T2 Creme Brulee

 

This is a bit of a double whammy review because it was also the first time I’d tried my new loose leaf paper pouches. In hindsight, I maybe should have tried these with a tea I already knew the taste of so I could compare and contrast. But hey, I never said I was a scientist!

Ok – tea first.

This tea made me ask myself the question – ‘what makes a creme brulee?’. This was partly prompted by the seemingly odd inclusion of hazelnuts in the ingredients – it might just be me but I’ve never seen a nut in a brulee before!

The leaves didn’t smell particularly nutty and there were no obvious flavour nuggets (official term) like you get with some teas. It mostly smelled of black tea (surprise) –  earthy, but with a few subtle notes of vanilla and something almost smoky – though I use that word very carefully after The Lapsang Incident.

When it came to tasting the flavour didn’t immediately hit me. At first sip I thought I was in for another Favourite Thing Disappointment (see salted caramel, banana bread and chocolate flake). However, the more I drank, the more the flavour developed and I found the subtlety of it really enjoyable.

I get the hazelnut now – it’s there to bring out the flavour of the delicious crunchy brulee topping in a way that sugar alone couldn’t do in a tea. And the vanilla hits a custard-y note which all together makes for a delicate but lovely tasting cup of tea.

Not too sweet or artificial, but not the same (I imagine) as drinking a liquidised creme brulee which, to be honest, I’m not sure I’d want anyway.

All in all, a very respectable effort.

7.5/10

As for the bags, well, I think I need to conduct a more thorough investigation before passing my final judgement. However, I will say that at first the bag didn’t seem porous enough to release the flavour infused from the tea leaves.

After a few minutes the water was still virtually clear so I began dunking the bag which made a big difference. It does beg the question though – ‘why provide a a rubber nipple (for lack of a better word) designed to keep the bag in place?’. I think I need a few more brews before I can fully answer that question!