Sunday, January 10, 2016

Petit Tea, Earl Grey

Petit Tea Description:
A perfect blend of fine Indian black teas, glorified with Silver Tips tea and oil of Bergamot, ranks it among the finest Earl Greys today.

Ingredients:
Black Assam & Darjeeling Tea, Oil of Bergamot, natural Flavouring.

Sample provided by Petit Tea

My Review:
I have snow on the ground and falling temperatures outside. It must be January. This calls for some piping hot tea!

Today I am reviewing Earl Grey from a new tea company Petit Tea, and a new to me brewing method - what they call a tea infuser. From their website:
Tea Infusers are elegantly modern alternative to the tea bag. Amazingly convenient to use, Tea Infusers let you brew whole leaf teas directly in a cup, without tea pots, strainers or stirrers. Placed in a cup just pour hot water directly over the Tea Infuser and your world class tea is ready to sip.  No ‘tea things’ needed. The Tea Infuser works as a strainer and a stirrer. Imagine the convenience of brewing your favourite premium leaf tea, in a cup on your office desk. Unlike tea bags Tea Infusers do not collapse and compress when steeped in water, allowing tea leaves the desired space to uncurl and release delicate flavours and aromas.

I received the above pictured Variety Pack containing 2 each of Earl Grey, Darjeeling Green, & Mango Monsoon, and 3 each American Breakfast & Masala Chai Latte. Each infuser is individually wrapped in clear plastic. I'll be reviewing all of them eventually.

Of course the Earl Grey junkie in me grabbed it first. The shiny aluminum (guessing) infuser holds a healthy 2.5 g of leaf. The infuser itself is riddled with tiny holes to allow the water to flow through without letting all but the most minute traces of leaf out.

Once the outer wrap is removed, the bergamot scent is released. It is quite potent (which I like).

I followed directions by using boiling water and a 3 minute steep. The infuser was noticeably heavy with swollen leaf after removing from the mug. There was minimal dripping.

The aroma is much more refined in the brewed cup. The color is a rich reddish orange.

The use of Darjeeling and Assam makes for a smooth cup. Ceylon is what I typically encounter in Earl Grey. The blend used by Petit produces a cup without harsh edges or bitterness typical in many Earl Grey teas. Here you can easily taste the base and not flinch.

There is a tangy brightness to the citrus without being perfumey or soapy. To my tastes it leans on the milder side on intensity. You do not have to search for it yet it doesn't assault your taste buds. Next I added a touch of sweetener. It takes it really well. I liked it this way, as it seemed to broaden both the bergamot flavor and the tea base.

I decided to try a second cup from the infuser. I used boiling water and a 4 minute steep. The cup was a little lighter but not much. I believe next time I will try using a 2 1/2 minute first steep and a 5 minute second. Or maybe I won't as the second is actually still pretty good. Making two cups from the same infuser effectively cuts your cost in half. The current website price (less shipping) translates to abt $0.50/infuser or $0.25/cup.

I really did not know what to expect from the infuser system. This tea was very nice. The infuser was easy to use and pretty much mess free. This is especially perfect for the office where loose leaf can be a hassle and a bag just won't cut it.

You can find Petit Tea Earl Grey by itself or in the Variety Pack on Amazon or direct from Petit Tea.

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for this review. I usually opt to tea bags coz I am lazy enough brewing using tea pots, with this review it makes want to try Tea Infusers and I will see how it works.

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    Replies
    1. Ha ha, glad you were inspired. I am no stranger to using tea bags for the conservation of personal energy (AKA lazy). The infuser seems like a good middle ground.

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  2. One of the best article,
    i really like it,
    "tea infuser"

    ReplyDelete