Starting with tea
Three teas, one category, in the order that makes each one legible. Black tea first because it is where nearly everyone already is, and because it is the most forgiving of a rough brew while you learn what you are tasting.
Who this is for
Someone who drinks tea from bags and wants to know what else there is.
What you should come away with
You will have tasted a blend against its own components and noticed that single-origin tea is different rather than simply better.
From a blend to the leaf it is made of
Staying inside one category on purpose. Breadth is the next journey; this one is about learning to notice a difference at all.
Starting point. Everything after this is measured against it.
Strong and straightforwardly malty, engineered so that milk and a short steep produce the same cup every morning. Judged as a single origin it is unremarkable; judged as a blend it is a piece of consistent engineering.
Why this step follows
The blend’s dominant component, on its own. The first useful step out of blends is usually meeting one of their parts.
Thick and malty with a firm astringent grip. The second flush is the one worth seeking: it carries a rounder, almost stewed-fruit sweetness under the malt that the first flush has not yet developed.
Why this step follows
Both black, and about as far apart as the category goes. Assam is forgiving and milk-friendly; Darjeeling asks for cooler water, a shorter steep and no milk, and rewards it with muscatel aroma.
Rounder and sweeter than the spring picking, with the muscatel note sitting over a light malt base. The comparison to muscat grapes is unusually literal for tea tasting language.
Read alongside
- A tea guide for beginners
What to know before buying anything, in the order it becomes useful. Most of the difficulty in starting with tea is not the tea — it is that the vocabulary assumes you already know things.
- Choosing your first tea
Named teas rather than categories, chosen by what you already drink. There is no single right first tea, and starting from what you like now works better than starting from what is celebrated.