Earl Grey Challenge- Day 1

So, the way this will work is that over the next few weeks, I will try at least two varieties of Earl Grey a week (I don't want to commit myself to more a week, otherwise I'd probably lose all sense of fun...)

Tonight's EG is a classic from Twinings. It's the first brand I tried, when I was on holiday at my aunt's aged about twelve. I remember thinking how amazing the taste was; I'd never drunk anything like it. So this is an old favourite and a good place to start. However, I will maintain a sense of objectivity and keep an open mind as to other types.

I generally brew my Earl Grey for about 3-4 minutes and add milk until I get a colour similar to the one below (apologies for poor photo and used teabag):

It's actually more golden in tone than shown in the picture.







The smell is floral, although I wouldn't say that it's strong. On first sniff, there is the bergamot, followed by the undertones of, well, tea (or tannin, I suppose).

The taste is smooth, although the bergamot seems to be easily lost against the stronger, malty taste of the tea. This was satisfying, but not so much as an Earl Grey especially, but as a tea in general (does that makes sense?) Also, I found that the after taste was slightly sticky, cloying at the back of the throat. This left a bitter after taste, which was slightly strange.

However, it's a very traditional Earl Grey and, because of this, very familiar and very comforting. I think all tea has a time and a place in which it's meant to be drunk and this is no exception. It's the kind of tea I would be desperate to have on a stormy autumn's evening after battling the elements to get home. It's soothing and calming, everything a good cuppa should be...

Milford Unser Home-sweet-home-Tee

This is a German tea and I must admit, it smells gorgeous! (My German unfortunately only extends to singing a few Christmas carols and counting rabbits, so I had to have the translator out for most of this review, so apologies in advance for any shaky translation.)

It's a black tea flavoured with a blend of pear, apple and almond. I didn't add milk to this one and I think the tea benefitted from this. On first tasting, the pear flavour is very apparent. Interestingly, the taste mellows and becomes a highly perfumed, sweet flavour that is an absolute delight! The apple and almond are not very present, but this is not a bad thing, as fruit teas can be quite overwhelming.

I couldn't find a European seller on first look for this tea, but a range of Milford Teas are available on an Austrian website. I am very tempted to try some more from this range!

Twinings Orange and Cinnamon

Cinnamon is one of my favourite flavours and I enjoy its wintery taste in tea (there's something about cinnamon that screams 'Christmas', which is fine for me whatever the season!) so I was intrigued to try this tea that was sent to me by a friend in Austria.

First things first, to some eyes, I may well be a tea heathen. I put milk in pretty much all of my black teas. This is just personal preference and I know others prefer it without. Cool. However, this black tea probably needed a bit of dilution. The orange aroma practically smacked me in the face as soon as the water was on the bag. It wasn't a 'nice' orange aroma, more an orangeade smell, which was confirmed by the taste. Although those who like citrus tea may well enjoy this (and maybe Twining's orange flavour works better in their herbal ranges), the cinnamon was completely overpowered. And that's hard, because if cinnamon was a person, it would be the flirty showoff in the room. In this tea, it was overshadowed by a younger, flashier upstart.

I'm not sure whether this is a mainland Europe special blend; I have been unable to find a sample of this on the British website.