Reviews of Black Tea
Page 1 2 3 ... 12 13 14 15 16 ... 18 19 20 of 20 pages with 496 results
Superfine Tan Yang Gong Fu Black Tea from TeaVivre
Style: Black Tea – Region: Fu'an, Fujian, China73 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Feb. 19th, 2013
I enjoyed this tea, and thought it very high-quality, but it was too smooth or mellow for my tastes, and I was never able to get a sufficiently strong cup out of it. Its flavor profile was similar to bai hao oolong (with a different aroma), and I find that tea too smooth for me.
Dry leaf consists almost exclusively...
Organic Superfine Keemun Fragrant Black Tea from TeaVivre
Style: Keemun – Region: Huangshan, Anhui, China91 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Feb. 9th, 2013
I find it interesting how different people I have given this tea to have perceived it differently. I thought it a top-notch tea, but I also found that it doesn't have as much of a universal appeal as some high-quality teas.
Dry leaf is pleasingly aromatic, and shares a lot of qualities in common with top-quality bl...
Korakundah Estate Nilgiri FOP Black Tea from Arbor Teas
Style: Black Tea – Region: Nilgiri, India57 / 100 Aroma: 3/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Feb. 1st, 2013
This tea had a very pleasant-smelling dry leaf, but I could not produce a satisfactory cup by brewing it: it struck me as weak. Dry leaf is relatively finely broken, but smells very pleasing, with hints of wintergreen.
I used a lot of leaf, but in spite of that, upon brewing, this tea came out quite weak. Aroma of...
Organic Breakfast from Mighty Leaf Tea
Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend47 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Jan. 31st, 2013
I found this to be an above-average black tea in tea bags, but not good enough to justify the price. These sachets are very expensive, almost $10 for only 15. This places them in the same price range with Two Leaves and a Bud, which I prefer.
Aroma is not terribly complex: malty and robust, but not as strong relat...
Golden Monkey Black Tea from TeaVivre
Style: Golden Monkey – Region: Fujian, China91 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jan. 28th, 2013
I was really intrigued and impressed by this tea. It's the first Golden Monkey I've sampled, and it's set the bar pretty high for future sampling.
Dry leaf is very aromatic, and smells strongly and distinctly of whole grain rye and caraway. Slightly suggestive of Yunnan Gold teas, which have a similar appearance, ...
Royal English Breakfast from Harney and Sons
Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Jan. 17th, 2013
I enjoyed this in a Barnes and Noble cafe. Compared to Tazo Awake, I prefer this tea pretty solidly. It's perhaps a bit mellower, but I think more complex and smoother.
This was a solid black breakfast tea. It didn't quite scream "English" the way some English Breakfast blends did, but it did strike me as a typic...
Greenfield Estate Ceylon Black Tea from Arbor Teas
Style: Ceylon Black Tea – Region: Sri Lanka / Ceylon90 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jan. 16th, 2013
It would have been easy for me to overlook this tea if I had only brewed it once. Smooth and light, this tea has a classic high-grown character. But it took multiple steepings and some experimentation to discover how good this tea was at producing multiple cups. Among the best at making multiple infusions of any bla...
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Keemun Black Tea from Arbor Teas
Style: Keemun – Region: Qimen, Anhui, China67 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Jan. 14th, 2013
Keemun can be really diverse, so I never know exactly what to expect when trying it. This one really surprised me--while being recognizable as Keemun.
A very complex, organic-tasting Keemun (and I mean organic in the sense that it tastes natural and multifaceted, not overly refined or simplified).
The dry leaf c...
Assam TGFOP Black Tea from Arbor Teas
Style: Assam – Region: Assam, India91 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jan. 4th, 2013
This is my favorite Assam I've tried yet, excepting a few wholesale-only samples.
Aroma is very complex, suggestive of bread, dried fruit (raisins?), sweet rice, and a hint of wintergreen. There's a lot going on in the aroma; I found myself sipping it slowly and enjoying the different tones that developed.
Very ...
Makaibari Estate Darjeeling 2nd Flush Black Tea from Arbor Teas
Style: Darjeeling Second Flush – Region: Darjeeling, India83 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 5/5
Jan. 3rd, 2013
I always get excited about Makaibari estate and I have not yet been disappointed. This was among one of the smoothest, creamiest teas I've tried from them. It has less bite than the first flush.
Aroma of the dry leaf is suggestive of monsoon/rains teas.
Upon brewing, the aroma becomes much more complex.
I fi...
Ceylon (Ceylon Orange Pekoe) from Ahmad Tea
Style: Ceylon Black Tea – Region: Sri Lanka / Ceylon87 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Dec. 31st, 2012
My favorite pure black tea from Ahmad Tea, and my favorite tea from any company in this price range.
If I had to pick a single example of a classic black tea, I would pick this one.
Like most of Ahmad's teas, I find this one offers exceptional value: solid quality at a very low price. It is versatile and easy to...
Yorkshire Gold Leaf Tea (Loose) from Yorkshire Tea
Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Dec. 2nd, 2012
After being relatively impressed with Yorkshire Tea's tea bags, I was let down when I tried their loose-leaf. It tasted really similar, which was good, but it was not markedly better!
The aroma is rich and malty, and there is a faint hint of wintergreen in the aroma as well. Smoother than average for a tea of this...
