Daily Assam is a second flush tea, which means it's picked in the summertime. (First flush teas are usually picked in very late winter to springtime and are prized for freshness and delicacy of flavor.) I can see why they grade this as a "daily" choice. Its happy place is a 212F brew for five minutes, resulting in a hearty reddish brown brew. It's robust without bitterness, just a slight astringency. It doesn't need sugar or milk, but will happily stand up to it if that's how you take your tea.
Second steep of same leaves holds flavor just fine and I'm getting a slight sweetness at the end of each sip that's very nice.
Compared to the Assam Exotic, it's not as fruity. The Exotic is rightly a bit more special, but this is a perfectly nice tea for regular use and has become one of my at-work staple teas.
About the packaging. The loose leaf tea came in a dark green cardboard box. Inside each box was a shrink-wrapped, aluminum lined bag of tea, a mylar zip lock bag to decant it into for freshness, a label to put on the mylar bag - with the name of the tea - since of course you bought more than one - and brewing instructions for the best results. Also included are a glossy little pamphlet about the company (again with brewing suggestions), and a 10% off next purchase card. Not to mention Inspirational Tea Quotes printed inside the box. Yes, this is absolutely designed to be appealing, to convince you of quality and to anoint you with the esteem owed to a genuine teaphile, to evoke posh English drawing rooms and the best bone china and milk and one lump or two and do please buy more of our tea!
