Name: Red Peony
Brand: Drinktheleaf.com
Type: Black Tea, Chinese
Form: Blooming/flowering/performance tea
Cost: $18 for 2 ounces, $30 for 4 ounces
Review: First of all, this is an impeccably fresh tea, which seems to be a characteristic of Drink The Leaf products (as I mentioned in an earlier review). Again, I am not quite sure how they source such fresh teas, but I hope they keep doing so.
“Red Peony” is called such because its leaves are stitched into a flower. When immersed in water, the flower “blooms” and does indeed look very pretty. I have seen more spectacular blooming teas, but Red Peony is a welcome change to the pile of dark leaves that normally grace the bottom of my teapot. Clean-up is a lot easier too!
The dry nose is sweet and a little spicy, which, when infused, deepens into light maple syrup notes with a hint of earthiness to keep it from becoming insipid. The liquor infuses to a lovely reddish brown, with a mouthfeel like that of 1 % milk.
The tea is quite delicious: No bitterness, and the slight sweetness and maple syrup notes remain, along with the earthiness that keeps this tea grounded. I tried this tea with and without sugar: Both are good, though I’d probably advise not using milk as that may mellow this subtle tea too much. Minimal astringency in the finish, with a clean mouthfeel afterwards.
This is a yummy tea.
Recommendation: Great for tea newbies, or if you are looking for an “all-around” black tea to serve at a party. It is a good “sipping” tea: Have it on its own, or with pastry in the afternoon/after dinner.
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I am pretty “new” to tea and I have never even heard of anything like this – I definitely have to expand my “tea horizons”!
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