New English Teas' Earl Grey has a surprisingly mild or faint aroma for an authentically English-blended EG, both in dry-bag form and in-cup. However, the flavor is a lot more pronounced than the smell. I wouldn't call it strong, but defined enough with a medium-tempered bergamot dose to not induce an avalanche of shame in paying premium shekels for whichever colorfully gaudy tin full of 40, 60 or 80 bags from which this came. [In my case, it was a 72-bag variety tin with 24 each of English Breakfast, English Afternoon, and this, retailed from World Market.]

If you collect tea tins, the variety available on their website is impressive. You could do worse than the tea itself that is found inside; a least it is decent and drinkable, not outstanding. The flavor does linger for quite a long time in the aftertaste, sometimes even stronger than the sip itself, so this is a tea one could consume slowly and make it last.

One problem I have encountered a couple times so far: the teabags—which are in square pillow shape similar in size and thickness to Celestial Seasonings'—are attached in pairs with poor perforations. As a result, while trying to separate them, I have torn into a couple of the bags away from the intended seam, by accident. Cutting them apart with scissors shouldn't be necessary, but will prevent this nuisance.

Add your own review

Login or Sign Up to comment on this review.