Another bagged offering arrives from Teavana's latest comeback push, which finds its teas (including this one) in late 2024 in online stores like Wal-Mart, Target, Amazon, and even Staples (where the price was lowest as of this writing, but still around $12 for a 24-ct box).

I used an average of the retail prices I found for the "value" rating, which is not great, even for a such a nice bagged tea. $12-17 for any 24-bag box of tea seems high. Still, I can see this being a favorite easy-access EB tea for a lot of folks who are willing to pay a few dollars' premium for a known-quality name, and who aren't aware of better per-bag values for comparable tea from outlets like Murchie's. I got mine at a conference in Virginia Beach, so the new-look Teavanas are being disbursed to higher-end food-service concessionaires too. Good way to build exposure!

The dry-bag aroma was somewhat muted for a tea with such a rich flavor, especially considering that each teabag comes in an individually sealed, foil-lined pouch as pictured. But from cup to throat, this stuff is excellent, and hard to beat. It's a friendly, dark, moderately strong, smooth, almost savory, faintly bitter, slightly astringent, malty, decidedly sweetener-tolerant EB that goes down with a mild warming effect (beyond the actual temperature), and leaves one wanting more after each swallow. I can't find any documentation as to what's used, but I'd be stunned if Assam weren't a substantial player in this blend. If it were a few bucks less, I'd want to order a bunch, but I can get comparably high-quality bagged EBs elsewhere already. I wonder how it would compare to Teavana's original, loose-leaf version, which apparently has been retired.

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