Better Beverage

I'm currently visiting a friend in Edinburgh, so I have taken the opportunity to visit Better Beverage. It's a tiny shop near Haymarket and sells tea and coffee.

The outside isn't much to look out and the inside isn't very glamorous either. Still, the selection is large, the prices reasonable and the man behind the counter is lovely.

This is a place without a proper website, where tea is sold in 4oz bags. A very old fashioned experience!

I chose 4 teas, got 4oz of each and only paid £8.15 total. That's good value. I have chosen:
- Arctic Fire. Not sure what's in it, but I've had it before and it's lovely
- Black tea with ginger
- Black tea with melon
- English Breakfast. I wanted my friend to have some proper tea so I got them a classic.

I have a "one out, one in" policy in my tea cupboard at the moment , so it may be a while before they all get sampled. Too little time, too much tea!

Whittards competition

Here's a competition worth entering if you have a creative streak. The task is to design a tea caddy for Whittards. They have a top prize of £200 worth of vouchers up for grabs, plus your design gets turned into a caddy.

I made my entry the other evening, I have to say that I really don't think I am in with a chance as there are so many professional looking entries. Still, it was fun to do.

Brew Tea Co.- Earl Grey

Another day, another Brew Tea Co. tea.

Today felt like an Earl Grey sort of day. Earl Grey is a tricky one to get right, as the tea and bergamot need to balance each other out. Too often, this fails and either the resultant drink is tanin central, or an accident with lemon washing up liquid.

My two Brew Tea Co. trials so far have been positive, so I was hopeful about the Earl Grey.  I am quite attached to Twinings blend, so it had a lot to live up to.

The first thing I noticed was that among the tea leaves was orange peel and little yellow flowers.A bit of research tells me that these are Calendula petals. My trusty friend wikipedia informs me that Calendula is good for the digestive tract and liver, and is an anti-inflammatory. I assume that these effects would only be seen with the consumption of a large amount.

As with the English Breakfast, the tea is malty and smooth. Again, there is no bitter tanin flavour which for me is the mark of a good tea. A sip test picks up a slight citrus bergamot, but also flavour a bit like gently toasted marshmallows. Warm, golden and slightly caramel like I can only guess that it comes from the Calendula (I am not entirely sure how something can taste golden, but it does!).

This wasn't a mimic of the Twining's blend. It's Brew Teas own creation and is different in taste. I am not sure that I would have identified it as Earl Grey in a blind taste test, but I did think it was a very enjoyable tea and I will definitely be looking at getting some more in stock. I will have to check my local Waitrose, as they seem to have the best tea range of the supermarkets.

Brew Tea Co.- English Breakfast Whole Leaf Tea Bags

I decided that it was the right time to have another of my Brew Tea Co. samples. So I perused the selection, and despite the fact that it was nearly quarter to seven in the evening, I went for the English Breakfast Whole Leaf Tea Bags.

I'd had a long day at work, and felt in need of a re-awakening. I usually use loose leaf tea and an infuser, but the tea bag made this a very quick and easy drink, without compromising on quality.

This is a very nice, malty blend. I feel rejuvenated and ready to take on the world again!

This cup of tea was, well, nice. It as a regular tea, nothing different or usual, just good quality tea with a nice flavour. It's simple and effective. Thanks Brew Tea Co.!

Pumphrey's- Apricot flavoured leaf tea

I was sad this morning to use my final scoop of Lady Grey. However, every cloud has a silver lining, and this particular silver lining is that I get to open up a new tea. I have been trying to follow a "one in, one out policy" in order to prevent my tea cupboard overflowing, but that means that I sometimes have to wait a while to try a new tea.

I decided to open up Pumphrey's Apricot flavoured leaf tea. Pumphrey's is my local, Newcastle based tea dealer. I wish I could purchase some of every tea, but I can't. This sounded like an interesting tea, so I thought I would give it a try.

First appearances are very promising, in among the black tea leaves are  golden yellow pieces of what looks like apricot flesh. The apricot smell is quite strong, and very appetizing.

