20 May 2011

Twinings Green Tea Blend (Waitrose) [By @Cinabar]


There are an amazing array of teas on the market, and there is an impressive selection in our Foodstuff Finds kitchen cupboard too! We are tea addicts, and try all sorts of different ones! We can’t help but buy new teas too, from spiced varieties through to flavoured ones, but this is something new even to us. It is neither a pure green tea nor a black tea, but a mix of both.
The packaging suggests that it is predominantly green tea, the box is green, and the big bold lettering says “Green Tea” with the concept of black tea only referred to in the smaller print. Curiously though the guidance on making the tea says add milk to taste, which is much more like a traditional black tea. I take sugar in most tea (Spectre I hope you are taking note) but not green tea, so I was stuck for a minute on whether or not to add it. Just to add more confusion to the situation, the Twinings website has a page for this tea that states “always without milk”, which is a bit of a mixed message.
When it brewed it looked and smelled like a traditional black tea to me, so I went for my usual teaspoon of sugar and splash of milk. I was glad that I did as the black tea very much outweighs the flavour of the green, and the milk really worked with it. The taste is very traditional, similar to the flavours of Ceylon or Assam leaves. At the end of each sip there is a refreshing hint of green tea delivering a very delicate aftertaste. It is a fresh leafy flavour, with a very subtle acidic edge.
Although the cup had more black tea flavour than I was expecting, it still made a lovely refreshing mug and would be a good way to start any day. I have tweeted Twinings to clarify about the milk issue, but personally I thought it was lovely with milk and sugar.
By Cinabar

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