In Paris as in London, the mood is for Christmas Earl Grey. Mariage Frères takes the great classic of English tradition and lifts it with festive spices, for a Christmas that the house wants to sparkle. It is presented in a tall double-lidded tin, red and blue highlighted with gold, containing 80 g of black tea.

The ingredients are tea, cinnamon, bergamot and flavouring; the blend may contain traces of tree nuts, and our product sheet rates it as moderate in caffeine. The house’s file classes it among its Jardins Premiers. The black leaf is flecked with pieces of cinnamon.

The fruity flavours of natural bergamot are enhanced with warm notes which, the house says, joyfully wrap the palate. The liquor is amber; the citrus opens, clean, then the cinnamon settles in and gives the cup the air of a Christmas market, without ever overwhelming the tea. The balance leans towards Earl Grey more than towards a spiced tea.

It is drunk in the afternoon, under the tree or by the fireplace, plain or with a cloud of milk, with shortbread, gingerbread, a Yule log or candied oranges. It also accompanies breakfast on winter mornings, and lends itself to an iced infusion for those who drink it out of season.

Allow 2.5 g per 200 ml of water at 95 °C and five minutes’ steeping. The airtight tin keeps the leaf away from light and odours. La Boutique du Thé, official stockist of Mariage Frères since 1999, offers it in its shops in Bordeaux and Nice.