Monday, February 21, 2011

Arbor Tea's Rembeng Estate Assam Review

Type: Black
Origin: India
Price: Free sample (regular price - $9.95 for 3.5oz.)
Vendor: Arbor Teas
Brewing Method: Per Instructed - 1 teaspoon of leaves, 1 cup of filtered water, heated to 212°F, steeped for 3-5 minutes
Overall Score: 4.2 out of 5

This Rembeng Estate Assam tea is, according to Arbor Tea’s website, located “…near the banks of the Brahmaputra River.” The first aroma I recognize is a sweet, malty, chocolaty smell coming from the bag. The dry leaves are longer than most black teas; they are thin, rolled, slightly twisted pieces. The hue is overall dark brown with rare bits of orange color.

The malty aroma is brought out more as the leaves are steeping. There is something kind of “roasty” about the aroma, as well… quite similar to very weak coffee. The color is a beautiful reddish orange.





The taste follows the aroma; it is malty, with a dark roasted flavor. It is more astringent than I would like, however. There are some fruity notes that pop up in the after taste – a mix of apricot and peach. The dark over tone of the roasted flavor still takes center stage, though.

This is definitely a bold tea that could give hearty Irish Breakfast tea a run for its money. This Assam isn’t bitter, but it isn’t the sweetest thing either. The dryness is a tough one to get through, but the dark malty flavor makes it worth it.

3 comments:

Jackie said...

Your pictures are beautiful - looking at them is visual delight.
I'd like a cup of this tea right now, and I'm not even really a big Assam fan.
Thanks for an informative review,
J.

Brittiny said...

Oh, girl, you make me blush. :)

Thanks for the kind words. I am finishing up the cup right now... although, it cooled off a bit too much while I was fussing with the pictures and post. Still good...

Sir William of the Leaf said...

Hmmm dry you say?
I didn't experience too much of that, not that I can remember anyways.