Canadians have been drinking Tetley Orange Pekoe tea (or a version of it) and the ever popular alternative, Red Rose Orange Pekoe, since time immemorial. This hearty tea (packaged in India) has been harder find in the United States but is now available through Tetley’s website.
Orange Pekoe, to the best of my knowledge and lazy research, refers to a tea grade that takes into account both tea leaf size and tea bud/tea leaf composition. And that may be the case with loose leaf teas I’ve tried, many of which I’ve reviewed on this blog.
When it comes to branded tea bags with the Orange Pekoe moniker, however, I’ve come to believe size doesn’t matter. Instead, the term OP describes the tea blend, style, or strength more than it does leaf size and quality. A side-by-side comparison reveals there is no difference in leaf size between Tetley Orange Pekoe and other similar tea bags.
The tea itself has a rich flavor profile with a generally sweet, floral and somewhat metallic aroma. It’s as full bodied as any English or Irish breakfast tea I’ve ever tried and finishes brightly in the mouth.
If you find Tetley’s British Blend tame, you may be happier with Orange Pekoe. It’s is not only bolder than any other Tetley USA offering but also the most economic choice at $10.99 (at the time of this writing) for a 300-count box of tea bags.
I really like this tea. Tetley British Blend is too weak for my liking, so I’ve been ordering the UK version from Amazon. Orange Pekoe is better and cheaper than UK Tetley. It’s similar to PG Tips but is less expensive. This is the tea Tetley ought to be selling in supermarkets as their British-style tea.
BTW, “orange pekoe” is a rather meaningless marketing term. A few years ago, almost black tea sold in American supermarkets would have been labeled “orange pekoe and pekoe cut black tea” – pekoe cut being a slightly lower grade than orange pekoe. Tetley and other companies have been moving away from this terminology because it is confusing and people expect an orange-flavored tea. I’m not sure why they continue to use it for this particular blend. Tetley also sells an Orange Pekoe blend in Canada, which is more than twice the price of this one. The packaging is different; I don’t know if the tea itself is the same or not.
I noticed I could not find Tetley Tea black and orange pekoe some time ago and I knew the taste was somehow less enjoyable. Couldn’t put my finger on why. Had to search for reasons why the labels no longer included ‘orange pekoe”. Now I know why my mother gave me tea for everything that upset us. (1940’s and onward.)