Palais des Thes

I found this to be a much smoother blend than the other Earl Grey in the sampler (The des Lords). This one is less astringent and the bergamot seems more prominent. Yunnan still seems a little bland to me, but I did steep at boiling. I will try this at a lower temperature next time.

sipown! thank you *hallieod for sending this along for me to try. I didn’t think i’d enjoy this much as there is a strong bergamot flavour to this. However, I’m open to trying things just in case! Overall? I wouldn’t ever order this myself but it’s not as iscky to me as i thought it would be. The base is rather smooth and the bergamot is softened by the other citrus fruits in the blend. My only wish? that this was a bit sweeter. There’s a bitterness from the fruits that makes this less pleasant than it could be. Still though…not too shabby :) Thanks Hallieod!

I wish I had a hot French girlfriend that I could drink this tea with and make love to while we plan our vacation to Paris to visit Jim Morrison at Pere LaChaise Cemetary.

I bought a box (20 count) of this Frenchy tea.
Not my favorite, but will eventually sipdown the entire package.
The cotton muslin teabag and string are unique.
The French / English translation and color coding makes a fun 5 min French lesson.
Didn’t have a black “pick me up” that I wished it had.

ya know what, this is a musky earl grey, and weirdly i will admit, i think i like it more than more usual earl greys.
i’m not a person who is drawn to earl grey. i could take it or leave it kinda. and sometimes they seem too puckery. but this one is more moody. it’s a slight nuance i think, but i feel it.

(note to self: i liked the 2.5 minute steep slightly better than the 3.5 minute steep.)

thanks again Dinosara!

Sipdown, 171. Sending the rest of this off in a swap!

First off, argh beaurocracy. I’m glad that NSF decided not to tell me when the annual report for my grant was due, but rather just inform me once it was overdue.

Anyway, this tea. Looking back at my tasting note from last time, I change no opinions. It’s pretty much exactly the same as the last time I had it, which is to day decently tasty, with a nice sweetness that I really enjoy, but also the yunnan is on the musty/earthy/woody side of things and that’s not quite my style. An Earl on a golden-tippier yunnan base would be awesome… oh wait, it was, back when Verdant had their Golden Earl years ago. sigh.

I’m surprised I haven’t tried this one yet… I thought for sure I would have. Now I want to go through my Le Palais des Thés sample set I bought ages ago to try the others that I never got around to.

I have been doing some massive swaps/giveaways and just like that my cupboard has dropped to 189 teas. I of course will be getting some teas back that will make it go up, but goodness it feels good to purge a bit. I had promised myself a tea order after I got below 200, but now I am waiting until I get my tax return and seeing how low I can go.

I brewed this slightly hotter than the lable recommended because I couldn’t bear to brew a black tea at 185°F. I figured my typical 3 minute steep time would compensate as they called for 4-5 minutes. I sniffed while brewing and became extremely wary. It smelled a bit musty, and a bit smoky. I was reminded of my recent experience with the Harney Tippy Yunnan where I didn’t like the slightly smoky note to it, and thought this would go similarly. Despite my misgivings, I let it cool and tried it.

I can say that though this is totally not the type of tea I usually drink, I am enjoying it. Yes, the Yunnan base is woody, earthy, and a hint smoky, but somehow I don’t mind it today. The bergamot is relatively well balanced; it’s not very strong, but I can still taste it and it’s a main part of the flavor. There is also this sweetness to it that is winning me over a bit. I am a sucker for natural sweetness in a tea. Altogether not a tea I would buy again, but way better than I was expecting this morning.

As a sidebar, I am very confused about Yunnan blacks. There are some Yunnan blacks, primarily golden-tip varieties like Golden Fleece and Teavivre’s Dian Hong Golden Tips, that I really really love. No woodiness, no smokiness. But I’ve tried a few other Yunnan blacks lately that have been completely different! I am sure it’s in part a grade thing, but it’s weird. Then again I have realized recently that I can’t stand some Keemuns but love others. So I guess grade makes a big deal for me in black teas.

Fruity with a peppery kick. Not bitter at all but has a refreshing astringency. This Darjeeling is 20% Assam so it makes a great wake up tea.

Had this tea at a very impressive restaurant. Husband surprised me with a last minute reservation to Dirt Candy for my birthday yesterday. I’ve been wanting to eat there since foreeever! It was everything I dreamed and more. Their dessert menu featured a couple of teas from Le Palaise des Thes, proving that a stunning meal out doesn’t have to be followed by Lipton or stale coffee.

