The Tao of Tea

This darjeeling is truly a quality 2nd flush. I prefer the 2nd flush over the 1st as I prefer more oxidized teas over the less oxidized varieties. The leaf is dark green, brown and black mix with long twisted-curled leaves. The brew is a robust floral and fragrant muscatel flavoring that is pleasing without being overpowering. It has a freshness to the taste with some notes of honey sweetness. This is one of my favorites when it comes to darjeeling 2nd flush. If you love a 2F darjeeling give this one a try.

I wonderful 2nd flush darjeeling with the nice muscatel flavor. Enjoyed it this morning… late on the report.

Nothing remarkable about this tea. It makes a great blending tea with other teas that I find too strong however.

This isn’t my very favorite chai blend, but it comes in at second place, nevertheless. The black tea is strong, but the proportion of spices is not very great, so I always add extra peppercorns, cardamom, and anything else I have on hand.

The best way to make this chai is on the stovetop, which is more time consuming but yields a stronger, more flavorful chai. If you know the ratio of water to milk you prefer (1:1, for instance), you can make a single serving or a large batch all at once. Start by heating your water to a boil in a pot (extra spices can be added to the water as it heats). Then, add a generous spoonful of tea per intended cup of chai, and allow to simmer for five minutes. Next, add the milk of your preference and allow to heat until it just returns to a simmer, at which point you should remove the pot from the heat and let it sit for another five minutes. Strain and serve. If honey is your sweetener of choice, add it after straining; otherwise, a spoonful of sugar per cup of liquid can be added at any point. Keep in mind that if you’re making only a single serving, some of the liquid will evaporate or be absorbed by the tea leaves, so you’ll end up with a very concentrated cup, so you may want to use a little extra water/milk; making a large batch makes this less noticeable.

As for me, I like using half milk and half water in my chai, so if I want to make two cups, I start with a cup of water, add two or three spoonfuls of tea, and then add the cup of milk. Voila.

I love rose-flavored things, and Rose Melange is the best rose-flavored tea I’ve had. Though the tea itself is strong, the rose flavor is not at all lost or overpowered as it so often is in other rose teas. Rose Melange looks and smells wonderful both as loose tea and after brewing, and I’ve never found it to become bitter, even though I tend to steep my tea for a long time. I think it’s delicious with milk and sugar. One of my absolute favorites.

Started my day with this #tea with that distinct muscatel flavoring.

This is an excellent Golden Monkey! Grown near the Tai Mu mountains of Fujian province, China,it is also known as ‘Panyong Wang’, the king of high grade black teas.

Enjoying this wonderful malty tea on a beautiful day out on the deck. What a glorious experience!

Starting my week with this bold tea from the higher elevations of India, which lends to a less astringent variety of tea. I’m drinking it black with sweetener the way I like most all my black teas. It’s a great variation on the Indian teas.

Starting my Sunday with this Nilgiri. A nice full bodied smooth tea.

A cup of this every so often is a nice change. The aroma is amazing. With a teaspoon of sugar, it’s almost like drinking a dozen roses!

A light roasty flavored oolong, much like a cliff oolong tea. Drinking it with some 75% dark chocolate. Ummm nice end to a day!

Enjoying a flask of this #tea, one of my faves of all time. If you haven’t tried this one from TaoOfTea.com you should! Yummm!

Rose Petal Black was one of my stock teas at school this year, since it’s just sweet enough for me to drink without added milk or sugar if necessary. That said, it’s not a particularly stellar tea; I’m not sure I’d buy it again often.

My roommate loves this stuff and brews it by the vatful. It is certainly very distinctive: sort of like walking through an old-growth forest and burying your nose deep in the rich loam. (At least, what I imagine this would be like. I have never actually done this.) Sometimes I like it plain, more often I add honey to mine. Surprisingly good iced as well.

A bold leaf, as I remember it.

This is a Chinese green that has some similarities in flavor to a mild sencha. I think it is the vegetal taste that makes me think of that. For me, this is a great Chinese green. Sweet, smooth, not salty at all. I’m now out of this tea but it’s on my short list to order again.

Not a big fan. It’s kind of raw tasting to me with little actual flavor. Too much herbal flavor, not enough (or any) floral or citrus aromas or tastes. Too boring for me though I do know at least one person that has fallen in love with it because of the mildness. For me, it is just a nice base for flavoring teas. I put some almond extract with it and it was pretty good. But plain, yeah, just not my thing.

In the mood for a Darjeeling and this one really hits the spot. Tastes fresh, a bit buttery.

This is a really solid, well-rounded rich black tea. I love the big leaf twist. Balanced. A perfumed woody character plays of the slight bitterness and gives a honeydew sweetness. A basic, morning black that’s very clean and delicious.

Steeped 3.9 grams in 6oz for 3:30. This is a solid cup, if a little mellow and quiet. There’s a gentle malt character and bit of fruit, but it’s somewhat generic in terms of overall expression. Otherwise, it’s really fresh, bright, and crisp, just not as complex as I had hoped. For the price, it’s a solid deal on an Organic Nilgiri. I was pleasantly surprised to find it held up for a second steep at 4:30.