Dry, the leaves smell of candyfloss, and behind it, the memory of a rich crème brûlée. Rolled into fine pearls, jade green in colour, they make up Milky Blue Absolu, a silky blue tea with milky notes that Mariage Frères describes as luxuriant.

The house makes it in keeping with the traditional methods specific to great blue teas: the youngest leaves are picked early in the morning, when the scents of the plantation mingle with the colours of dawn, worked one by one and rolled, then infused with an elegant milky vapour. The declared ingredients are tea and flavouring; the blend may contain traces of nuts. It carries the Jardin Premier label.

Once infused, the pearls unfurl and the floral backbone typical of blue teas blends with indulgent flavours of coconut pearls. The cup, a bright rose-gold colour, offers aromas of caramelised milk jam that wrap the palate in soft, brioche-like notes. A creamy texture, with a sweetness that owes nothing to sugar: silky and luxuriant, as the house sums it up.

It is drunk at any hour, and particularly at teatime, plain above all, since adding milk would be redundant. It goes with a brioche, butter biscuits, a flan, rice pudding, a coconut tart or a caramel dessert. Curious drinkers discover a family of tea they knew little about.

Milky Blue Absolu is sold loose, weighed to order in our shops in Bordeaux and Nice, from the 5 g sample up to the kilo; in a box of 30 traditional round cotton muslins (75 g); and in an airtight, sealed black metal tin of 100 g, presented in its gift box. Allow 2.5 g of leaves or one muslin per 200 ml of water at 95 °C, and five minutes, the time it takes for the pearls to open fully. Keep this delicate scent away from light and cooking odours.