I was so compelled to order it ha ha.

Well I’m not a fan, but it’s not because of rose. This just tastes very powdery/chalky to me overall. Sometimes I have that issue with mixed berry teas, so perhaps it’s the raspberry flavoring here. But it tastes like Tums or perhaps Smarties (the US kind).

Into the rehoming box it goes!

Need to get back into sampling more of my Murchie’s purchases!

This one is nice enough. It mostly tastes like a black tea, but with a much lighter body. Not watery, but just not as heavy overall. The flavoring is buttery, which makes sense given the brioche descriptor. It also reminds me a bit of toasted pecans. I don’t really taste caramel at all. The buttery flavor and light nuttiness make this remind me of Almond Sugar Cookie from Simpson & Vail. It’s not really sweet though, it leans more bready or croissant-y.

I like it, but I don’t think I need it in my cupboard, and I prefer the somewhat similar Canada 150 blend (which has maple instead of this brioche flavor).

Love this blend! This is the first I’ve tried from Murchies. It’s decadent and desserty, getting more soon!

This is stone cold now (oops).

Pleasantly smoky without being overly so, just enough to give that savory, chewy meatiness. I taste a little vanilla, but I wish there was a lot more – the smoke could certainly stand up to it. The bergamot is also subtle, just adding a hint of a citrusy top note.

Nice, but I guess I was hoping for more of the added flavors. Will have to give it a try with milk one of these days.

Finally trying another of my loose leaf selections from Murchie’s. I keep getting distracted by the cute teabag boxes sitting in front ha ha…

This is quite lovely though. Very citrusy and bright on a somewhat smoother base than usual – maybe the Darjeeling and Nepal black teas are helping curb the Ceylon a bit. I will say, it lacks that distinct piney note that I associate with yuzu, and because of that it’s reminding me more of a mix of grapefruit, orange, lemon, and bergamot. But I almost prefer that really, as sometimes I find yuzu to be a touch overbearing when it’s very prominent.

Lovely extra-citrusy Earl, and it’s making me miss Troika from Kusmi. :P

Sipdown! (2 | 108)

I ended up sipping through this one as an iced tea, as I preferred it that way. I did add a bit of sweetener, which brought out the apricot nicely. I will say, this wasn’t specifically apricot to me, more of a sweet peachy note with a little bit of apricot in there. Overall the flavor lacked depth to me, I felt like it needed some tartness or something to round it out. Made a perfectly nice iced tea though, especially for the summer.

Getting back to some Murchie’s teas… Too many tea purchases lately, I can’t keep up! :P

This is nice enough. The black base is a touch biscuity and fairly smooth today, and the apricot tastes natural enough. I do wish there was more apricot though, it’s a touch subtle for a tea where it should be the star.

So not a reorder for me, but would love to hear some recommendations for apricot teas!

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This wasn’t a favorite for me. It’s a pleasant tea, and it was nice enough for mindless sipping while working,. But I was disappointed that I couldn’t taste much bergamot, and really almost no jasmine at all.

Anyway, definitely preferred the Queen Victoria for a similar tea with more of a citrusy lean, and perhaps a touch less smoke.

It’s a dark and rainy day here today, so I figured it’s a perfect time to sip a smoky tea. Not sure why I think those two things go together, but I always seem to want roasty, toasty, or smoky teas when it’s rainy out. The cozy factor, I guess?

Honestly, this one is just not very interesting. I guess I expected more, since the description mentions jasmine and bergamot. There is a hint of citrus (I would guess lemon), but the jasmine is subtle to the extreme. I can smell a bit of it, but I don’t think I would notice it in the flavor at all if I wasn’t specifically searching for it.

Mostly it just tastes like a mellow smoked black tea? Perhaps with a hint of lemon. It’s good and I’ll drink it, but I was hoping for more jasmine and bergamot here. :|

The first loose leaf tea I’m trying from Murchie’s! I ended up getting mostly teabags, just because I wanted to try so many teas but I didn’t want the volume that would’ve resulted from getting 50g of each one… XD

To be honest, I’m a little underwhelmed by this one. Maybe it’s because I’m used to Lupicia’s excellent strawberry teas, but the strawberry here is coming off quite candylike and artificial to my tastebuds. And then I don’t really get cake or cream either, there’s a touch of vanilla but it’s more woody than creamy. Also that astringent Ceylon probably isn’t helping.

It’s not bad, just not what I was hoping for given the name. Maybe next time I’ll try it with milk and sugar to see how that goes.

Of course, I had to get all of the maple teas I could find from Murchie’s, because maple is delicious. :P

This is basically a maple-flavored black tea. The description mentions fruit because there are a couple of apple and cranberry bits sprinkled in, but they’re certainly not contributing anything to the flavor. The maple is the same as their Canada 150 blend – buttery, creamy, and sweet without being too cloying. Reminds me a bit of that maple & brown sugar instant oatmeal, actually. The black tea is quite light actually, and I don’t get much in the way of astringency, despite Ceylon being in the mix. I taste more of the woody/earthy notes of the Keemun, which is nice.

It’s honestly not that different from Canada 150, given how light the body is. Both are enjoyable though, very tasty maple flavor!

So this is one of several green-black blends that I ordered from Murchie’s – they seem to specialize in them so I figured I would try a few. This seems the most straightforward, just a blend of Ceylon and Keemun black teas with gunpowder and jasmine greens.

Steeped up, it looks like a black tea but tastes more like a green one. The jasmine is surprisingly subtle, just a whisper in the background. I actually taste the gunpowder the most – it has a strong earthy, mineral flavor that winds up in the forefront, potentially bolstered by the Keemun. Ceylon show itself in the finish, with its metallic, acidic character.

Overall, not sure about this one. I feel like the balance is a bit off for my tastes, I would prefer more jasmine and less gunpowder. There is also a noticeable astringency even though I only steeped it for 2 minutes, but perhaps that’s just a result of it being a teabag with very broken leaf. I’m hoping to be more enthused by some of the other green-black blends that have bergamot and lapsang and other fun things.

Another one from Murchie’s – couldn’t resist ordering this black-green-oolong blend with maple flavor!

I’m glad I got it because it’s really lovely. I’m not sure I taste green tea at all, but I do get the maltiness and slight astringency of the black tea, along with a deep woody note that I assume is coming from the oolong. The maple is the perfect amount – noticeable but not overly sweet or cloying. It’s a touch creamy as well, it smells and tastes like the filling in those leaf-shaped maple cream sandwich cookies to me. They call it a “hint of maple”, but it’s definitely stronger than that IMO.

Anyway, really tasty, and I can see it being nice for the morning or afternoon. The mix of teas gives it a lighter body, but I would still enjoy it for breakfast because of the maple. :)