The flavour is lovely too. Sometimes apricot flavoured things can taste artificial, but this is just right, and very fruity. I think I have found myself a new favourite. Apricot is such a perfect flavour summer, and I think that if you were an iced tea fan this would be perfect.

So, despite the fact that I no longer have lady grey in my cupboard, this is a very different, but equally nice substitute. I like this one!

Canton Tea Co- Sugarcane black

I have already reviewed one of my purchases from Canton Tea Co- the Yunnan Gold Pearls. When I made my order, I picked out several of their sample size teas. The tea sold by Canton is very good quality, so the sample size is small, enough for a couple of cups. Of course, it's still cheaper than the equivalent number of drinks at high street chain cafes.

Today I chose the Sugarcane black tea. The black tea has been fired with red sugar cane, to give it a sweet flavour. The leaves were very thin and long, so I put two pinches into the teapot (twice the amount pictured). When brewing, the tea had a sweet, malty aroma.

As with my last Canton tea, I did not add milk. The taste was sweet, as I expected, but without some of the robustness of the Yunnan Gold pearls. However, because it was sweeter, I found it very easy drinking. The sweetness also meant that I didn't feel in need of a biscuit to go with it.

I was interested to see what this tea tasted like with milk, so I added a tiny drop to the dregs. It made the taste even sweeter, and I actually preferred the taste without milk! Such is the power of good quality tea.

This is an ideal tea for a sweet toothed individual, particularly if you usually use a sweetener but want to cut down on the amount you are using.

Brew Tea Co- Fruit punch

I was very excited today to find a small package from Brew Tea Co on my door mat. I had signed up to their mailing list, noting the promise of free tea but not really expecting anything more than a single envelope. What I got instead was 5 different whole leaf tea bags (2 of each flavour), and a sample of loose leaf. Amazing!

For some reason I was drawn to the Fruit Punch first. I don't really understand why as I am not a fruit tea fan! It looked different, sizeable pieces of fruit, not coloured dust. And as I opened up the packet, it smelt really, really fruity.

I poured on boiling water, and a red colour emerged straight away. My previous fruit tea experiences have involved a disappointing pale liquid, but this was a ruby red. Left to stand for five minutes, the result resembled (to my mind) a nice strong cup of ribena.

A quick exploration of the Brew Tea Co website reveals that I am sampling a blend of hibiscus, rosehip, lemongrass, orange peel, apple peel and strawberry juice.

My tasting reveals- fruity! I am struggling to describe it, but for the Brits, the closest I can get is like a FAB ice lolly, without the artificial-ness. It's quite tart, but not unpleasant, and the strawberry and rosehip shine through. I then added honey, as per their suggestion, and it's much sweeter, less tart, and personally I prefer the taste. Less healthy though!

I am discovering on my tea voyage not to set my expectations in stone. This looked like ribena, but doesn't taste like ribena. It is a fruit tea, but I have enjoyed drinking it. One I will be having again!

I am really impressed with the number of samples from Brew Tea Co, and excited for my future taste adventures. It's started well.

Dragonfly Tea-Organic Midnight Jasmine Green Tea

Although I am a huge Twinings fan, I am not adverse to the idea of other brands. I keep an eye on the shelves for special offers and spotted this one last week.

I have been enjoying Twining's Jasmine green teas, and when I saw this box I thought it might be nice to take to work. I love loose leaf, but there is simply not enough time in the working day. The sachets are individually wrapped too, which is handy.

Compared to the loose leaf jasmine greens I have had, the floral smell of jasmine was a lot milder. There was also a "grassy" sort of smell which is the green tea smell. When I have tried green teas in the past it has been this that has put me off.

I boiled the kettle and left the water to cool for a few minutes so as not to scald the delicate tea leaves. I infused for two minutes, the instructions said up to three but my mug is quite small.

The taste of jasmine wasn't really that strong at all, this is the closest I have come to having pure green tea yet. The tea was slightly bitter, and the taste was almost like freshly mown grass.

