Keemun Golden Buds (Organic/Fair Trade)

Rishi Keemun Golden Buds

I just noticed that according to my blog counter that this is my 100th black tea blog.  Rishi’s Organic and Fair Trade Keemun Golden Buds from the Xuan En Yulu Fair Trade project in southwestern Hubei, China definitely makes for an excellent 100th black tea blog.  The Keemun Golden Buds experience starts with its presentation.  The small golden and dark colored leaves present well.  The scent of the Keemun is fantastic.  The scent is a harmonious blend of a bold and malty black tea mixed with a sweet grape-like aroma.  After steeping the tea in a water temp of 200°F for about 5 minutes, you are left with a dark liquor.  The flavor of the tea is perfect for me in the morning.  It has a way of waking me up with each sip.  It has a strong flavor mixed with a natural sweetness; which makes for a perfect combination early in the morning.  I have to say, this tea reminds me of an Assam.  It’s very bold, but yet with a mild astringency it’s very easy to sip.  Although the color of the liquor is very dark, this tea is very smooth in texture.  The natural sweetness in the flavor will make this more appealing to those that don’t like their black tea over-the-top strong.  All-in-all I really had fun drinking this tea.  Another awesome selection by Rishi.

Rishi describes the tea as: “Our Keemun Golden Buds is a very unique Gong Fu tea, which is hand harvested according to a one leaf and one bud standard. This tightly rolled, well-fermented tea is super tippy with a very unique leaf style. Its deep red infusion is full flavored with rich notes of caramelized sugar and fresh pine. This is one of our premier black teas from the Xuan En Yulu Fair Trade project in southwestern Hubei, China.”

My only disagreement with their description is that I’m not picking up on the pine flavor.  I’ve spent a couple of weeks trying to find it – to no avail.  I can’t say I miss it.

Visit Rishi

marTEA

Organic White Acai

I’ve been craving an organic white tea and two leaves and a bud delivered just what I was looking for.  One of my favorite iced teas is an organic mix of Acai and white tea, so I’m always looking for a hot version of my favorite iced tea. An important note to point out about this tea: the authentic white tea flavor is present in every sip.  The berry flavor is not overpowering.  In fact, this is one of the more authentic Acai teas I’ve tried.  I don’t see any “crazy” artificial colorings in the liquor of the tea (I can’t stand that).  The acai flavor does have a slight tartness to it.  You may want to add a touch of your favorite sweetener to balance the flavor.  I liked it without sweetener.   Whole-leaf teas served in tea sachets have really grown in popularity.  The average tea consumer is graduating to higher quality teas and sachets (sometimes pyramid shaped) are perfect for them.  What I learned years ago…there are millions of tea bags sold every year for a reason.  Some people are not going to change from what they know, and in many ways I totally understand.  I say, drink the tea that makes you happy.  An organic whole-leaf tea served in a tea “bag”  is a great transition.

Two leaves and a bud describes the tea as: “Special harvest long whole-leaf tea leaves and buds create this super light but full tasting white tea. Light enough in the cup to be called “white” with nutritious tropical acai berries to round out a great cuppa’!   Acai berries are berries grown on special Amazonian palm trees, harvested in the rain forests of Brazil. The rich taste is a distinct combination of berry flavor and subtle chocolate. The berries are high in anti-oxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids which aid in fighting off cancer and other diseases as well as sharpen mental focus.”

Visit two leaves and a bud

marTEA

Lately, I’ve been trying to find affordable organic green teas to recommend to friends and blog readers.  Fun, flavorful, organic, and affordable are important factors to me in a tea and I’ve been told they are important by others.

Zhi offers a green tea that meets the above criteria.  Zhi calls the China green tea | Cloud and Mist.  It’s from Zhejiang Province.  I’ve had several cups and each one was very enjoyable.  The flavor is oceanic and vegetal with a well-defined natural sweetness.  It’s very friendly to the palate.  The aftertaste pleasantly lingers many seconds after a sip reminding you just how good it was.  The tea does have a slight bite to it (slightly astringent), but that just adds to the character of the green tea.  I can drink this tea year round.  I consider it an everyday green tea.  I enjoyed making this tea in my Gaiwan.  I can easily get 3 flavorful steepings from the tea leaves.  The aroma pretty much mirrors the flavorful.  You get a spring-like vegetal aroma with an almost flowery sweet scent.  Another important characteristic to this tea is the fact that it is authentic.  I recommend this tea to both experienced and new green tea drinkers.  It’s the kind of tea that helps new green tea drinkers appreciate a type of tea without added flavors or enhancements.

