Ruby Black Tea: Discovering TTES No. 18's Mint and Cinnamon Notes

A black tea can smell gently minty without being a mint blend. Ruby Black Tea offers a particularly inviting example: warm spice in the aroma, a refreshing impression alongside it, and a rich red cup underneath. Taking a little time to separate those impressions makes this Taiwanese tea much easier to appreciate.

For this tasting, we are using BESTLEAFTEA Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea (TTES No. 18). The loose leaf tea comes in a 150g pouch, and its product profile describes natural mint and cinnamon aromas with honeyed and fruity accents. Here is how to explore those notes in your own cup.

What does TTES No. 18 tell you?

TTES No. 18 identifies the tea cultivar, also known as Ruby or Hong Yu. A cultivar is a particular cultivated variety of the tea plant. It helps explain why two black teas can share a broad processing style yet smell quite different.

Our Ruby Black Tea is grown in Taiwan's Sun Moon Lake region. Its product record describes hand picking followed by withering, rolling, oxidation, and drying. Withering prepares the leaves for further processing; rolling and oxidation help develop the black tea's character before drying finishes the process.

The mint-and-cinnamon association is also described in Taiwan's official tea research institute guide to black tea, which identifies Ruby among the island's large-leaf black tea cultivars. These are useful aroma references for tasting, rather than a requirement that every sip resemble a spice cupboard.

Separate aroma, body, and finish

Start with three simple questions. What do you smell above the cup? How does the liquid feel as you sip? What remains after you swallow? Keeping these questions separate is more helpful than trying to identify every tasting note at once.

• Aroma: Look for a light, fresh mint-like impression and a warmer cinnamon-like note. Either may be subtle. Honeyed or fruity associations may be easier for you to notice first.
• Body: Our product profile describes a full-bodied, smooth cup. Pay attention to how substantial the liquid feels, independently of its aroma or color.
• Finish: Pause briefly after a small sip. Notice whether the sweetness seems to linger and whether the final impression feels clean or drying.

“Honeyed” describes an impression of sweetness and aroma; “mint” and “cinnamon” describe aromatic similarities. The product is presented as naturally aromatic Ruby black tea, rather than a recipe made by adding these ingredients. You do not need to add spices to carry out this tasting.

Brew one measured pot

The brewing guide on our Ruby product page gives a clear starting point: 6g of tea, 300ml of water, and 90–100°C (194–212°F). Use a teapot or roomy infuser that allows you to separate the leaves from the drink completely.

1. Measure 6g of dry leaves. A scale is useful because the long, twisted leaves leave uneven gaps in a spoon.
2. Heat fresh water to 90–100°C. For a repeatable first trial, choose one temperature within that range and write it down.
3. Add 300ml of water and steep for 2 minutes.
4. Pour the tea off the leaves completely, or remove the infuser. Allow a small sample to cool to a comfortable sipping temperature.
5. Keep the leaves for another infusion during the same session. The product guide suggests 3 minutes for the second steep, 4 for the third, and 5 for the fourth, using the same water volume and temperature range.

This schedule is a starting point, not a promise of identical strength across all four cups. Later infusions can become lighter. Taste before deciding whether to continue, and use the result to guide your next session.

Try a warm-to-cool aroma exercise

Pour a little of the first infusion into a plain cup and keep the rest off the leaves. Smell the cup without putting your face close to hot steam. Once it is comfortable to drink, take a small sip and write down one aroma word and one texture word.

Return to the same cup as it cools further. Does the warm spice impression become clearer? Does fruit or honey come forward? Does the mint-like note remain in the aroma or seem more noticeable in the finish? These are questions to explore, not results you have to find.

Taste this first cup plain so milk, sweetener, or food does not dominate the comparison. If you enjoy it with an addition afterward, try that in a separate portion. You can appreciate both versions without losing the reference point.

Adjust the cup without chasing a tasting note

If the first pot feels too strong or drying, shorten the next first infusion while keeping the leaf amount and water volume unchanged. If it feels too light, try a little more time. Make one change at a time so you can tell what helped.

A darker cup does not automatically mean a more interesting aroma. Likewise, missing a particular mint or cinnamon association does not mean you brewed incorrectly. Your water, brewing choices, and individual perception all shape the experience. The best reference is a cup you enjoy enough to make again.

Keep your notes short: temperature, steeping time, one aroma, and one texture. Over a few sessions, that small record will tell you more about your preferences than a long list of flavors you feel obliged to find.

Explore Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea when you want a Taiwanese black tea with an aromatic character to slow down and notice. Begin with the measured pot above, then let your own tasting guide the next one.