Tag: Tea Source

Posted on

TeaSource’s Ceylon Burning Sun

Ceylon Burning Sun by TeaSource
Black Tea / Straight
$11.00USD for 4oz

I received Ceylon Burning Sun as part of my swag bag from the 2020 Virtual International Tea Festival.

First Impressions

Ceylon Burning Sun comes in a shiny black sealed (and resealable!) packet from TeaSource, by way of my swag bag for the 2020 Virtual International Tea Festival. The packaging is nice for the size because all the tea information is on the front, and the back is clear so you can easily see all of the tea leaves. Ceylon, for those unaware, was the name used for the former British Colony prior to gaining independence – and is now known as Sri Lanka. You’ll still find some teas being referred to being Ceylon if they’re from Sri Lanka just due to historical naming – but that’s where it’s from (Sri Lanka).

Ceylon Burning Sun consists of just black tea, with no flavourings. The tea itself is small, broken pieces, mostly dark brown in colour with some flecks of light brown throughout. It has a strong aroma to it, that reminds me a lot of a breakfast blend, with hints of stone fruit (mostly reminding me of dried apricots).

Preparation

TeaSource recommends steeping Ceylon Burning Sun in 212°F (100°C) water for 3 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions and did my initial steep for 3 minutes.

First Taste

Ceylon Burning Sun steeps to a really pretty orange colour. It has a nice aroma to it that continues to remind me of dried apricots, but also has a bit of a malty aroma to it as well, which makes me think of a breakfast blend. The flavour is malty, with a hint of astringency and just a mild sweetness that lingers at the tail end of each sip. I find it to be quite full-bodied in terms of flavour to the point that it packs quite the punch. I did end up tempering it down a bit with the addition of a little bit of sweetener and evaporated milk, which did help it along and make it more palatable for myself. It definitely makes for a pleasant cup of tea, once it’s not as strong.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Ceylon Burning Sun twice, adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep, and found that it did really well with being resteeped. The flavour stayed fairly consistent throughout and was just a little bit weaker in flavour as I resteeped it in comparison to the initial steep. I would recommend resteeping Ceylon Burning Sun if you’re looking to get more bang for your buck from the leaves.

My Overall Impression

I liked TeaSource’s Ceylon Burning Sun. I found it to have a great amount of flavour, although I did prefer it with a bit of sweetener and evaporated milk. There’s just a robustness to it that reminds me a lot of a breakfast blend, and I think this would be a great coffee alternative for anyone looking to decrease their coffee consumption, as it might be close to a black coffee. It resteeps decently well for a tea that consists of small leaf pieces, and I find it to take to being tweaked well, so would be a great candidate for a tea latte.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.

Posted on

TeaSource’s Earl Grey White Tip

Earl Grey White Tip by TeaSource
Black Tea & White Tea / Flavoured
$12.00USD for 4oz

I received Earl Grey White Tip as part of my swag bag from the 2020 Virtual International Tea Festival.

First Impressions

First things first, this review was completely unsolicited by TeaSource. I just happened to get it as part of my swag bag and decided to add the tea to my queue of teas to review because why not? I’m always down for trying new teas, and why not share my experience about it? Earl Grey White Tip comes in a sealed, resealable pouch – shiny black on the front and clear in the back so you can see all of the leaves. What really intrigues me about this because it’s a blend of black and white teas… and Earl Grey inspired (and if you’ve been following me for a while, you know how much I love a good Earl Grey!).

Looking at the tea though, I don’t see a difference between the tea leaves. It seems quite uniform – the leaves are a deep brown, short wiry leaves. Earl Grey White Tip consists of: black tea, natural flavour, and white tea. It has a really strong bergamot aroma, which is one of the shining attributes of an Earl Grey that I greatly enjoy. It has just such a good citrus aroma to it that reminds me of a nice Earl Grey, so already getting some points for that.

Preparation

TeaSource recommends steeping Earl Grey White Tip in 212°F (100°C) water for 3 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions for the initial steep.

First Taste

Earl Grey White Tip steeps to a golden reddish orange colour, and is quite clear (also, how cute is my mug with its messages of positivity on the top?). The aroma is definitely bergamot, which is what I’m looking for. The flavour is primarily the citrus notes of the bergamot, coupled with a mild sweetness, a slight astringency, and just a pleasant malty flavour from the black tea. I don’t really make out any flavours within the tea that make me think that there is white tea in the blend.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Earl Grey White Tip a few times (adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep) and found that the flavour was most similar to the initial steep for the first resteep, but really lost the bergamot flavouring after that. I would recommend Earl Grey White Tip for just one more steep.

My Overall Impression

I liked TeaSource’s Earl Grey White Tip. As an Earl Grey blend, it’s pleasant and tasty and has all the things that I generally appreciate and look for in the classic blend. However, as a blend containing white tea, I wouldn’t go back to it expecting anything resembling white tea because it’s just not present in terms of the blend itself and within the flavour profile. The bergamot is really what ‘saved’ the tea for me in terms of wanting to continue to drink it, so I’m a bit disappointed that there wasn’t any white tea leaves present when it’s mentioned as part of the blend and the name of the tea.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.

Posted on

TeaSource’s Green Mango

Green Mango by Name of TeaSource
Green Tea / Flavoured
$9.00USD for 4oz

I received Green Mango as part of my swag bag from the 2020 Virtual International Tea Festival.

First Impressions

Green Mango came as part of my swag bag, and it is a 12g sample so I didn’t have a lot to work with. The packaging is nice for a sample – a sealed, resealable shiny black pouch with a glossy label on the front. TeaSource doesn’t waste a lot of space and incorporates all the necessary information on the label. The back of the pouch is clear plastic so you can easily see the tea leaves inside.

Green Mango consists of: green tea, natural flavour, and calendula petals. The aroma is very fruity and reminds me of mango a lot. I don’t really smell the green tea base or the calendula petals, but the mango really shines through for being an invisible (flavouring) ingredient.

Preparation

TeaSource recommends steeping Green Mango in 175°F (79°C) water for 3 minutes, and I followed the steeping instructions for the initial steep.

First Taste

Green Mango steeps to a yellow colour, and smells a lot like mango. The flavour, however, is lacking in mango. There’s some nice grassy notes from the green tea base itself, and hints of floral sweetness, but I don’t actually taste a lot of mango. It’s kind of muted compared to the aroma of the steeped tea, which is a bit disappointing considering how fruity the tea smells. The green tea base has a nice flavour though, which is appreciated.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Green Mango and found that it wasn’t much improved – I’m still missing the mango flavour. I would recommend Green Mango for just the one steep.

My Overall Impression

I didn’t like TeaSource’s Green Mango. I really liked the concept behind this green tea blend, and the aroma of the mango flavouring was really inviting and made me want to try it. Unfortunately, the aroma of the mango flavouring didn’t translate into mango in the flavour profile of the tea, and I found myself wondering what was going on. I did enjoy the green tea base, but found it a bit confusing for the taste buds to smell the mango, but not taste it. The green tea and calendula petals has a lovely flavour though, but the missing mango found me not enjoying the tea as much as I could have.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.