Scottish Afternoon

Additional notes: I’ve tried this tea bag before.. it was terrible but I kind of assumed it was ancient (it was from a long ago tea box — nothing to do with Steepster.) This tea bag is from a different tea box actually (also nothing to do with Steepster), and it is MUCH better. There is a ton of flavor here and it is interesting that the last time I thought it tasted like plain water. I guess it shows it definitely matters how old tea is! And it keeps my worry alive that I might not be giving some teas a fair chance just because I’m not sure how old any of the teas that didn’t start with me actually are. I’m upping the rating for this poor tea bag that no one else has even rated yet!

I took a risk, since the canister (a nifty oval shape with a toggle-style closure) had no date on it. Neither did the two foil packs of tea bags contained within. The tea brewed up with lovely dark color — I needed a lot of milk to get the tea to my preferred milkyness, which is somewhere between “builders tea” and regular “milky tea.” However the taste was much lighter than the color; I suspect this batch was not so fresh, especially since it seems to only be available now through somebody on Amazon calling himself “Square Deal Guy.” (Yikes.) It did have some interesting Darjeeling notes among the Assam heartiness, though; and the caffeine was just right for the afternoon, adding a bit of brightness and focus to my outlook with no jitters at all. Now that Harney & Sons has a Scottish Afternoon blend, I’m going to try that next. I got my canister at Park Slope Coffee Tea N Spices.