Zhi describes the tea as: “In our search for superb and unique organic China Green tea we stumbled across this gorgeous delight from Zhejiang Province. Nestled in the Tian Mu mountains lies a pristine tea garden that lovingly creates this outstanding organic tea. Stylish, long and wiry emerald leaf produces a light green infusion which is slightly astringent and quite herbaceous, with distinct honey/peach notes. This is a very savory and luscious tea full of body and charm. Simple, yet elegant.”

Zhi’s website is very well designed and it makes the checkout process very simple.  I had no problems with my Zhi order.

Visit Zhi

marTEA

Numi offers an organic breakfast blend of black teas

Ingredients: Fair Trade Certified & Organic Keemun black tea, Fair Trade Certified & Organic Darjeeling black tea, Fair Trade Certified & Organic Ceylon black tea, and Fair Trade Certified & Organic Assam black tea.

The breakfast blend brews to make a very bold cup of black tea.  Dominant flavors coming from the Assam and Keemun can easily be detected.  Having said that, sometimes I detect a slight Ceylon flavor.  The bottom line is you are getting a strong black tea to help start your morning.  As I take focused sips of this tea, I wish it was just a tad stronger.  It is very smooth and balanced.  The Morning Rise breakfast blend is not bitter, and it is strong enough to handle milk. I decided to drink the tea without milk.  If you like strong black bagged teas, and you like to align your tea drinking with responsible companies, Numi is a good choice.  I prefer a slightly stronger breakfast blend, but this tea is in no way bad. The flavor is consistent, balanced, and refreshing. Don’t let the breakfast blend label fool you, if you can handle caffeine – drink it whenever you would normally drink caffeinated beverages.

Visit Numi Organic Tea

marTEA

I popped the tin on Zhi’s organic Plum Oolong, and it was like opening a box of chocolates (sounds like a quote from a movie you might have seen).  Anyway, the dark Oolong leaves and plum essence had an almost chocolate covered fruit scent to it.  I couldn’t wait to make a few cups due to the intriguing scent.  The plum is a top-three favorite fruit for me.  So whenever I get the chance to try a tea flavored with plum – I take it.  Zhi’s Plum Oolong consists of Organic Sechong Oolong. As you can tell from the picture, this is a very dark Oolong.  I found the tea to be very refreshing.  It has a tangy fruit zest to it that was enjoyable.  It’s recommended that you steep the tea at a water temperature of around 185-195 degrees for 3 minutes.  I typically infused the tea leaves twice per sitting.

Zhi describes the tea as: Zhi House Blend Plum Oolong is designed to knock your socks off! A seriously uncompromising blend of our top-quality organic Sechong Oolong with organic plum essence creates a golden cup of nectafarious delight. Rich, succulent plum flavor melds perfectly with our complex, slightly sweet oolong. A house favorite here at Zhi.
And it makes a superb sun tea..

Zhi has an excellent website designed to allow you to quickly and easily browse through several organic tea selections.  Their packaging and email communication was superb.  I highly recommend Zhi if you want to order tea online or you are looking to diversify your tea selections with a new tea vendor.

Visit Zhi Tea

marTEA

I found this Pu-erh to be average (good); which is probably what Teavana was going for by offering this tea.  It’s on par with their direct competitors.  Since it’s a loose leaf tea and not a cake or brick, it’s easier for the average tea consumer to steep.  Teavana describes the tea as aged black tea.  Having said that, as a consumer I have no idea how “aged” the tea really is.  The earthy tones you would expect are found in Teavana’s Pu-erh Organic.  I also detect a slight sweet-floral flavor to the Pu-erh.  I steeped the tea in a clay teapot, and it was not bitter.  I do a quick rinse of the leaves before steeping the tea. This is an affordable Pu-erh to help get you started on your Pu-erh journey.  The tea creates a dark liquor.  It’s as black as coffee.  I typically steep Pu-erh in a clay teapot to avoid staining some of my travel/plastic teapots (plus it tastes better).  This Pu-erh was sufficient for about three steepings.

From a previous marTEA blog:

Pu-erh is one of the few teas that has a cult like following. Connoisseurs around the globe revere Pu-erh for all of its fame and glory and they will pay thousands for top-grade aged Pu-erh. The “earthy” black tea from the Yunnan region of China has a history as interesting as its flavor. It is named after the county Pu’er.

