Review of Ceylon Black Tea by Jing Tea

Name: Ceylon Black Tea

Brand: Jing Tea

Type: Black tea, Ceylon

Form: Loose leaf

Cost: $4.59 for 50 grams

Review: Ceylon might best be described as the Rodney Dangerfield of the tea world: It just doesn’t get any respect. Ceylon figures prominently in many indifferent tea blends, and is a staple in paper teabags.

This is a sad thing, because Ceylon, done right, is a lovely tea. Its clean lemony notes make it a perfect match with food, though it is smooth and soft enough to drink on its own. It can take to additions of lemon, milk, or sugar, but doesn’t need any. It makes a superior iced tea, and is particularly well-suited to cold brewing.

Fortunately, though not unexpectedly, my friends at Jing Tea have sourced an excellent Ceylon for their customers. The leaves are reasonably long, slightly twisted, and range from dark brown-gray to reddish in hue, with a muted nose of lemon. They infuse to a medium-dark amber, and maintain the muted-lemon nose.

The tea has a medium body and a strong, rich flavor. The citrus fruit in the nose takes its time to emerge on the palate, showing up mainly in the finish. The tea is far more robust than most Ceylons, but also quite smooth with only a slight astringency at the finish. Quite nice.

Incidentally, while this tea is lovely on the first infusion, it doesn’t hold up well to subsequent steepings. This is typical of black teas, so I don’t regard its lack of durability as a fault. The second steeping actually tastes just fine, but doesn’t have anywhere near the magic of the first infusion.

Samples Provided by Manufacturer?: Yes

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