Twinings: Turkish Apple Black Tea

One thing I really like about Twinings Tea is that they offer a Pick & Mix option where you can buy single envelopes of tea for a decent price. For a blogger, this is exceptional, because it gets quite expensive trying new tea's - and let's be honest, there is nothing worse then paying out for a whole box of tea, only to find that half way through your first cup, you don't like it. I have experienced this with Lapsang Souchong and Beetroot Burst.

There are tea's that do hold instant appeal that mean's I will invest in a entire box, but on the whole, new tea's from Twinings are picked  by the single envelope. It's cheaper, takes up less space in the cupboard and gives me the option of trying all the different tea's in a affordable way.

In my last order I selected a envelope of a tea I have wanted to try for a while but not quite got round to. This tea was Turkish Apple Black Tea.

Apple tea has always been a hit for me. Twinings Apple Crunch is probably my all time favourite fruit tea. Piacha's Apple Green tea is certainly one not to be missed, again, one of my favourite green tea's. But for me, I've yet to find a black tea with genuine pizazz, that is memorable, like Piacha's Apple Green tea, which I often think about!

Though I liked Twining's Turkish Apple I was left underwhelmed at the same time. Though pleasant and tasty, I was left flat. And here's why I think this.

The base tea is a strong, but smooth black tea, with ever so slightly nutty tones. I like how the tea is strong enough to hold it's own, but yet, takes the apple flavour very well. The apple itself is light, crisp and refreshing. More importantly, this feels natural and fresh not synthetic which some flavourings can be and which, to be honest, I find abhorant.

All's well so far ...

However, though the black tea is lovely and the apple is both mouth watering and thirst quenching, this tea could be so much more. With the addition of a liberal dash of sweet cinnamon or a funky, sharp touch of nutmeg this tea could go from being okay to superb.

This tea isn't unpleasant. In fact it's really rather nice. I love the juicy, sweet flavour of apple which feel's fresh. I like the robust, rounded flavour of the tea. But for me it's just lacking. I'm not sure if it's because I've been enjoying quite a lot of chai tea lately, or because I have started to allow myself the treat of a really good Assam with milk and sugar on occasion. But I just expected  more from this tea and felt it was slightly lacking, and could of done with a little more depth in flavour.

You will, however, love it if you just want a simple, apple flavoured tea. If you approach it from that angle, it's really a rather good tea.

One thing I will say is I love the bright, eye catching packaging that Twinings have designed. They are doing packaging really well. Over the next few day's I will be reviewing their China Rose tea, and oh my, how pretty that box is!

Though this didn't quite reach my (I admit, very high) standards, I do see this as a sign that Twinings are improving their tea's. They are adventurous with their flavours, creating different tea's and are being experimental. I find that exciting.

They can't get it spot on all of the time, nobody can. But judging by the the sheer amount of new tea's that Twinings are producing, it does show they are keeping their eye on the market and appear to be moving with the times whilst retaining their traditional qualities.

I have several tea's from Twinings that are in the cupboard waiting for review. These are as diverse as China Rose, Gingerbread Chai and a nice and fruity Apple and Pear. And it's through trying these tea's that Twinings appear to be on the up - and I have never been happier to see it.