Anyone Try Black Dragon Pearls?

[Charlotte]

I tried them today and really enjoyed them. I'm not a black tea gal, as I prefer greens and oolongs. But, I'd consider buying these!

I used 3 pearls per cup. It's a strong tea and I did use some rock sugar. I downed that cup. The aroma of the pearls before steeping is that of dark chocolate, very nice.

[Riene]

This tea sounds really good! I'm looking forward to trying it.

[Mana]

This tea is delicious!

I boiled two cups of water then steeped 3 Black Dragon Pearls for 5 minutes. The water turned a beautiful deep amber/caramel color. It smelled earthy but not overwhelming. I finished it with a touch of agave syrup and some whole milk, leaving it on the burner on low for a few more minutes.

The result: two subtle yet substantial cups of tea with milk. Something you'd like to sip on a crisp morning while on a camping trip somewhere beautiful. With some early morning fog rolling around you. Or just on a Sunday afternoon at home after doing the dishes and laundry.

I made a third cup minus the agave syrup. Better w/o the agave.

[Victoria]

Welcome Mana, a very beautiful and vivid picture you painted for us. Thank you. All reviews on this tea seem to be positive. I had it myself for breakfast.

[murrius]

Rats! I wanted to dive in to the Adagio sample offer this weekend that included Black Dragon Pearls. However, my credit card is frozen after someone tried to purchase $500 worth of glasses from a Hong Kong optician. I suppose I should be grateful that my bank was on the ball. This is only the second time I've had my VISA raided.

[Victoria]

Yikes! I hope all is settled now.
I wish Adagio would take Paypal.

[boywoodhe]

I have only had Black Dragon Pearls from Teavana, and they were actually very good.

http://www.teavana.com/The-Teas/New-Tea ... ck-Tea.axd
I will be interested to see how the Adagio version compares.

Hey KY
Teavana's ( black dragon pearl) is very simular to adagio black dragon pearls, but the adagio's version is rich and more robust. Teavanas BDP is a bit smaller and it cost is much much higher then adagio. teavana's 2oz cost $15 and adagio 5oz is close to the same price 15-19$.
It's all about what amount will make the right cup of tea for 6-8oz.
Also if you want a weak or rich cup of tea , you have to experiment to brew/steep to taste. If you like a real rich robust taste for 6-8oz i would use 1 1/2 tsp of BDP...if to strong just ad a bit of water.
hugs
woodie

[skywarrior]

After all the good reviews, I am impatiently waiting to try them! Unfortunately, they did not show up in my mailbox this weekend while I was at Dragon*con. I am hoping they will magically appear tomorrow.

[zack]

LOVE LOVE LOVE

[Victoria]

LOVE LOVE LOVE

Yup Big LOVE. Having some right now.

[CynTEAa]

Happy to see the BDPs are so well received! They have quickly become my go-to tea for all the things Mana so eloquently stated.

Typically, I'm using 2 pearls per 6 oz of water for a Western style steep or 4 minutes or so. I add a 3rd when I need more richness.

Warm thanks for the feedback.

[theteascoop]

And I agree, it looks almost identical. That's why I'm looking forward to comparing the taste. I suspect Adagio's version will be a much better value.

Woodie, I saw you said they are different. However, I've found that at least Mighty Leaf and Teavana appear to have some overlap in their wholesaler. I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same with Adagio. Almost always, Teavana has the highest prices. I am thinking about ordering some of this tea from Adagio with my cup points though. Glad to read all the positive reviews!

Has anyone seen this tea before recently? Seems like all of a sudden it came out of nowhere.

[entropyembrace]

Not sure if they're exactly the same but I was buying black dragon pearls from a little local shop 3 years ago when I was just getting into loose leaf tea and they sound at the very least quite similar from the descriptions...

[skywarrior]

Got my black dragon pearls today. Worth the wait -- strong and almost malty black tea with chocolate notes. Very nice. One thing to keep in mind is to use less balls than recommended per cup or it is very strong. But then, I've been accused of liking weak tea.

Luckily extra hot water is my friend.

[geeber1]

I got mine yesterday and had my first cup today. I haven't been using my IngenuiTea lately, but did this morning so I could watch the pearls open up. For my morning brew, I use a 16 oz. cup so used 5 pearls to 16 oz. of water. The result was a dark, fairly strong cup, but it was delicious!