The tea came in a small insulated press pot. Elegant and convenient. I peeked into the pot and saw that this was loose leaf. Amazing. I felt that the ratio of leaf to water was a bit off, but overall, quite tasty! Sweet honey notes. Roasty. More like a dark oolong than black tea. Malty. Perfect end to a perfect meal.

Then we went next door to play with the kitties at the no kill shelter. Husband would normally stop me from doing this as I’m allergic to the cute little things, but it was my birthday! So I’m allowed to get all itchy from cat fur if I want to. :D at some point, I got a bit too wheezy so I dropped a donation and left. Made me happy. :)

The aroma is very intense and that is one of the things I like about this tea (though otherwise I’m not so fond of aromatic teas). This tea is also the most popular when I invite friends – I don’t have Teekanne style teas and the The des Moines smells better than Lung Ching or Tie Guan Yin, so normally, they prefer this one.

A classic Genmaicha tea, with a crisper note of rice than many other brands. The perfect tea if you enjoy this particular Japanese style of tea. I love it with sushi and its pretty tasty iced too.

For those who don’t like a hint of astringency in their morning cup of tea, there is Montagne Bleue. On the nose, this is a mildly floral tea. In the cup, it brews up as a dark caramel liquor that’s laced with a light fruity brightness, and very faint floral flavor (the strawberry and rhubarb show through). Tastes even better with a little honey.

Be sure to steep this tea at the proper temperature. Its silky and smooth, while having some astringency, and a hint of bergamot. A robustly caffienated tea for the morning, it will wake you up!

I LOVE THIS TEA! It smells beautiful. Even my super picky boyfriend who is new to tea loves this tea. It is fruity and clean, but doesn’t smell artificial to me. It is intensely strawberry, and citrus-y. Amazing, and will probably be delicious cold.

I picked this tea up from Palais de The when I was wondering around Grafton Street. I love really any black tea based Early Grey, so I was very excited for this. I must say, this is not my favourite tea. I think it may have to do with the fact that it has a Yunnan base (I prefere Ceylon or Darjeeling), but I did enjoy the bergamot (you could definitely tell it was there). I’ve had it twice now, and steeped it the full five minutes. I may try 3.5-4 minutes to see how it turns out then.

(trying to get back into Steepster!!) tried a sample of this tea last night. I don’t usually care for flavored teas, especially those with bergamot. But I did enjoy this one. It was surprisingly smooth and the citrus was subtle. Definitely vanilla as well. Not something I’d reach for, but I can understand why it’s so popular.

This tea is, in my opinion, against what all teas are compared especially in the Black category. It’s versatile and has the lovely Darjeeling color. Certainly a premium tea.

A subtle yet enjoyable green tea that does not offend the sensitive palate. The dry leaves are a pale green with streaks of off white running through them, like a forest in the mist. The leaves are pressed flat and rather unique in appearance, almost as though they were chipped off of a larger unity. The scent of the leaves is light and unassuming, and the brewed nose is just the right amount of sweet and nutty. There is a very mild earth tone as well. This is what I’d consider a neutral tea, it should not offend those who shy away from earth or nutty notes, and is sweet enough to provide a good flavor for those who demand it.

This tea has the familiar scent of an earl grey, layered onto what can be described as a handsome marriage vanilla and other citrus flavors. In contrast to some of the other reviews it was the alluring scent of the dry leaves that piqued my interest in this tea. And of course, the mystique of the blend – shrouded in secrecy wakes the imagination and leaves one comfortable in thought over the superposition of possible ingredients, just enough uncertainty to bring forth contemplation of Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle, the HUP. This tea should take one on a journey, and pleasant one at that.

Thanks for Ysaurella, whose post on this tea caught my eye and helped us swap some teas we had in our respective cupboards.
I felt I had to start my tasting of her samples with this one;)
Thanks to my recent fantastic infuser, I could see that the green leaves were rather nice and bigger than I expected when I had served the dry tea.
The smell is really nice, sweet and very fruity.
The taste was fine, though not exceptional. What I liked is that the different flavors taste natural (as I’ve had a not so good experience with a flavored green tea from Le Palais des Thés before, I was wary of that. The flavors were however a bit weak in comparison with the green tea base and not as striking to my palate as to my nose.
I also thought some japanese sencha powder had been added to it, as there was a lot of it at the bottom of my teapot. I also found it to be quite astringent while I was finishing my teapot (after 6 cups or so).
However I have to say that I’m not sure I’ll ever like a green tea, as much as a nice black-blend, a oolong or a white tea. I believe this tea might rate among the green teas I liked best.
And some of Ysaurella’s other samples really have a smell to die for. To be continued…