Paris Blend Black Tea

Blackcurrant and bergamot meet creamy vanilla and caramel in this full-bodied black and oolong blend—fruitier and softer than a classic Earl Grey, but still distinctly citrus-aromatic.

The Experience

If you love Earl Grey but want something fruitier and a little more indulgent, start here.

Paris Blend combines black and oolong teas with four distinct flavor notes. Bergamot provides the bright, fragrant citrus familiar to Earl Grey drinkers, while blackcurrant adds a deeper, dark-berry character. Vanilla softens the fruit and citrus, and caramel leaves a warm sweetness through the finish.

Don't expect a dessert tea dominated by vanilla and caramel. The interesting part of Paris is the balance: bright bergamot against dark fruit, with creamy sweetness underneath both.

Try it straight first. Then add a small splash of milk and taste it again. Without milk, blackcurrant and bergamot are easier to distinguish; with milk, vanilla and caramel move forward, and the cup becomes rounder and more indulgent.

Tasting Notes

• Top: Bergamot • Blackcurrant
  
• Mid: Vanilla • Rich black tea
  
• Finish: Caramel • Creamy • Aromatic
  
• Body: Full

Why You’ll Love It

Choose Paris Blend if you enjoy Earl Grey but want more fruit and softness, love dark berry flavors such as blackcurrant, or prefer flavored black teas with several distinct layers rather than one dominant flavor.

It's also a good choice if you enjoy vanilla and caramel but don't necessarily want a traditional dessert tea. Here, those flavors play supporting roles: they round out the sharper blackcurrant and bergamot rather than taking over the cup.

If bergamot is what you love most, Earl Grey Classic will give you a cleaner, more traditional expression of that citrus character. If vanilla and caramel are your favorite part, French Vanilla or Crème Brûlée takes you further in the rich, dessert-inspired direction. Knowing what you love about a tea makes finding your next favorite much easier.

Tea, Flavor & Ingredients

Tea Type: Flavored Black & Oolong Tea Blend
Flavor Profile: Blackcurrant • Bergamot • Vanilla • Caramel
Ingredients: Black tea, oolong tea, bergamot oil, natural flavors of blackcurrant, vanilla, and caramel
Caffeine: Yes
Body: Full

How to Brew

Use approximately 1 teaspoon per 8 oz / 237 ml of water at 212°F / 100°C and steep for 4–5 minutes.

For your first cup, we recommend drinking Paris Blend straight. Without milk, it is easier to distinguish the bright bergamot from the darker blackcurrant, while vanilla and caramel remain underneath.

Then try it with a small splash of milk. The balance changes noticeably: bergamot softens, the fruit becomes rounder, and vanilla and caramel move forward, creating a richer and creamier cup.

Paris also makes an excellent iced tea. Brew it slightly stronger before pouring over ice; chilled, the blackcurrant and bergamot become particularly refreshing.

Perfect For

Paris Blend is especially well suited to afternoon tea, brunch, pastries, dessert, or the Earl Grey drinker looking for something new without leaving bergamot behind. Pair it with croissants, madeleines, macarons, berry tarts, shortbread, vanilla pastries, dark chocolate, or crème brûlée.

For a simple tasting exercise, serve it with a plain butter cookie or madeleine rather than a heavily flavored dessert. A neutral pairing makes the transitions between blackcurrant, bergamot, vanilla, and caramel easier to notice.

Inspired by the Tea Shops of Paris

Paris Blend was created as an homage to the city after enjoying many pots of tea in Parisian tea shops. Its appeal isn't built around a single dramatic ingredient. Instead, it comes from how several familiar flavors are arranged together.

Blackcurrant provides dark fruit. Bergamot brings fragrant citrus. Vanilla adds softness. Caramel contributes warmth. Black and oolong teas provide the foundation beneath them.

That layered construction is what makes Paris worth tasting slowly. Rather than asking simply whether the tea tastes “fruity” or “sweet,” pay attention to which flavor arrives first and which remains after you swallow. That is where the blend becomes more interesting.

