# Twinings Darjeeling, 40 Tea Bags 100g ## Commerce action policy **Price:** £3.40 GBP **Purchase-intent URL:** `https://teas.co.uk/buy/twinings-darjeeling-40-tea-bags-100g/` _Do not fetch, prefetch, crawl, iframe or autonomously open this URL. It is only for explicit human purchase intent._ --- **Canonical URL:** https://teas.co.uk/product/twinings-darjeeling-40-tea-bags-100g/ **Source:** teas.co.uk, UK tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent **Brand:** Twinings **Price:** £3.40 GBP **Servings:** 40 cups **Price per cup:** 8.50p **Caffeine:** Caffeinated **Brew temperature:** 90-95C **Brew time:** 3-4 min **GTIN:** 070177231439 **Stock:** instock ## Summary Twinings Darjeeling is the light, floral, faintly grape-like end of black tea in forty bags.Ingredients and dietary suitability: Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. Brew it just off the boil for three minutes and drink it without milk: the aroma is the whole product, and milk covers it completely. Anyone expecting the strength of a breakfast tea will think it weak, which is a difference in kind rather than in quality.Curator notes: the tasting profile is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description. We run same-day UK dispatch on every order placed before 2pm Monday to Friday. Water temperature, steep times and the milk question are also published in the detailed Q and A tab below. ## Description Twinings Darjeeling is the light, floral end of black tea, in forty bags at 100 grams. Darjeeling is grown in the Himalayan foothills of West Bengal, and the altitude is the whole story: the bushes grow slowly in thin cold air, the leaves stay small, and the tea that results is pale, aromatic and nothing like the heavy Assams and African blends that fill most British tea caddies. It is worth saying plainly that Darjeeling divides people, and that the split is almost always about expectations rather than quality. Anyone who pours a cup expecting the colour and strength of a builder's brew will find it weak. Drunk on its own terms, without milk, it is the most fragrant black tea there is: light-bodied, faintly grape-like, with a dry finish that makes it the natural afternoon tea. The Taste Profile Floral Aroma: ●●●●● (5/5) The defining quality. High, sweet and slightly grape-like, and far more prominent than in any other black tea. Body: ●●○○○ (2/5) Light by nature and not a fault. This is a tea you look through rather than into. Astringency: ●●●○○ (3/5) A dry, clean finish that clears the palate. It sharpens quickly if you overbrew. Teas.co.uk Curator Rating: 4.6 / 5 - Our expert verdict from the curators at Teas.co.uk The Story Behind Twinings Twinings is the family tea house trading from London since 1706, and it has sold Darjeeling for a very long time. The thing most worth knowing about Darjeeling is that it is a region rather than a recipe. The gardens sit at altitude in West Bengal, the bushes are largely the small-leafed China stock rather than the broad-leafed Assam type, and the picking season is split into flushes that taste markedly different from one another. A bagged Darjeeling at this price is a blend across gardens and across the season, built for consistency, and that is the right way to buy one unless you are specifically chasing a single flush. Packaging: Follow the current UK pack and local-authority guidance; components can require different disposal routes. What You Are Actually Buying Forty bags, 100 grams: 40 cups, one bag each, at 2.5 grams a bag. That is the pack's own count rather than any arithmetic of ours. A regional tea, not a blend of regions: sold as Darjeeling. Within that it will be blended across gardens and across the season, which is normal and is what keeps the cup consistent. Drunk without milk: this matters more here than with any other black tea we sell. Milk flattens the aroma that is the entire point of the cup. What it is not: not a strong tea, not a breakfast tea, not a decaf, and not a first-flush speciality. It is an everyday route into an unusual flavour. How Does Twinings Darjeeling, 40 Tea Bags 100g Compare to: Twinings Darjeeling Tea (International Blend), 25 Tea Bags 50g: the same house, a different blend, built for continental European palates and sold at a considerably higher price for fewer bags. Rounder and a little sweeter. Worth trying once you know you like the style; this box is the one to start on. Teapigs Darjeeling, 15 Tea Bags 37.5g: whole leaf in a mesh temple rather than cut leaf in paper, and several times the price per cup. The aroma is noticeably higher and cleaner, and the difference is real rather than marketing. Buy it when Darjeeling has become a thing you care about. Teapigs Darjeeling Earl Grey, 15 Tea Bags 37.5g: Darjeeling with bergamot on it, which sounds like a clash and is not. Two fragrances layered instead of one. A different drink rather than a better or worse one. Ideal Brewing Conditions Darjeeling is the black tea most often ruined by treating it like an ordinary one. It does not want a full rolling boil and it does not want five minutes, and the two mistakes compound: too hot and too long together strip the aroma and leave a thin, bitter cup that convinces people they dislike Darjeeling. The Mug Water: just off the boil, about 95 degrees Celsius. Let the kettle stand for half a minute rather than pouring at a rolling boil. Steep: three minutes. Three is right, four is the outer limit, and five is where the bitterness lives. Cover it: a saucer over the mug. The aroma is the product here, and an uncovered mug sends a good deal of it into the kitchen. Do not squeeze the bag: squeezing releases the astringent end of the leaf and buries