Tea Review: Barry's Tea GB

Tea for Tuesday #5

Melody, Lea, both

Barry's Tea Gold Blend

Lea, time for a tea review. We're tasting Barry's Tea Gold Blend.
Neat! This is my first tea review. How do we start?

What does the box say about brewing?

Hmm, oh, here. "Use one teabag for each cup, alternatively, use a warmed teapot, adding one teabag per person and one for the pot."
I have the teabag. Anything about how long to brew?

Here it says "brew for 3-5 minutes, depending on how strong you like your tea."
Let's set the timer for 4 minutes. Now we wait.
Wow! It's pretty dark already.

Any other important facts about the blend?
It's has a fair trade disclaimer.

That's cool.
Let's see..."Sourced from the finest tea gardens of Rwanda, Kenya and the Assam Valley of India, our Gold Blend is famous for its rich golden colour and much loved taste."
[Timer beeps]
Wow! It's even darker now. I'm not sure I'd call that gold. 

Dark amber, maybe?

Smells...I don't get much beyond tea. Nothing floral or fruity or spicy.

Why three cups?

We'll try it three ways: plain, sweetened, and sweet with milk.
Oh.

First Taste: Plain
Well, it's a nice tea taste, but nothing extraordinary to me. Would be good iced.

It's hot and rich, but is missing something.

Second Taste: Sweetened
We're using white, table sugar for the next two cups. Approximately 1 teaspoon. This adds another level to the tea. Not bad.

This is better than the plain.

Third Taste: Sweet with Milk
The milk makes it a bit more creamy, but still not super special.

Milk is good.

Barry's Tea Gold Blend makes a nice cup of tea. 

Xyra's Notes

• Since Barry's Tea is imported tea, your grocer may have the price pretty high. I picked up this box on sale.
• It's good, but I like the Barry's Irish Breakfast better. 
• Do not oversteep; has the potential to get bitter. 
• It is good with honey and sugar in the raw as well as regular sugar. You can use your flavored honey in this one to add another flavor note to the cup.

Later

So how did I do for my first tea review?

I think it went well; don't you? I know there were a few blurries, but that's not your fault. (giggles)
There is so much to know about blends and flavors and locations.

We're not experts. But we like relaxing with a good cup just like we are now.
Cool! Selfie time!

Happy sipping!