An unusually good CTC tea. I picked this up at the Newark, DE farmer's market, in their Indian section, and it was quite a find.

The leaf, which consists of large pellets (noticeably bigger than most grades of CTC tea) is aromatic but doesn't have the best smell. It smells fresh and clean, but leads me to expect a slightly harsh tea.

I was pleasantly surprised when I brewed the cup and its aroma became much more pleasing. Strongly toasty aroma, less malty than typical for Assam, but more notes of bitter chocolate...tastes almost slightly burned. Brews a robust, deep brown cup, almost black. Thick body, with a pleasant astringency lingering through the sip, but leaving a clean finish.

Cheap: $5 for 8 ounces, and much better in quality than other teas in this price range. Perhaps most importantly, I loved how I felt after drinking this one, which led me to become more fond of it. I highly recommend this one if you're looking for an inexpensive CTC tea with strong toasty notes. I always drink my tea plain, but I'd imagine this would go well with milk (I've served it with others to milk and they liked it).

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Comments:

Plowboy wrote: on August 29th, 2017

Interesting review. Being a newly converted assam freak I'll have to check this out.

I looked forward to the morning, just so I can have a huge mug of assam. I need help. :-)

Alex Zorach wrote: on August 30th, 2017

Thanks! If you're looking for other bargain buys I'd point to Ahmad Tea's Kalami Assam (whole-leaf, my preferred one) and Barooti Assam (broken-leaf, still good, and somewhat different in overall character).

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