English Breakfast (bulk 1 lb)

I love this tea and find it's so much easier to buy in bulk. I was going thru so many of the smaller size. This makes me happy!

This was $36 per lb. In 2021 now it’s $56! And it’s not even the same tea. Assam is not in the blend, and the taste, quality, and color are all wrong. I’ve been ordering this tea for years in bulk, and this is probably my last order. This tea does not even steep properly. Huge, and expensive, disappointment to this long time customer of Octavia teas.

FROM OCTAVIA TEA: Our sincere apologies that you are unhappy with this tea. We did change our vendor/garden for this tea a few years ago due to sourcing issues. Although the new tea is technically a higher quality/grade and we have received good feedback, we understand that everyone has their own unique flavor preferences - which is why we offer such a wide variety to choose from! The original English Breakfast was an Assam tea. If you prefer this style/region, I recommend the Royal Golden Assam as a possible alternative as it will have the characteristic malty Assam flavor profile. Our current English Breakfast is a wonderful tea as well - which tea is better is definitely personal preference. Although we are sorry you are unsatisfied, we value your opinion and appreciate working with customers with such discerning tastes who follow our teas long term. I hope you try the Royal Golden Assam (we purchase limited quantities of this tea directly from the family who owns the garden each year so it may not always be available, but we do our best to keep our "rare and limited" teas in stock year-round).

This has been my favorite daily black tea for a while now, and so I order the bulk bag. It's a little lighter tasting than the Irish Breakfast and has a beautiful amber color. I do like strong black tea and this one is delicious without tasting bitter. I brew it in a large porcelain pot the traditional way and it's enjoyed by the whole family.

I usually wouldn't choose an English Breakfast myself, but this particular one couldn't be better. The leaves are smaller, almost like a CTC leaf, but I think that is what an English Breakfast tea should be. No weak breakfast teas for me, please. I certainly would love to drink this during breakfast! I steeped up a teaspoon and a quarter and the brew was mighty dark -- not too dark to be astringent though. The flavor is a great example of what to expect from this type: malty and sweet, yet bold but not bitter. The first cup tasted like tomato soup, which led me to believe that it was an assam, so I wasn't surprised to see the origin for this tea on Octavia's website as being Assam, India. I believe an English Breakfast shouldn't only be from Assam (a typical blend is also from Kenya and Ceylon, according to Wikipedia) but this is such a great tea, I won't complain much. A kick in the morning and very tasty!