Pu-erh is said to have many medicinal benefits such as lowering blood pressure and cholesterol. In addition, it is marketed as a “slimming” tea. For the general tea lover (like marTEA), Pu-erh is just a complex tea with attitude. It’s the kind of tea that dares you to drink it. It’s often described as having an “earthy” aroma and flavor.

Visit Teavana

marTEA

Indulge your senses as well as your taste buds with Good Earth Teas, a delicious premium quality range of organic flavoured teas and infusions.

The National Drinks Survey reveals that around 60 percent of British public will drink tea today, so let’s raise our cups to tea experts Good Earth, whose healthier brews contain antioxidants (otherwise known as flavonoids), but no artificial colourings or preservatives.

Made from the leaves of different varieties of the tea bush, Camellia sinensis and other herbs, Good Earth Teas are available in five mouth-watering flavours, made up of white, red, herbal and green tea infusions.

For the health-conscious, the ideal choice is green tea, which is rich in antioxidants. Good Earth Organic Jasmine Blossom Green Tea and Organic Mango, Peach and Pineapple Green Tea are both light, aromatic infusions which support the body’s well being and calm the mind.

Or if a caffeine-free tea tickles your taste buds, why not try Good Earth Organic Harvest Berries Red Tea, made from Rooibos, a herb unique to South Africa or the refreshing Organic Cool Mint Herbal Tea? Both varieties provide the relaxing comfort of a cuppa without the over-stimulating effects of caffeine.

The more refined palate will enjoy the delicate Organic Sweet Citrus White Tea, the most exclusive variety of all teas.  Made from the topmost leaves, plucked by hand in the first weeks of spring, this unique infusion will captivate your senses, leaving you refreshed and revived.

Good Earth Teas are not only good for your body; they are also kind on the environment.  All Good Earth tea are packaged in a 100 percent recycled carton, of which 60 per cent of the recycled packaging is post consumer waste.  All the packaging used can be recycled and the tea bags are unbleached, so they do not damage soil when they decompose.

All Good Earth Teas are certified organic and are available in major retailers across the UK.  All varieties are sold in boxes of 18 bags, which retail at £1.89 (RRP) and are available in Tesco, Morrisons, Asda, Waitrose and independent retailers.

For more information, please visit www.goodearthteas.com

Tetulia caught my attention at the World Tea Expo in 2008.  I didn’t get to spend much time focusing on this one brand, but the name “Tetulia” just sticks in your head.  I can’t think about it without saying the name at least three times – Tetulia, Tetulia, Tetulia.  It’s just fun to say…

About Tetulia: Tetulia is named for the region in Northern Bangladesh where our tea is grown. Tetulia teas reflect the pristine and delicate environment from which they hail. The Tetulia Garden sprang forth from virgin land nestled against the Himalayas to the North and the Brahmaputra and Ganges Rivers to the South.  Into this perfect tea-growing land, we introduced strong, vibrant saplings, which were planted with care in the new millennium. Since then, the tea plants have been encouraged and nurtured by Mother Nature’s own hand. The result: exquisite, organic teas unlike any you’ve experienced before. Fresh. Clean. Smooth.

Social responsibility is a primary focus of Tetulia.  The Tetulia Cooperative has provided many opportunities to those closest to the tea.  Education, health and cattle-lending programs, are just a few of the benefits Tetulia has offered the Bangladeshi men, women, and children.  I applaud this effort and can only hope by supporting their products that it will benefit a group of people that deserve an improved living environment.

The good news.. the black tea was very enjoyable.  After receiving my order, I quickly started steeping the loose leaf tea.  The scent of the dried tea has a deep freshness about it.  It’s not the most aromatic tea I’ve ever had, but I liked the fact that the scent differentiated itself from other black teas.  After steeping the tea for a few minutes in water around 208 degrees, I poured the tea into my cup.  With no major expectations, I enjoyed the aroma of the steam rising from the cup.  Then, I took a sip.  The flavor was very pleasing.  The smooth, fresh flavor with low astringency, made for a very good first impression.  This is an excellent everyday black tea.  The tea is full bodied with a slight sweetness that adds to the overall balance of the tea.   This tea easily rivaled many breakfast blends that I’ve tried lately.  Although the region is very close to India, the tea did not remind me of Assam or Darjeeling teas.  To top it off, Tetulia is certified USDA Organic.  Definitely give this tea a try if you are a black tea drinker looking for another black tea to diversify your daily routine.

Visit Tetulia

marTEA