Wandering the streets of Paris, with no aim and no watch: that is the image Mariage Frères attaches to Paris Earl Grey, a creation that has enriched its collection of Earl Grey teas. A shimmering black tea with a strong scent, deliciously zested with what the house calls a royal bergamot, and which it describes as elegant and caressing.

The declared composition is short: tea and flavouring, with possible traces of nuts. The tea carries the house’s Jardin Premier label. As in every Earl Grey, the citrus is the signature; it is its dosage and the black tea carrying it that distinguish one version from another.

The liquor is amber and round. Bergamot opens, frank and zesty, with an acidulous freshness; the black tea takes over with a malty roundness that softens the citrus without erasing it. The balance leans towards the scent, strong as the house announces, but the tea remains legible beneath, with supple tannins, and the finish stays clean and fresh.

It is a tea for the day, from breakfast to afternoon tea. It is drunk plain, and it welcomes a cloud of milk, English style. It goes with a scone, a lemon cake, shortbread, a citrus tart; infused then cooled over ice, it makes a very clean iced tea, to which a slice of lemon suits well. Lovers of classic Earl Grey will find here a more fragrant and rounder version.

You will find it loose leaf, weighed and packed to order in our shops in Bordeaux and Nice, from the 5 g sample to the kilo, in a box of 30 traditional round cotton muslin tea sachets, net weight 75 g, and in a 100 g iconic black metal tin, airtight and with a sealed lid, in its gift box. Measure 2.5 g of leaves, or one cotton muslin tea sachet, per 200 ml of water at 95 °C, and limit the steeping to four minutes to keep the bergamot lively.