July ITD Tea Tasting

[Mary R]

I've tried the Georgian black, which is the Georgian Old Gentleman sold through Nothing But Tea out of Great Britain. I think it's pretty good. It's a black tea, and it tastes like a black tea...but it's got an interesting complexity to it. Well, at least I think so.

Here's what NBT has to say on the Old Gentleman:

Our Old Gentleman tea is made by Iuri in the tiny village Nasakirali. His tea has all the freshness of a springtime meadow. Old Gentleman tea is very well twisted and even; it is blacker than our Old Lady tea made by Natela, though hers shows more golden tip. In the cup Iuri's Old Gentleman tea is slightly more robust and complex and is a darker brew, while Natela's is lighter and sweeter, as befits a lady.

Note for animal lovers - Iuri has an unusual black and white dog with one brown eye and one blue eye! His tea is just as unusual!

Brewing Advice: One heaped teaspoon per mug add hot water (80-100 deg C) for up to five minutes.

This tea is light and fluffy, so one heaped teaspoon *might* get you a gram. My advice is to break out your scales if you've got them, and go for more leaf than that.

If you are interested in trying any more Georgian teas, NBT sent me a brochure that has three contacts listed. One is through an associate business: Teacraft Ltd. The two others are CERMA and New Era, but neither of their sites (cerma.ge and Georgia-tea.com) seem to be working.

Have fun!

[Space Samurai]

I'm waiting; its still too hot to drink. So. First things first.

Visually this is a beautiful black tea, the leaves remind me of yancha. I'm using 3 grams per 8 oz, and I started off with a short steep of 3 min and 15 s. The liquor is orange and clear.

Im excited....

....3 min wasn't long enough. I can't pick up on anything specific. It has a sweet mouth feel. So far I'd rank it below hong cha, but above almost anything from Ceylon or India.

[olivierco]

I received it today. Fast shipping indeed.
I will try it tomorrow.
Merci beaucoup!

[fencerdenoctum]

Package received! It smells delicious. Smells sort of fruity to me. Can't wait to see how it tastes!

Fence

[scruffmcgruff]

I got it too, maybe a few days ago (I was out of town briefly). I'll get to it soon, thanks Mary!

[Salsero]

I got it too, maybe a few days ago (I was out of town briefly).

Well, I guess now I have a reason to return home.

[scruffmcgruff]

I got it too, maybe a few days ago (I was out of town briefly).

Well, I guess now I have a reason to return home.

I hope you don't mind that I rummaged around your tea stash while I was over.

[Salsero]

I hope you don't mind that I rummaged around your tea stash while I was over.

Feel free, just sorry to miss you!

[Proinsias]

I've just arrived back from a break, my other half is 30 tomorrow and we managed to dump the smurf for a few days to enjoy a 2 city break.

I've arrived back to some of the most beautiful looking black/red tea leaves I've ever seen. I will be a busy bee this evening getting the house ready for family and friends tomorrow and I'm looking towards those lovely long black leaves to help get me through.

Cheers Mary, impressions to follow soon.

[Salsero]

I'm on my second infusion of this stuff tonight. If this had been one of those evil blind tastings like some people host, I would have guessed a Ceylon from one of the light to medium production areas. Very fruity ... reminded me even of Juicy Fruit gum. The dry leaves are dark, twisted wires that fall in or close to the "stunning" category. The spent leaves are dark green, thick and tough, one-inch leaf pieces. For me the liquor brewed a sort of brownish orange. At least in my case, the first infusion was the money shot.

I really expected this would be a hum drum selection from a tea backwater, but it is in fact a classy production that I would consider buying. Maybe it's just those low expectations working for me again!

Thanks to Mary! Though I had no idea why, I know she has spent much of this year trying to track down the elusive Georgian teas and I think it has paid off for all of us in a unique event.

[Mary R]

Hrm...I suddenly have the strongest compulsion to break into a Crocodile Hunter impression. 'Sall that trackin' I've been doing, mates.

Salsero really does get the credit for finding the tea, though. Don't let him fool you.


Ed: The Georgian goes very well with zucchini bread.

[Proinsias]

We've got some homemade zucchini muffins which I might test drive with the tea tomorrow.

[Ed]

Ed: The Georgian goes very well with zucchini bread. Razz

Mmm, zucchini bread. Upload some to me plz, thx.

[Salsero]

Nothing But Tea out of Great Britain.

Have you tried anything else from NBT? Their selection looks really interesting, especially in the black, white, African, and the more off beat sections. I've heard good reports about the Antlers d'Amour and I can't help but think their Ceylons and Indian Teas may be exceptional. Unfortunately, the website design sucks. It seems that black teas are even accidentally listed in the white tea section...

[Mary R]

I haven't. The pounds to dollars conversion I have to do makes me deplore the state of our nation. Kinda like the shock at the gas pump, but at least I can avoid it.