Panyang Golden Tips from Harney and Sons
Style: Panyang Congou – Region: Fujian, China80 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
Nov. 20th, 2012
Wiry leaf has a good amount of golden tip. I was surprised by the dark color of the liquor produced by these light golden leaves. The picture Harney provided looks a bit deceptive--I found it brews much darker.
Aroma is intensely cocoa-ey and chocolatey. Almost tastes like a cup of unsweetened cocoa. Reminiscent...
Imperial Assam (Tea Bags) from Hampstead Tea
Style: Assam – Region: Assam, India47 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Nov. 15th, 2012
Brews a very dark color, but flavor is surprisingly light (although still stronger than most light-colored teas). Tastes a lot more like high-grown Ceylon tea than like most Assam.
Aroma suggestive of spices and sweet rice, with quite a strong wood presence (like oak and cedar, unlike most teas). Peppery and punge...
Superb Black Tea from The Excellent Tea Company
Style: Black Tea – Region: Rwanda57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Oct. 10th, 2012
The only tea I've ever tried from Rwanda: a humble teabag with finely-broken tea fannings.
Exceptionally strong and robust: this makes some Assam tea look weak! Good with milk and one of the few teas that I actually preferred this way. Brews a very dark blackish-brown cup, opaque, almost like black coffee. Yet le...
Darjeeling (Sachets) from Hampstead Tea
Style: Darjeeling Black Tea – Region: Darjeeling, India77 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Oct. 4th, 2012
I fell in love with Hampstead tea's loose-leaf Darjeeling some time ago, and it was not before picking up some samples at World Tea East this year that I had an opportunity to try any of their tea bags.
This is called a "sachet" but it's not a pyramid bag--just a humble tea bag. The tea inside is pretty broken up, ...
Lapsang Souchong Smoky Black Tea (Yan Xun Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong) from TeaVivre
Style: Lapsang Souchong – Region: Wuyi, Fujian, China57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Sep. 24th, 2012
The dry leaf smells strongly of pine smoke, more like the British style of Lapsang Souchong, which I find is often overly smoky. But upon brewing, this tea's smokiness mellows out considerably. There's still a lot of that campfire or wood smoke smell, but it doesn't overwhelm.
Flavor and mouthfeel is exceptionally...
Organic English Breakfast from Divinitea
Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend70 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Aug. 27th, 2012
A robust, good-quality English Breakfast tea with a quality slightly suggestive of Yunnan black teas.
The large, mostly whole leaves infuse quite slowly, but this tea becomes quite strong if you let it steep long enough. Moderate bitterness, full-bodied, not too astringent.
I would be curious to learn what goes ...
Organic/Biodynamic Darjeeling Autumnal from Divinitea
Style: Darjeeling Autumnal Flush – Region: Darjeeling, India83 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Aug. 24th, 2012
I tend to love everything that comes out of Makaibari estate, and this tea is no exception. I still think I prefer their first flush and long-leaf greens, but this was another very good tea, and people who like darker black teas might actually prefer this one.
A fairly complex Darjeeling. Powerful grape-like aroma...
Irish Breakfast from Epi Tea
Style: Irish Breakfast – Region: Blend67 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Aug. 17th, 2012
Tea bag has little aroma, but upon brewing the aroma really emerges...rich, malty, and complex.
Brews a very dark cup, very full-bodied and thick. Although this is among the most full-bodied teas I've sampled in quite a long time, and the aroma is powerful, the flavor is surprisingly weak, especially for this style...
Fengqing Dragon Pearl Black Tea from TeaVivre
Style: Yunnan Red – Region: Fengqing, Yunnan, China83 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Aug. 16th, 2012
In spite of having tried quite a few Yunnan teas by now, this was something completely different for me! Very interesting, although a little bit difficult to brew to satisfaction. The dry leaf, rolled into dense spheres, has only a mild aroma, more suggestive of Keemun than other Yunnan teas.
I first used a small ...
Yun Nan Dian Hong Black Tea – Golden Tip from TeaVivre
Style: Yunnan Gold – Region: Yunnan, China77 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Jul. 29th, 2012
Dry leaf, consisting almost exclusively of unbroken golden tips, is extremely aromatic and fresh, with the characteristic quality that all black teas from Yunnan province seem to have, but fruitier than normal.
Upon brewing, the leaf turns darker in color and produces a rich brown cup.
Like other Yunnan Dian Hong...
Organic English Breakfast from Paisley Label Tea (Paisley Tea Co)
Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend50 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Jul. 25th, 2012
I was very interested to try the teas from this newly-launched effort of Two Leaves tea. This was an above-average quality British-style tea bag with finely-broken black tea, from the same company that I'm used to selling high-quality pyramid sachets. Good but not amazing. No brewing instructions on the container; I...
Read Full ReviewLapsang Souchong Black Tea Grade II from Life in Teacup
Style: Lapsang Souchong – Region: Fujian, China63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Jul. 13th, 2012
Life in Teacup sent me a sample of this tea even though it had been discontinued from their catalogue; now, their only Lapsang Souchong is the Lapsang Souchong Superior Grade.
I can see why they discontinued this one: while it was not bad, I thought it was nowhere near as good as the superior grade. Even with the h...
Poabs Organic from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Kerala, India60 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Jul. 9th, 2012
A powerful, robust, Assam-like tea.
I'm not feeling the description Simpson and Vail gives for this tea; I found it neither smooth nor sweet. This tea brews a strong, dark cup. The aroma and flavor are more like Assam than any tea I've tried outside of Assam. However, there are some nuances that I find most teas ...
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