The Tea of Indonesia | Atlas Tea Club

The Tea of Indonesia | Atlas Tea Club

Traveling the world and discovering the origins of tea that I consume is a big dream that I have. Current situations and finances prevent me from doing so, but even so, I look toward different teas as ways to explore without having to leave my house. I had been slightly stalked by Atlas Tea Club ads on Facebook, and each time, I was very tempted to click and discover more. I was beyond excited when they reached out to me to try their tea and discover the teas of Indonesia. Getting a black and oolong tea from Indonesia really surprised me and made me happy (as these are the teas I most consume!).

Atlas Tea Club is a tea of the month club that takes you on a journey around the world, bringing teas from all sourcing origins straight to your door. They want to share the world of tea with consumers and change the perspective of tea-producing countries only being a select few.


Rolled Leaf Oolong:


An oolong from Indonesia intrigued me, so I pulled out my gaiwan and excitedly sat down. I preheated my gaiwan and shook the heck out of the leaves to wake them up! The leaves themselves are a darker green color that is tightly rolled and fairly even in shape. The dry leaf aroma was nutty, dried, and had a very specific char-note that reminded me of a certain type of walnut, almond, or cashew. I could not decide which one. As I brewed the tea, I noticed a slightly different wet aroma that was more roasted and had almost sweet honey granules. It was extremely pleasant to sip on and drink. The tea brewed was a lovely light golden color that transitioned into a lighter golden orange with each steep. The taste of this tea was sweet and honey-like with a creamy feeling to it. It had a very light feeling but has a sweet ending to each sip. There was almost this caramelized sugar aroma that met my nose every few seconds which was absolutely heavenly. As a few more steeps came and went, I could tell that there was a roasted element coming forward and the sweeter elements melted a bit away.


Twisted Red Leaf:


This tea was probably one of the most unique and amazing teas I have consumed in a while. I honestly was not expecting it at all. The leaves were small shriveled whole leaves. The dry leaf aroma was extremely warming and had a stronger roasted note at first. As I stuck my nose into my gaiwan, I got a little whiff of spice, almost like a spiced gingerbread. It was increasingly sweet, and I was actually obsessed with the aroma for a bit. As I brewed the tea, I noticed the aroma was continuing to be spiced and sweet, similar to plums or kumquats. There was a deeper wheaty floury note in there as well. A couple of whiffs reminded me a bit of a childhood memory of playdough I used to play with as a kid. It was interesting as if there were two sides to this tea that I was experiencing. The brewed tea was lighter than I was expecting for a black tea but got darker with each steep.

My first reaction to sipping on this tea was “oh, this is heavenly”. I swore that it tasted and smelled so sweet like cinnamon and cardamon. Again, that gingerbread aroma came around and translated to taste. With continued steeps, it gathered a slight malt and sourness to it. It felt light to medium-bodied and ended up getting bolder and bolder in flavor. The gingerbread/spiced taste went away about three steeps in and it just became this slightly fruity, malty taste.


Pricing: This is a tea subscription, so a two option tea subscription is about 2 teas a month for $14 and a one tea option is $10 a month. You can specialize the caffeinated and tea according to your preference. (if you see this part, I have a potential code for 50% off your first box – just message me on IG or comment here!)

Packaging: The packaging changes based on tea origin, and the box is very well branded. The tea pouches itself are quite airtight and look to be good quality.

Sourcing: All of the tea from this month was from Indonesia, but they zip-zag across different countries to highlight different teas and cultures around the globe. By going on their website, I sat that the Indonesian teas listed on their site were from Banton and gathered at an altitude of 900 meters in an orthodox method (This was a green tea so not one of mine, but still very cool that this information is somewhat available).


Did you know that Indonesia was a tea-producing country? I certainly did not. I am very intrigued to see what other countries I could discover and might just have to subscribe once I get my tea stash down a bit more. Happy Brewing!

-Danielle

2 thoughts on “The Tea of Indonesia | Atlas Tea Club

  1. I loved the Twisted Red Leaf tea I got in this box! Do you know of any similar teas I can purchase in a larger quantity that’s similar to it? I like the Atlas Tea Club, but it’s so frustrating that I can’t purchase more of specific teas. Thanks!

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