Tea Review: Organic Earl Grey

Two Leaves and a Bud Tea Company sent us a wide and interesting array of teas to sample. One thing that I liked immediately about all of their teas is that they package each tea “sachet” in an individually sealed packet, which is a great way to secure the freshness of each cup. Countering the extra contribution of those outer packets to the landfill, their roomy and pyramidal tea sachets are made from biodegradable corn-starch based nylon. Both the packets and the tea sachets are quite transparent, which allows for a good look at the high quality of the whole leaf teas inside. Another thing that I liked about their packaging, although it was not universally present, was the recommended steeping time on the back. It would be nice for them to also include recommended steeping temperatures, but I don’t know that most people would consider that information useful.

The first of their teas that I tried was the Organic Earl Grey. The bergamot is prominent, but not overpowering, which is quite nice. In my experience a lot of Earl Greys are a little too much of an assault on the senses. Two Leaves and a Bud’s version is not – It is smooth and quite pleasant to drink. Before the initial sip I noted the nice tangy scent rising off of the cup. The tea produces a lingering orangy feel in the mouth, which I liked. I think it is one of the better Earl Greys I have tasted and I would recommend it to anyone who likes Earl Grey.

I do need to add a comment that their motto “a better cuppa’ tea” makes me flinch every time I read it. I could be wrong, but I don’t believe that any self-respecting Brit would ever add the word “tea” to the slang abbreviation “cuppa” that means “cup of tea.” The motto reads as redundant and awkward to me. Technically if they removed the apostrophe at the end of “cuppa” it would make more sense, since the apostrophe represents the omitted word “tea.” But if the rest of their teas are as satisfying as their Organic Earl Grey, which I suspect that they will be, I will be able to overlook the company motto.