I am not sure how I feel about this tea. It's not a complete thumbs down, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I have the Twinings loose leaf. Mind you, it didn't cost as much and in the world of tea, the more you pay, the nicer it is. I think it will take me a couple more cups to get used to the flavour, but I am going to stick with it.

Twinings- Chakra Silver Tips White Tea

I realised that it is now May and I hadn't yet reviewed April's Tea Taster's tea. As I have said in a previous post, I was lucky enough to win a Tea Taster's membership from Twinings. I am yet to review March's blending masterclass, as I want to set aside enough time to do it properly.

Anyway, the tea for April is a white tea from Indonesia. On opening up the packet, it looks amazing. I just had to pick up the leaves, they are soft and silky. These are the very tips of the plant, the youngest buds. I put a pinch into my kyusu, which is a Japanese tea pot. The handle is a right angles to the spout, which makes for nice pouring. This is the pot I tend to use for green and white teas.

Following the kettle boiling, I let it stand for 5 minutes, as per the instructions, before pouring the water onto my tea. This is a tea more sensitive than green. Three minutes infusion followed, and hen I decided to pour it into my glass mug so I could get a better idea of the colour.




The liquid is very pale, indeed almost silvery. And the taste? Well, I was in for a treat. It is a very light and delicate tea, my tasting notes describe it as "peachy"- I can se why. It's difficult to describe the taste but it it really rather nice.It's a light and drinkable tea, a very different experience from black tea. Definitely worth trying if you can get your hands on it!

Twinings- Double Mint

I have already confessed to not be a fan of peppermint. However, from my last post you will know that having tried and enjoyed the Everyday with peppermint blend, I was ready to give mint tea another go.

I got this teabag from my dad, it's a blend he enjoys. Twinings have several different mint teas, and double mint is from their "Intensely" range- it used to be called "Sensations" but Twinings decided that the new name fitted better.

I let the teabag infuse for 3 minutes as per the instructions, and the mint aroma was much stronger than the Everyday and peppermint blend. The tea was browner than I expected (you can see the colour from the picture), but there is a green hue to the brown. 

I then took the teabag out, and let it cool down enough for me to drink. I think part of the reason why I haven't really enjoyed mint tea in the past is that it has been too hot when I have tried it.

The teas has both normal mint and peppermint in it. On first taste, you get a flavour that is a bit like buttermint sweets, is smooth and rounded, but then this is followed by a zing that you know belongs to peppermint. It makes your mouth feel minty fresh, a bit like toothpaste but nicer! It's supposed to be good for your digestive system, and I do feel quite calm and relaxed after my mugful.

I was surprised to enjoy this, but I think that if you aren't a mint tea fan but do like mint sweets, I think you should give it a go. You might be surprised too.

Twinings- Everyday Tea with peppermint

One of the things Twinings is very good at is creating new blends and flavours, and at challenging consumers tastes. Their Everyday blends does this very well- it takes Twining's popular Everyday tea and adds something else- in this case peppermint. Peppermint tea is one that I have found to be an acquired taste!

Image from Twinings website

I am not a peppermint tea fan but my granny is. As soon as I poured water on the teabag, I could smell that distinctive peppermint aroma and it was as if my granny was in the kitchen with me. The tea itself is the "correct" colour. Now one of the ways the blenders at Twinings have made this tea accessible is by devising it so that milk can be added. I usually take my tea with milk so this was reassuring.

The first thought that I had on drinking this was that I had had a cup of tea too soon after brushing my teeth. My mouth was filled with the flavour of both tea and mint. It was nicer than expected and the black tea took away that "edge" that peppermint tea  has that has put me off previously. It's actually quite refreshing and by cup number three I was really enjoying it. Although it's "everyday" tea it's not one I would have everyday, but now and then it makes something different.

In the end, Twinings has done what it set out to do- it reeled me in with a mix of the familiar and unfamilliar. I liked it, and I then felt inspired to try peppermint tea by itself. And you know what, it wasn't as bad as I expected!