Pour the water, wait five minutes, bring the cup close: the bergamot arrives first, fruity and zesty, with the slightly peppery edge of the finest. The cornflower follows, floral, softening the citrus. Earl Grey French Blue is Mariage Frères’ variation on the great English classic, and its name tells the colour of the petals scattered over the leaf.

On a black tea, the house combines a bergamot flavouring, which it describes as fine and rare, with royal cornflower petals. The ingredients are black tea, cornflower and a flavouring; the blend may contain traces of nuts. It appears in the house catalogue under the Jardin Premier label.

The cup is round and balanced, full and lasting in flavour; the house speaks of a velvet of bergamot. The black tea keeps its structure and supple tannins, and the petals extend the finish with a floral note. An Earl Grey that does not sting, more flowery and less dry than the most bergamot-heavy versions.

It is a daytime tea, from mid-morning to teatime. It is drunk plain or with a cloud of milk, and finds its place alongside a scone, a lemon cake or butter shortbread. Infused then chilled over ice, with a slice of lemon, it makes a summer tea of great freshness.

Allow 2.5 g of leaves, or one muslin sachet, per 200 ml of water at 95 °C and five minutes of infusion. It is offered loose leaf, weighed to order in our shops in Bordeaux and Nice, from the 5 g sample to the kilo, in a box of 30 round cotton muslin sachets (75 g), handy at the office or when travelling, and in an airtight black metal tin of 100 g presented in its gift box.