This tea is not a bad tea. With that said, I wouldn't necessarily call it a great tea. I feel it is an average tea.
The first cup I had tasted great, and I used microwaved filtered water (I was in a pinch on campus and had no other source of heating water), and it was very good. I let the teabag steep for the recommended time before disposing of it, and upon my first sip, I fell in love with this tea. It had a very delightful taste that I view as expected from the "ideal" black tea: it had a soft bitterness as its initial flavor, and a bold aftertaste that seemed slightly roasted. I was looking for an English blend that I would enjoy and I thought I had found it. As such, I purchased a few more individual bags from the campus store and the following two days I had them.
The first was brewed in my campus dorm in a stainless steel electric kettle using filtered water. I put the teabag in and removed it after the recommended time, instantly noticed a change in flavor from the first time I had it. Instead of having a bold, roasted aftertaste, it was very bitter and acidic. So much so, that when swallowing, I had to close my nose so I wouldn't taste it. The initial taste remained the same and it was enjoyable, but for some reason, it was very bitter and very acidic.
The following cup was no different, and was brewed using tap water in an electric plastic tea kettle with water poured onto it at 173ºF. I left the tea bag in for 2 minutes, and removed it. I drank it with my oatmeal that morning and it was no different - a very bitter and acidic aftertaste that made drinking it more of a chore than a delight.
With that said, I don't dislike the tea. The aftertaste may have been poor, but the main flavor was not bad at all - it was a delight. If it was the only black tea I had available upon a mix of other teas and I was in the mood for a black tea, I would drink it. However, I much rather prefer Twinings' English Breakfast Blend over this. Perhaps I would have enjoyed it more if I added some milk, but I do not like needing to add milk to a tea - I'd rather find one I enjoy without it.
The price is not that bad (on campus, one teabag is one dollar, however I have an absurdly high amount on a non-transferrable meal plan. As such, I'm talking about the cost in the supermarket, which is $3.49). There are 20 teabags for $3.49.
If you are a fan of a bitter aftertaste, or you like the acidity of certain teas, then you will enjoy this.
With that said, maybe I brewed the tea incorrectly. However, having 2 cups steeped at different temperatures and different lengths with a different source of water yielding the same result makes me wonder if that is what it usually tastes like.
UPDATE ON REVIEW:
I have had other teas now with both with filtered water & with tap water, & I realize now that a large portion of the oddly acidic aftertaste was due ot the tap water of my home.
Through filtering water (or having a decent source of tap water that will ruin your water as it does mine), Tazo's tea tastes much better & makes it a decent breakfast tea.

The original flavor rating was a 2/5. I have adjusted it to a 3/5 to accommodate for this.

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Comments:

Alex Zorach wrote: on March 31st, 2017

Hello and welcome to RateTea and thank you for your first reviews!

I definitely don't think this is a typical black tea, I've had it a number of times myself, and it is unusually sour / acidic, and can also be pretty astringent.

Unfortunately, the selection of teas available in most mainstream stores and supermarkets in the U.S. can be pretty mediocre.

I definitely remember being in college and having an excessive amount of points but not wanting to spend actual cash. At my college, we had access only to Bigelow Tea, so I became very familiar with the six or so black tea blends and the six or so herbal teas that they offered...

Anyways, welcome to the site and I look forward to reading more of your reviews!

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