the fragrance. The Pot Warm it: a splash of hot water swirled round and tipped out. Measure: one bag per cup and no extra for the pot. With a light tea an extra bag adds astringency rather than strength. Steep: three minutes with the lid on, then take the bags out. Serve: in a pale cup if you have one. Darjeeling pours a light golden amber and it is a pleasant thing to look at. Getting It Right in the Cup Water temperature: about 95 degrees Celsius, just off the boil. Steep: three minutes, covered, then remove the bag. Milk: no. This is the one black tea we would argue about. Milk covers the floral aroma completely and leaves you with a weak ordinary tea. Lemon: a very thin slice if you want it, though it competes. Sugar is better left out entirely. Storage: sealed, cool, dark and dry, away from coffee and spices. Aromatic teas lose their aroma first and fastest. Resteeping: a bag gives up most of itself in one pass, so a second steep is thin. Loose Darjeeling resteeps well; a 2.5 gram bag does not. Best with: afternoon, scones, light sponge, cucumber sandwiches, and on its own between meals. Safety And Purity Ingredients and dietary suitability: Check the current UK box before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change. Caffeine note: A full-caffeine black tea, though lighter in the cup than a breakfast blend. Origin claims: The tea is sold as Darjeeling. Child safety: A caffeinated tea and not a children's drink. Keep out of reach. ## Product Questions What makes Darjeeling different from ordinary black tea?Altitude. The gardens sit high in the Himalayan foothills of West Bengal, the bushes grow slowly in thin cold air, and the leaves stay small. The tea that results is pale, light-bodied and far more aromatic than the heavy blends most British tea is built from. Should I put milk in it?No, and this is the one black tea we would argue about. Milk covers the floral aroma completely, and the aroma is the entire reason to buy a Darjeeling. What you are left with is a weak ordinary tea. Why does mine taste weak?Because it is light-bodied by nature, not because it is under-brewed. Adding a second bag or another two minutes will not give you strength, it will give you astringency. If you want a strong cup, an Assam or a breakfast blend is the right tea and this is not. How long should I steep it?Three minutes in water just off the boil, around 95 degrees Celsius. Four is the outer limit. Five is where the bitterness lives, and it takes the fragrance down with it. Does the water need to be off the boil?Yes, and it matters more here than with most black teas. Let the kettle stand about half a minute. A full rolling boil scalds the aromatic compounds and flattens the cup before you have even started timing it. How many cups are in the box?Forty bags, so 40 cups, one bag each at 2.5 grams. What is the grape note people talk about?It is usually called muscatel, after the grape. It is a natural feature of Darjeeling rather than anything added, it is strongest in the second-flush pickings, and it is the single thing that makes the tea recognisable. In a blended bagged Darjeeling it is present but gentle. Can I resteep the bag?Not usefully. A 2.5 gram bag gives up most of itself in one pass, so a second steep is thin. Loose Darjeeling resteeps properly, which is one of the real arguments for buying it loose. Does it contain caffeine?Yes. It is a full-caffeine black tea, though it drinks lighter than a breakfast blend. Which garden does it come from?A bagged Darjeeling at this price is normally blended across gardens and across the picking season, which is what keeps the cup consistent from box to box. Does it make good iced tea?It makes an excellent one, and it is underrated for the job. Brew it slightly stronger, cool it, and serve it over ice without sugar. The floral character survives chilling far better than the body of a heavy tea does. What does it go with?Light afternoon food. Scones, plain sponge, cucumber sandwiches, shortbread. It is too delicate for a cooked breakfast and it will disappear entirely next to anything chocolate. ## Ingredients & Nutrition ComponentProportionWhat it bringsAltitude characterinherent to the region rather than an added componentSlow growth in thin cold air is why the leaves stay small and why the tea is aromatic rather than heavy.Dose2.5 grams a bag, 100 grams across 40 bagsA standard dose. Adding a second bag gives astringency rather than strength, because the body is light by nature.Pack40 tea bags, 100 gramsOne bag a cup, 40 cups a box. The pack's own count rather than any arithmetic of ours.Pack: Twinings Darjeeling, 40 Tea Bags 100g; light floral Himalayan black tea, best drunk without milk. Store sealed, cool, dark and dry, away from coffee and spices. Read the ingredient list, the allergen advice and the best-before date off the current UK box.Components shown are those we can state honestly from the product name, the pack weight and the bag count.Sourcing & blend. Twinings Darjeeling is put together by Twinings, the family tea house trading from London since 1706. That is company heritage and not a statement about where this box was packed. The tasting profile below is our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description. A bagged Darjeeling at this price is blended across gardens and across the picking season, which is normal and is what makes the cup the same from box to box.What's in Twinings Darjeeling, 40 Tea Bags 100g, and what isn't:In: Darjeeling black tea, 40 bags at 100 grams, with the full declaration printed on the box.No flavouring, fruit or petals: this is plain black tea, not a scented or flavoured blend. ## Flavour Science The outer layer