Tag: Black Tea

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Udyan Tea’s Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea by Udyan Tea
Black Tea / Straight
₹500.00 for 100g

Udyan Tea has provided me with Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea came in a matte black foil bag (sealed and resealable). The labeling on Udyan Tea’s products is simple – there are a lot of information about the tea on their website thought if you’re ever interested in learning more about their products. I do wish that the labeling was more informative (either on the same label or onto the back). Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea is a beautiful tea – there’s a nice blend of colours from red, green, and brown. The aroma of the dry leaf is lovely – I find it to be a mix of nutty and earthy.

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea is a black tea harvested in the autumn of 2018. I think it’s neat when you can get that level of information about your tea! Namring is a tea estate/garden located in Darjeeling, India.

Preparation

Udyan Tea recommends steeping Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea in 90-95°C (194-203°F) water for 4 to 5 minutes. My initial steep of Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea was in 93°C (200°F) water for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea steeps to a golden orange colour. The aroma reminds me of roasted nuts, as well as something that reminds me of floral notes (not quite sure what flower it is that it reminds me of). I found the aroma to be inviting, and I enjoy the taste. There’s a sweetness, nuttiness, and floral flavours all quite well-balanced. There’s a touch of astringency and bitterness at the tail end of each sip.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea twice, adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found the flavour to remain fairly similar to the initial steep. I found the floral notes to be weaker and the nutty flavours were more prominent.

My Overall Impression

I liked Udyan Tea’s Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea. I found that the tea was pleasant, but I did find the bitterness and astringency to remain with each steep. I liked the balance between the nutty and floral notes, but the persistence of the bitterness and astringency didn’t make a favourite for me. I think it would take to some sweetener and cream easily, if you’re not fond of the astringency either.

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Dessert by Deb’s Chocolate, Berries & Cream

Chocolate, Berries & Cream by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$9.00 for 50g

First Impressions

By now, the matte white bags from Dessert by Deb feel familiar. They’re heat sealed and resealable, once you’ve opened it. The first thing that I noticed when I opened by the bag of Chocolate, Berries & Cream is the aroma. It honestly smells the way I’d expect a tea with this name to smell. It really reminds me of the aroma of a strawberry creme chocolate – and I don’t say that too lightly since I’m a fan of chocolate.

Chocolate, Berries & Cream consists of organic: black tea, vanilla, Giddy YoYo cacao nibs, Giddy YoYo dark chocolate, elderberries, currants, raisins, and hibiscus. The aroma of the ingredients is really well reflected in the name, I’m honestly a bit surprised that strawberries isn’t an ingredient because it reminds me so much of strawberries.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Chocolate, Berries & Cream in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes. My initial steep of Chocolate, Berries & Cream was 5 minutes.

First Taste

Chocolate, Berries & Cream steeps to a dark reddish brown, a colour I’d attribute to the chocolate, the hibiscus, and the black tea in the blend. There is a bit of an oil slick on the surface of the tea, which I think is from the natural oils from the dark chocolate. The steeped tea smells like berries and chocolate. I found that it had a light, sweet fruity flavour, and there was a slight bitterness from the dark chocolate. I can’t really pick out the black tea base, but I think that’s because some of the flavours are mingling there and are just overpowering the black tea – which isn’t a bad thing.

I did try Chocolate, Berries & Cream with a touch of evaporated milk and organic cane sugar, and found that it helped to temper the bitterness from the dark chocolate and helped brighten up the berry flavour in the initial steep.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Chocolate, Berries & Cream once. I found that it lacked in the chocolate and berry flavour, which is what really drew me to this tea initially. I would recommend steeping Chocolate, Berries & Cream just the one time.

My Overall Impression

I liked Dessert by Deb’s Chocolate, Berries & Cream. I found that the name of the tea is well represented in the dry leaf and the steeped tea. It made for an enjoyable experience, and did quite well being doctored with some sweetener and cream. I can see this being a fun tea to introduce to friends and family are new to tea and want a caffeinated tea to help bring them over from the dark (coffee) side. It also just makes for a fun fruity black tea blend that really reads as a dessert tea, which couples well with the Dessert by Deb name.

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Dessert by Deb’s Lemon Coconut Pie

Lemon Coconut Pie by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$9.00 for 50g

First Impressions

Lemon Coconut Pie comes in a white matte fill bag (sealed and resealable). The colourful label tells me all the information about the tea that I’ll need to know. The aroma of the blend is basically lemon and coconut, which matches very well with the name of the tea.

This black tea blend consists of organic: black tea, vanilla, lemon peel, toasted coconut, and coconut. It’s a beautiful blend of ingredients and smells so good.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Lemon Coconut Pie in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes. My initial steep was for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Lemon Coconut Pie steeps to an orange brown colour. There’s a mild bit of oil floating on top of the tea, which I think is either from the lemon peel or coconut. There’s a light coconut aroma, with strong lemon overtones. The flavour of Lemon Coconut Pie is naturally sweet, I can taste the lemon and coconut and I find that there’s a touch of creaminess in the tea that I think is from the vanilla – which does remind me of baked goods (a.k.a. pie?).

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Lemon Coconut Pie once, adding an additional 30 seconds for the steep. I found the flavour to be similar to the initial steep – just a bit less coconut and lemon flavour. It’s still tasty, but I enjoyed the initial steep of the leaves the best.

My Overall Impression

I loved Dessert by Deb’s Lemon Coconut Pie. I love how well the name matches with the flavour and aroma of the tea blend that Deb put together. There’s a nice sweetness to it, paired with the coconut and lemon flavours that works really well together. I think it would be a nice option to have with afternoon tea, it could do well with a lemon tart or lemon meringue pie – or any other dessert that may pair well with lemon or other citrus flavours.

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