Iced Classic Black Tea (Loose)
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Commercial Description
Pure Leaf Iced Classic Black Tea uses high-grown, single-origin Kenyan black tea that delivers a crisp and clean flavor with balanced floral and malty notes for true refreshment. Altogether, the blend delivers a malty, sweet character with a distinct floral aroma and little bitterness.
Ratings & Reviews
Page 1 of 1 page with 2 reviews
72 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5Alex (45 reviews) on May. 16th, 2018
The dry leaf is floral and malty, just as Pure Leaf and the other reviewer describe it. Once brewed, there's a hint of dried fruit as well as wood; otherwise it's pretty similar to the dry aroma. Despite this tea coming from Kenya, the taste reminds me a bit of all three of the main tea growing regions of India: the maltiness and dried fruit of Assam, the floral qualities of Darjeeling, the mellow woodiness of Nilgiri, and an unexpected dark fruit note in the finish that can be found in either of the latter two regions. Unlike the other reviewer, I don't think it's bitter, but I steeped it for less than 4 minutes, and I'm not very sensitive to bitterness anyway. It's slightly astringent, but no more than any other broken black tea, and I probably wouldn't have noticed it if not for the fact that I've been drinking light oolongs and green tea almost exclusively for the last couple weeks.
Mine is the bagged version, but it's the same tea as the loose leaf version, and I cut the bags open to use as loose leaf anyway. It was just over $2 for almost 50 grams (my jar had an extra bag), so I thought it was a fantastic deal. At the regular price there are plenty of options online for less broken or even full leaf tea; however, it's probably the best black tea available at most grocery stores.
Update: I've discovered the bitterness the other reviewer talks about. It seems to come from using a larger amount of tea. It's mild in my opinion, and not unpleasant. Also, I forgot to mention resteeping in my original review. As expected for such a finely broken black tea, you're not going to get more than one strong and flavorful cup. If you're counting on resteeping to increase the value of this tea, look for a full leaf Assam instead. Something malty with dried fruit notes would be similar, though probably lacking the somewhat Darjeeling-esque floral qualities.
72 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5Difflugia (170 reviews) on Jan. 11th, 2018
I'd never tasted Kenyan tea that wasn't part of a blend from multiple sources, so I bought a jar of the Pure Leaf. Even though this tea is labelled for use as iced tea, I'm drinking it hot (four minutes in boiling water). This is still the only tea solely from Kenya that I've tried, so I don't know how much of the flavor profile is common to other Kenyan teas.
The dry tea is small, broken pieces of leaf, but it's not fannings. It smells to me like a cross between an Assam and a Darjeeling. The maltiness is there, but there are also floral notes that aren't usually apparent in an Assam.
When the water is added, the aroma intensifies to the point that it almost smells thick. The aroma is of malt, molasses and cooked cereal, like Malt-o-Meal.
The first sip is rich and malty, but also more bitter than I expected. There's very little astringency, so the bitterness has a pleasant crispness to it. The finish is reminiscent of hops. It's good, but slightly too bitter to be balanced at first. After the tea is a little cooler, though, the bitterness fades a bit and allows more of the malty sweetness through. The finish remains bitter, though. I find it pleasant, almost like a strongly hopped beer, but as with the beer, those sensitive to bitterness might not enjoy it at all.
I'd really like to try other Kenyan tea. This one isn't quite like any others that I've tasted. It's most similar to Assam teas, but still noticeably different.
This tea is available in many grocery stores and is about $7 for 4.7 ounces. That's not super expensive, especially for the convenience of buying loose tea at a grocery store. Better quality black teas can be had online for similar prices, though.
Page 1 of 1 page with 2 reviews
