So are you a black Tea lover?
Some days at the Teashop, it makes me smile to see the look of amazement on some tea lovers' faces when they exclaim, " Oh my! So many teas!! but I just want a good ol cuppa tea! That's all"
Indeed!
You love your tea just like the good ol days, "I just want a cuppa Tea, like my mum used to make, and my grandma..."
Never mind all these fancy types of teas and herbs of all sorts, just a cup of tea please!
Black teas aren't just black teas! Premium quality leaves brew into smooth, full bodied satisfying blacks. If you enjoy your black tea with lots of milk, our English Breakfast OP, Irish Breakfast and English Breakfast OP are excellent. Deep and robust.
If you like your blacks with just a dash of milk or straight black, there are choices of Darjeeling (the champagne of black teas) from the higher altitudes, Black Assam from the Assam regions in India, or Ceylon OP for lovers of a smooth and soft golden brew (all certified organic).
If you like your blacks with a hint of smokiness, try Russian Caravan or a full smoky tea Lapsang Souchong (smells and tastes like campfire!)
Then of course, there's also the well known Earl Grey for lovers of bergamot oil infused blacks.
Or try them all! Excellent leaves put commercial teabags to shame.
The Black Teas stocked at Tiny Tea Shop may come in two grades OP or BOP. Grades are usually specified to inform discerning tea lovers of quality of the tea leaves. OP (orange pekoe) indicates the highest grade leaves, consisting of the young and fresh harvested whole leaves. BOP are Broken Orange Pekoe. Still highest grade leaves but broken pieces. Broken leaves allow for greater surface area to volume ratio, hence brews up into a bolder tea, if you love it full bodied and strong. Whole leaves (OP) tend to produce a smoother brew, in texture and flavour.
The Dutch invented the system of grading teas, to indicate the quality and type of leaves. This allows the freedom of choice for the discerning tea lovers. Grades are presented as OP, BOP, FBOP, GFOP, FTGFOP, TGFOP, TGFOPS, SFTGFOP1, and the list goes on. I will write about these grades in more details in a future blogpost.
In terms of tea quality, the younger the leaves the more premium the tea. At Tiny Tea Shop, currently we stock only OP and BOP.
In terms of tea quality, the younger the leaves the more premium the tea. At Tiny Tea Shop, currently we stock only OP and BOP.
Whatever your preferred choice of tea, brewing those perfect leaves makes you stop, put the kettle on, prepare your beautiful tea wares, and then sit and sip just like the good ol days!
Avail in the Online Store under Black Teas and Full Collection sections.
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