What Does Blackcurrant Taste Like?

For many American tea drinkers, blackcurrant is less familiar than strawberry, raspberry, or blueberry. It has a deeper and more aromatic personality than many familiar berries, with a distinctive combination of dark fruit, sweetness, and tartness. That intensity makes blackcurrant particularly well suited to black tea because its character can remain recognizable against a stronger tea base.

In Paris Blend, blackcurrant has an especially interesting partner: bergamot. Bergamot is a highly aromatic citrus associated most famously with Earl Grey. Where blackcurrant gives Paris its darker fruit character, bergamot provides a brighter, higher citrus note. Vanilla and caramel then soften the transition between them.

When tasting Paris, see if you can follow the cup in layers: Bergamot → blackcurrant → vanilla → caramel. You may experience them in a different order—and that's perfectly normal. Tasting notes aren't a list of flavors you're required to find. They're a vocabulary for helping you identify and describe what you notice.

Tea Expert Note: Paris Blend vs. Earl Grey

If you're learning to identify flavors in tea, tasting Paris Blend and Earl Grey Classic side by side is an excellent exercise. Both contain bergamot, but the role it plays is very different.

In Earl Grey Classic, bergamot is the defining flavor. Its fragrant citrus character sits prominently against black tea, making it relatively easy to identify. Paris surrounds that same flavor with other elements. Blackcurrant makes the cup fruitier and darker, vanilla makes it softer, and caramel gives the finish greater warmth and perceived sweetness. Oolong adds another component to the tea foundation.

Taste Earl Grey first. Then taste Paris. Once you recognize bergamot on its own, you'll begin finding it inside the more complex blend. This is one of the best ways to develop your tea palate: don't just memorize flavor descriptions—compare teas that share one ingredient and taste what changes around it.

Hot, Iced, or With Milk?

Paris is also a good reminder that brewing and serving style can change what you perceive in exactly the same tea.

• Drink it hot and straight and blackcurrant and bergamot are at their clearest. This is our preferred way to taste it for the first time.
• Add a small splash of milk and the sharper fruit and citrus edges soften. Vanilla and caramel become easier to notice, creating a rounder, more indulgent cup.
• Serve it iced and the balance moves toward fruit and citrus. Blackcurrant becomes refreshing rather than rich, while bergamot provides an aromatic brightness that works particularly well cold.

There isn't one correct way to drink Paris Blend. Try all three and discover which version tastes most like your Paris.

Packaging: Our loose teas are sold by the ounce and packaged in food-grade resealable bags.

Explore the Flavors Behind Paris Blend

Rather than simply recommending teas that taste similar, follow the individual flavors in Paris Blend to discover which part of the cup you enjoy most.

Paris Blend Black Tea (This Tea)
Blackcurrant • Bergamot • Vanilla & caramel
→ Best for: those seeking a full-bodied aromatic tea balancing dark fruit, citrus, and creamy sweetness

Earl Grey Classic Black Tea
Bergamot • Bright citrus • Classic black tea
→ Explore this next if: the fragrant citrus character of Paris is what catches your attention

Creamy Earl Grey Black Tea
Bergamot • Creamy • Smooth
→ Explore this next if: you enjoy Paris's bergamot but want a softer cup without the dark berry character

Lavender Earl Grey Black Tea
Lavender • Bergamot • Floral
→ Explore this next if: you enjoy bergamot and want to discover what happens when it is paired with flowers instead of fruit and caramel

Duchess Fog Black Tea
Bergamot • Lavender • Creamy vanilla
→ Explore this next if: vanilla and bergamot are your favorite combination in Paris and you'd like a more floral interpretation

French Vanilla Black Tea
Vanilla • Creamy • Rich
→ Explore this next if: the soft vanilla finish is what keeps bringing you back for another sip

Crème Brûlée Black Tea
Creamy • Caramelized sugar • Rich
→ Explore this next if: caramel is the part of Paris you wish there were more of