Assam is my favorite, Andrew T. introduced me to it. A good Assam has a kind of fruity aroma when dry and a malty taste once steeped.
Most tea sold in bags is tea dust and isn't as good as loose leaf or CTC (crush, tear, curl) tea, so in general I skip the bags unless I'm in a hurry. My favorite Assam is usually CTC; it looks like coffee grounds, infuses fast and is strong. Some people say the CTC method is for lesser quality teas, I'm not sure but I don't think that's true. Andrew drinks the british Twinings assam which is CTC. I love the Twinings but it's hard to find in the US.
Kalustyan's sells organic Assam CTC and it's one of my favorites, they will ship. Other good Assam CTCs are Brooke Bond Red Label, and Lipton, you can find them at most Indian spice shops, I like the brooke bond better than the lipton. Another brand I like is Captian's Brew.
For loose leaf Assam I love Ahmad brand Kalami Assam, it's a long leaf golden tippy. Tippy means it's got a lot of the leaf tips and that's supposed to be good.
I also like Lapsang Souchong which has a smoky flavor because it's smoked over pine needles.
General rule of thumb for loose leaf and CTC is one teaspoon of tea per cup in the pot plus another for the pot. So if you want four cups you add five spoon fulls, for ten cups you add eleven spoon fulls. Preheat the pot with hot water and NEVER wash your pot out, just rinse.
For bags I like Barry's Gold or Irish Breakfast, Brook Bond assam, Trader Joe's Irish Breakfast and Red Rose. I don't like American Twinings or PG Tips, to me they don't have much flavor.
Sorry for the TMI you probably just wanted brands instead of a half-assed lecture.
should also mention that I drink my tea with milk, never black. Must be my british roots, no purist here.
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Assam is my favorite, Andrew T. introduced me to it. A good Assam has a kind of fruity aroma when dry and a malty taste once steeped.
Most tea sold in bags is tea dust and isn't as good as loose leaf or CTC (crush, tear, curl) tea, so in general I skip the bags unless I'm in a hurry. My favorite Assam is usually CTC; it looks like coffee grounds, infuses fast and is strong. Some people say the CTC method is for lesser quality teas, I'm not sure but I don't think that's true. Andrew drinks the british Twinings assam which is CTC. I love the Twinings but it's hard to find in the US.
Kalustyan's sells organic Assam CTC and it's one of my favorites, they will ship. Other good Assam CTCs are Brooke Bond Red Label, and Lipton, you can find them at most Indian spice shops, I like the brooke bond better than the lipton. Another brand I like is Captian's Brew.
For loose leaf Assam I love Ahmad brand Kalami Assam, it's a long leaf golden tippy. Tippy means it's got a lot of the leaf tips and that's supposed to be good.
I also like Lapsang Souchong which has a smoky flavor because it's smoked over pine needles.
General rule of thumb for loose leaf and CTC is one teaspoon of tea per cup in the pot plus another for the pot. So if you want four cups you add five spoon fulls, for ten cups you add eleven spoon fulls. Preheat the pot with hot water and NEVER wash your pot out, just rinse.
For bags I like Barry's Gold or Irish Breakfast, Brook Bond assam, Trader Joe's Irish Breakfast and Red Rose. I don't like American Twinings or PG Tips, to me they don't have much flavor.
Sorry for the TMI you probably just wanted brands instead of a half-assed lecture.
- steve 2-06-2016 6:16 am
should also mention that I drink my tea with milk, never black. Must be my british roots, no purist here.
- steve 2-06-2016 6:24 am [add a comment]