Why We Don’t Use Artificial Flavours – And Never Will

We’ll keep this simple: if tea leaves already taste incredible, why mess with them?

At The Organic Tea Project, we work with whole leaf teas that carry the flavour of the land they come from – the elevation, the rainfall, the soil. Just like a good wine, a quality tea has its own terroir. You wouldn’t add bubblegum flavour to a pinot noir (we hope). So why add “strawberries and cream” to a black tea?

And yet, that’s what many brands do. Artificial flavouring has become a quiet shortcut – one that helps disguise poor quality tea dust or stretch out production costs. The result? A cup that smells like dessert and tastes like disappointment.

We believe you can taste the difference. That muscatel note in our Darjeeling Green? It’s real. That smooth edge in our Earl Grey? It’s from pure bergamot oil, not a synthetic “flavour.” When the leaves are grown right and handled with care, they don’t need any help from a lab.

We’re here for the true flavour of tea – not a tricked-up version. That’s why you’ll never find artificial flavours in our blends. Just clean, whole leaves grown in certified organic gardens, blended by hand with real spices, herbs and oils.

Let’s ditch the great pretend game. Tea is too good to fake.