250gram China Gunpowder Tea - Loose Rolled Leaf - Temple of Heaven Brand

I first encountered this tea at a now sadly gone Chinese supermarket which wasn't far from the Broadmarsh Centre in Nottingham. Not realising it was loose tea, I bought it and was surprised to see the contents when I got home. With little in the way of guidance, I decided just to use a teaspoonful in a mug and hey presto, a 15+ year love affair was to start. The soothing earthy aroma and gentle feeling of the tea magic coursing through your veins early in the morning is something I couldn't really live without now. I have learned a few things along the way which others may find handy though. Early on, I used to have around 4 or 5 cups of this a day, finding myself confused as to why I couldn't get to sleep until gone 1am in the morning. The trick is to not drink this after 6pm, or else you will be awake. I find that you can generally get two cups out of one teaspoon. The first will have the strong earthy taste and powerful awakenings relating to ancient mysteries of the Orient. The second will be pretty mellow. It does look like swamp water if you have the leaves unfurl in the bottom of your mug; don't let this put you off. I always 'leaf' the leaves in.. it just gives a nicer overall flavour to me and it always gets work colleagues commenting on my drink of choice. Last tip: see it, buy it. This tea has a habit of appearing and disappearing. I was amazed to see it on Amazon and have been duly stocking up. If it runs out on here, you may find yourself hunting Chinese supermarkets the length & breadth of the land to get your hit.

Have read a lot of positive reviews on this product, so thought I would give it a try. Really nice unusual flavour - thought it was too strong to start with, but it mellows down, and it's very nice with a slice of lemon in it (thank you to another reviewer who suggested that). The box will last me ages, so price wise this is good value, and most importantly you can tell it's much better quality than the bog-standard shop brought versions of green tea.

This is a huge quantity of proper green tea, and tastes as good or better than much smaller packs that cost a lot more from some fancy brands or ones that come in fancy packaging. I've inspected the leaves after brewing and they are very high quality. After a little while in the pot, they will naturally uncurl and infuse. If you leave the pot for a couple of hours before washing, you will see they are now 5 plus times bigger than what they were, and made of surprisingly large pieces of leaf. I love the stuff and it's a perfect all day every day tea.

This is not the first time I am buying the product. It is a great product. But the one I received wasn't packed very well. The outside wrap was torn slightly on the side, and it is the only thing that protects it from the outside environment, So now the whole product lacks flavour and smell.

I have drunk Green Tea for many years, buying Whittard or Taylors tea, my preference has been Gunpowder Tea. During the last 12months, due to the closure of many of the Whittard shops I have been unable to purchase my usual tea, I could have purchased on line but the postage made it expensive. Hence, I decided to try this tea as an alternative. The price was very low, but I decided to give it a try. I did find some differences, the tea I had been using prior to this purchase was made with whole rolled leaves. This tea hand smaller or part leaves rolled. I have a small Teapot that makes 2 cups of tea. My previous pot of tea could be made with about 1/2 teaspoon of gunpowder tea. This Tea needs 1 level teaspoon to make the same strength. (however the amount of tea required also depends on the water, soft water, less tea leaves) When making / and drinking Green Tea, it's a tea that you expect to be light and golden in colour, this tea meets this expectations, but without the strength of Whittards etc. but after taking into account the tea is not whole leaves and you need to use a little more this tea has a good taste and for the price an excellent tea. I have found in the past that people who try Green tea and previously only drunk the 'run of the mill' daily tea, may not appreciate Green Tea, as it is very different. However, it is an acquired taste and a very gentle relaxing tea. In addition, as a non milk lover I use Green Tea as a substitute for milk on my breakfast cereal. Finally, my tea is just running out. I will soon be reordering. Unfortunately this tea is currently unavailable, but I will keep looking as it may be back soon.

Okay-to-goodish Gunpowder tea. As previous comments have said, not whole leaf nor as "pearls" as other gunpowders often are. Taste and aroma not strong unless add more than usual to pot. Then all fine. Generally good for the price. Might buy again but would probably pay a bit more for the similarly packaged competitor with better "leafyness" .

Be aware this is more like loose leaf tea rather than distinct balls of wrapped leaves. The former needs a tea strainer and brewing in a tea pot. The latter - ie. better quality gunpowder - can be brewed in-situ in your cup. I also found the taste stronger and more bitter - almost smoky - compared to "proper" gunpowder. My advice: Use literally just half a teaspoon in a 2 person teapot and brew for 2 minutes so it's pale or medium yellow. At that stage this is a very mellow drink. Too much tea or brewing for longer and it turns too bitter.

simple box, mega value. packaged in a paper bag, you get loads for your money. I do find the odd stalk which I guess is all part of the charm but I could live without them. Really nice, very refreshing and definitely keeps you alert!