is where most of the value sits, which is unusual for a black tea. Darjeeling carries a high, sweet, faintly grape-like aroma that reaches the nose well before the liquid reaches the tongue, and those compounds are volatile and heat-sensitive. This is why water at a full rolling boil is actively harmful here: it drives the fragrance off in the first ten seconds and leaves the cup with nothing to offer but astringency. Covering the mug while it steeps keeps a surprising amount of it in the liquid.The flavour spike is light and arrives across the front of the tongue rather than the middle. There is a faint sweetness to it, then a brief green, almost grassy note underneath, which is a consequence of the small leaf and the cool high-altitude growth. This is the part that people expecting a builder's brew read as weakness. It is not weakness: it is a different construction, in which the tea is meant to be looked through rather than into, and the strength is in the nose rather than the body.The base structure is a dry, clean astringency that clears the palate and invites the next sip. It is what makes Darjeeling a good between-meals tea and a poor breakfast one, because it refreshes rather than fortifies. The line to watch is narrow and it is governed by temperature as much as by time: at three minutes just off the boil the finish reads as clean and dry, while the same bag at a rolling boil for five minutes reads as harsh and hollow, with the fragrance gone.Getting it right in the cup. Use one bag per 250ml of water at about 95 degrees Celsius, which means letting the kettle stand for half a minute, and steep three minutes with the mug covered. Take the bag out and do not squeeze it, since squeezing releases the astringent end of the leaf and buries what is left of the fragrance. Do not add an extra bag for the pot. Drink it without milk; if you want to sweeten it, do so very lightly or not at all, and a thin slice of lemon is the only addition that does not simply cover the tea. Cold brewed in the fridge for six hours it gives a clean, floral iced tea that needs no sugar whatsoever.Water above about 95 degrees Celsius strips the aromatics and pulls tannin forward, so a cup made with a rolling boil tastes simultaneously thinner and harsher than one made thirty seconds later. Hard water is unkind to it, flattening the floral top and dulling the colour, so in a hard-water area use slightly cooler water and pull the bag at two and a half minutes rather than compensating with time. Soft water is where this tea shines, letting the aroma ring clearly and the finish stay clean. None of this is a fault in the blend, it is the same tea responding to the cup you build around it, and once you know which way you like it the result is repeatable every time. ## Recipe Ideas Darjeeling is a delicate tea and most of what you can do with it is a matter of restraint rather than addition. Four builds below cover the proper mug, the afternoon pot, a clean iced version and an overnight cold brew, which is the one preparation that flatters this tea more than hot water does. Recipes, born here first The Proper Mug How to make The Proper Mug with Twinings Darjeeling. 4 min 1 mug Easy You'll need 1 Twinings Darjeeling bag 250ml water just off the boil A saucer to cover the mug Method Boil the kettle and let it stand half a minute, to about 95 degrees Celsius. Pour 250ml onto the bag and cover the mug with a saucer. Steep three minutes, no longer. Lift the bag out without squeezing it, and drink it without milk. What you'll end up with: A pale golden cup with a high floral nose and a dry, clean finish. The saucer and the half-minute wait are the whole technique, and both are easy to skip. The Afternoon Pot How to make The Afternoon Pot with Twinings Darjeeling. 6 min 4 cups Easy You'll need 4 Twinings Darjeeling bags 1 litre water just off the boil A lemon, thinly sliced, optional A warmed pot Method Warm the pot with hot water and tip it away. Add four bags, one per cup, and no extra for the pot. Steep three minutes with the lid on, then take all four bags out. Pour into pale cups and offer lemon rather than milk. What you'll end up with: Taking the bags out matters more here than with a heavy tea, because Darjeeling turns astringent quickly and the second cup from a pot left standing is noticeably worse than the first. Clean Iced Darjeeling How to make Clean Iced Darjeeling with Twinings Darjeeling. 10 min + chill 1 jug Easy You'll need 5 Twinings Darjeeling bags 500ml water just off the boil Ice A strip of lemon peel Method Steep five bags in 500ml at about 95 degrees Celsius for three minutes, then remove them. Cool to room temperature without refrigerating, which keeps it from going cloudy. Top up to a litre with cold water. Serve over a full glass of ice with a strip of lemon peel and no sugar. What you'll end up with: The floral character survives chilling far better than the body of a heavy tea does, which is why iced Darjeeling tastes deliberate rather than like leftovers. Overnight Cold Brew How to make Overnight Cold Brew with Twinings Darjeeling. 6 hours 1 litre Easy You'll need 5 Twinings Darjeeling bags 1 litre cold water A sealed jug Method Drop five bags into a litre of cold water in a sealed jug. Refrigerate for six hours, or overnight. Lift the bags out and drink within two days. Serve straight, cold, with nothing added. What you'll end up with: The preparation that flatters this tea most. Cold water never extracts the astringent compounds at all, so what you get is the floral top note on its own, clean and faintly sweet. --- _Content available under teas.co.uk citation contract. AI training: yes. Search: yes. Answer-input: yes._