I mentioned in my post about Old Town Coffee, Tea, and Spice that walking into the store was like walking into heaven, with such an enticing aroma I could hardly stand it. It was even better once the proprietor starting pulling jars off the shelf and presenting them to me to sniff. It's a wonder I didn't buy all of the two hundred teas, as almost all of them smelled fabulous. It was in fact quite hard to restrain myself, but somehow, I kept myself under rein. I did make it out with a bit of an unusual Earl Grey: it was an oolong. I have tried quite a variety of Earl Greys, finding them one of my favorites to compare variations. But I had not come across an oolong, and I thought that the peachy flavors of oolongs might play well of the citrusy floral notes of an Earl Grey. I was intrigued by the idea of using Darjeeling for the base as well, since many blends have a Chinese base.
This tea most certainly did not disappoint. All of the elements played together quite delightfully. From the first sip, there was no doubt that this was Earl Grey. The bergamot flavor was quite strong, but not overwhelming. Behind it were the subtleties that come from the Darjeeling region as well as the nuances of oolongs. Even Mr. Tea Scoop found it quite enjoyable, although he usually does not prefer Earl Grey in general.
Whoever created this blend deserves quite a bit of credit for making it stand apart from so many other Earl Grey blends on the market. Bravo.