Bolder Breakfast from The Tea Spot

I stumbled upon The Tea Spot quite by accident on Facebook. Or maybe it was Pinterest. Who can keep track? In any case, I was intrigued enough to order a few samples, and boy am I glad I did!

Bolder Breakfast is a blend of black tea, puerh and chocolate. I'm a big fan of chocolate teas in general (really, who isn't?), and the recent (relatively speaking) trend of puerh blends haven't disappointed either. So I was excited to try this, and it certainly lived up to my expectations.

I can't decide what the base black tea is (the web site only says China/Sri Lanka). There's a light smoky flavor in the background that doesn't quite fit (but it does make for a very intriguing finish). But the somewhat sharp aftertaste is a little disappointing after the smooth, thick texture of the brew.  Regardless, the overall flavors are worth it, and I think a nice lighter Yunnan tea might give this a somewhat smoother finish. Perhaps I'll try that when I order a full tin of this...

I love puerh teas, and I've been skeptical about them in the past (having started my puerh journey brewing actual cake teas), but I've come to love these blends - especially puerh and chocolate. Something about the earthiness of puerh and the sweetness of chocolate just make a rather perfect blend. And the texture of this tea is lovely as well - a nice, thick feel on the tongue that would lend itself well to milk & sugar or honey, if you're the sort of person who needs those in your morning cuppa.

While it's called "breakfast", I really like this for an afternoon tea - dessert and a general pick-me-up to get through yet another afternoon at my desk.

Rating: 5 out of 5 cups.

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