Customer Reviews

Twinings Ceylon Orange Pekoe Tea, Loose Tea, 3.53-Ounce Tins (Pack of 6)

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4 star:		(4)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Although often used as a quasi-blend name (particularly in connection with Indian and Ceylonese teas), "orange pekoe" is in fact a reference to a black tea's grade. Loose leaf black teas come in two basic groups - whole leaf and broken; in addition, there are "fannings" and "dust," the lower-grade remainders usually found in tea bags. Whole leaf tea grades are as follows (top quality within a grade is denoted by adding the number 1):

* Orange Pekoe (OP):
Long, thin, pointed leaves (larger than FOP, see below), rolled lengthwise and picked when the final buds open into leaf. Rarely contains "tips," i.e. the very ends of the bud's leaves, which constitute a guarantee of quality. Produces a light or pale color. The predominant whole leaf grade in Ceylon and Java.

* Pekoe (P) and Flowery Pekoe (FP):
Short, fleshier and less refined leaves without tips. Produces a stronger color than OP; found mainly in Ceylon and Southern India, but also in parts of Kenya.

* Flowery Orange Pekoe (FOP):
Fine, delicate, young leaves with a certain proportion of tips. Second grade tea in Assam, but top grade in most Chinese regions.

* Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (GFOP):
FOP with "golden" tips (tips of the particularly fine, golden-orange variety).

* Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (TGFOP):
FOP with many golden tips; the predominant grade in Darjeeling and Assam.

* Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (FTGFOP):
Outstanding golden-tipped FOP.

* Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (SFTGFOP):
Highest grade FOP with a large share of golden-tipped leaves; very rare.

Broken leaf ratings correspond to those for whole leaf teas, i.e.:

* Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP):
Less refined black leaf tea; the main broken grade in Ceylon, Southern India, Java and China. Produces a rich color and full-bodied taste. BOP1 (sometimes designated FBOPF - Finest Broken Orange Pekoe Flowery) is primarily found in the lower districts of Ceylon's tea-growing areas and consists of approximately 40 % OP and 60 % Pekoe and/or BOP.

* Golden Broken Orange Pekoe (GBOP):
Less refined broken grade; inhomogeneous leaves, some tips.

* Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe (FBOP):
Less refined broken tea with some tips from Assam, Ceylon, Indonesia, China or Bangladesh.

* Tippy Golden Broken Orange Pekoe (TGBOP):
Refined broken grade with a substantial number of golden tips.

* Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe (GFBOP):
Top broken grade in Assam and the only tippy broken grade from Kenya.

* Tippy Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe (TGFBOP):
Highest-grade broken leaves in Darjeeling and some parts of Assam. High tip content and uniform leaves.

Twinings Orange Pekoe is an invigorating Ceylonese blend with a distinctive flavor: Nothing to splurge on, but a reliable choice for every day.

For me, Ceylon is always much more enjoyable in the mornings than English or other so-called Breakfast teas. It has much more taste and flavor. Out of Ceylon teas, I particularly enjoy Twinings Ceylon Orange Pekoe. It has nice big leaves and great golden color. Before I was buying this tea at grocery stores tin by tin (which is expensive as only "fancy" stores sell it) and I'm glad I discovered the package deal here.

Twinings Orange Pekoe tea is a delightful, smooth tea. It delivers a pleasing cup of tea without acid harshnest. Yet it is full of flavor and rich amber color. A good choice in the evening or anytime you want to pamper yourself with pleasure. It's a tea to be savored.

If you like a mild, subtle, yet refined, flavor, this is the tea for you. We make it with a Mr. Coffee coffee-maker, and it turns out fine. My husband, who never cared about teas, now requests this tea by name. This bundle of six is also a good value.

This tea is a mild afternoon boost, very smooth, without the bang of a breakfast tea.

I saw one website* where they listed 3 teas that were especially well suited for brewing with a vacuum coffee maker (siphon).

1Cheap: Broken Orange Pekoe generics.

2Middle: any puerh tea.

3Expensive: "fo shou hei cha", fo shou=Bhudda's palm, hei= dark, cha= tea). I believe this is also called bergamont oolong which sells on Ebay by gingko_bay and at tea springs dot com.

*This website was Turquoise Tea Co. Ltd. which (as a lucky coincidence would have it) happened to have lots of 2 and 3 to sell at a high price :) And here we have a famous brand of 'orange pekoe' which might be related to 1. It works for me.

Loose tea is always better than bagged tea and hard to find in grocery stores. The only store I found this In was Wegmans in NY and there @ $6. This is good tea, especially for iced tea made with an iced tea maker.

This is my husband's favorite tea and we were delighted to find it on line when our store quit carrying it. We stock up so we have plenty on hand. Fast shipping, well packaged.

I found this tea very refreshing and we all loved it here. Twinings makes some of the best teas out there.

I drink a lot of this tea so the 6 pack is definitely a great deal compared to buying individual boxes in the supermarket. This is my favorite basic tea!