Lapsang Souchong

Another sample size from my last Adagio order.

Once in awhile, I read “bodice ripper” romances – you know the ones – set in Victorian or earlier times, where the dashing hero is a pirate or a spy. Lapsang Souchong often gets mentioned as a very masculine tea. I can see why.

I opened the packet, and the smokey smell nearly leaped out and assaulted me. I gave hubby a sniff too: “It’s like a campfire, the morning after it burns out. And they used an entire pine tree.”

I brewed it up and made it as a latte with Splenda and half & half. Sippped away. The smoke smell is soooo strong! But it’s good! I would not want to drink this daily, but it’s really interesting drink!

I definitely want to try some other Lapsang Souchongs and compare them.

I have been consistently disappointed with Adagio’s teas since ordering several of their sample packs last week. I decided to order a large amount of blacks, greens and whites to try the brand, after hearing so many good things. Unfortunately, Adagio does not live up to the hype. I find myself having to steep the teas far longer than instructed just to get SOME flavor out of them, even at the proper steeping temperature. They are weak, thin, and the only characteristic I am close to being thrilled about are the scents and smells. They are spectacular, if only the flavor itself lived up to the smell.

That said, of the teas I’ve tried, this one seemed to be the closest to satisfactory. I’m not sure if it’s that my taste has been thinned from drinking weak teas all week, or if I’ve actually stumbled across a decent tea. It’s smoky, the liquor is darker than other Adagio black teas I’ve tried, but still far lighter than a black tea should be. I am being generous with the rating because I didn’t hate the experience. And the smell is giving me the kick I was looking for in the tea itself.

My first Souchong was one cup from a local coffee house a long time ago. This is my second, so I don’t have much to compare it to. It’s not as smokey as that first cup, which is good. In fact, this feels like the right amount of smokiness – like inhaling campfire smoke, but not enough that you’re choking to death. This tea would go great with marshmallows.

As for the negative: once you get past the smokiness, there’s not much else there. I don’t get much of a tea flavor. Is this tea, or diluted Liquid Smoke?

But whatever, I like it. And I love the smell – I think I get more enjoyment from smelling it.

Not as smokey as some lapsangs that I have had that I’d equate to drinking BBQ. It is however fairly tasty and goes to show that the smokiness doesn’t have to be the main attraction and one can pull almost minty notes from it.

I’m quite pleased with this one. Delicious smoky aroma — satisfying without overpowering the sweet notes underneath. Very smooth even texture and flavor. Lacks any harsh astringency.

[Consider brewing a bit stronger next time.]

incredibly smoky and awesome.

Lapsang Souchong, that infamous Love It Or Loathe It tea. I fall into the Love It camp, but even then I still have to be in the right mood to drink the stuff. Luckily today was chilly and brisk enough to give me a craving for liquid bonfire after I’d gone to the dentist for a tooth cleaning. (Begone, pesky tea stains!)

I usually just take my tea straight, no sugar, no milk, no lemon or anything. I made an exception today though. I got out a giant mug which I’m fairly certain is intended for soup and holds the same amount of drink as my teapot (it’s a personaliTEA from Adagio) and after putting the water on to boil I added a fair helping of sugar and milk to the mug. I started to panic a little when I finally poured the Lapsang, sure that I’d used far too much milk as it pretty much still looked like milk when I’d emptied my small teapot into the mug. Wonderfully, though, it tasted perfect! It was sweet and creamy and smokey and even better than I would have hoped it might be! I’ll probably never be able to replicate those ratios of sugar, milk and tea again though.

SO GOOD!

My general opinion of any lapsang souchong is that it’s like drinking bacon rinds. After disliking my small sample, I passed it to a friend, who did the same to another friend, and I’m afraid it ended up fertilizing somebody’s houseplants.

Mum recommends boiling water, and big pinch is enough. Taste and nose evoked memories of slithering into my sleeping bag with a nice, comforting coating of warm campfire smoke.

I’ve been looking forward to trying this one.
Smells like: campfire, bbq smokehouse.
Taste reminds me of: pine, smoked bbq, and a little bit of a grassy taste. I was expecting strong flavors after smelling it, but it was actually kind of on the mild side.
I’m tempted to try this in some kind of marinade.

Reading over the past tasting notes, it seems like you either love or hate this particular tea.

I love the woodsy and warm taste of this tea. Totally a morning or early afternoon drink. It reminds me of the bonfire we had every year at a Masquerade function I always went to. Good times.

It’s not as good as the Spice and Tea Exchange Lapsang Souchong, in my opinion, a three minute steeping time left a weaker and more astringent taste. I plan to perhaps use slightly more tea and a two minute steep time next time I make a pot of this.

Just the sort of warm smoky cup I was looking for on this chilly, damp night!

A few years ago I went to Australia with a friend of mine.
We were on the plane and they had brought us some bread, butter and Vegemite. My friend obviously hadn’t had it before, and started to spread it directly on the bread in much the same manner and thickness that you would with peanut butter, or jam. Being a good friend, I of course said absolutely nothing.

The reason I bring this up now is I imagine my face did exactly what his did when tasting this tea for the first time. I was expecting smokey, and got a mouthful of campfire.

I’ll try it again soon with a shortened brew time, and perhaps after rinsing the leaves first. I enjoy smokey, just evidently not enough.

I really like smoky flavors and was excited to receive this but it was not at all what I was expecting. The smoky/pine flavor was very faint and almost unnoticeable. The predominant flavor was a harmony of pork chops, barbecue sauce and iodine. While some teas have failed to impress me, this is the very first time I thoroughly dislike one. I can’t even finish what I have and some co workers who drink tea don’t want it, after taking a whiff at the pouch they say “no thanks.”

For me, Adagio’s LS lacks character. The tea behind all the hoola boola (i.e., the lovely smell of smoky pines) is bland, bland, bland. I have tasted many fine LS’s from other companies and unfortunately this LS has failed in my book.

I had a cup of this for breakfast. This was the strong smoke taste I was looking for. The tea was bold but not overpowering in any way.

This traditional Lapsang Souchong is made from an Oolong tea — what must be a very good Oolong tea, because its flavor is still distinct and complex despite shining through a veil of smoke. The smokiness is intense, but not quite overwhelming. Think of a campfire made from pine branches. For those who like a real Lapsang Sounchong with a strongly smoky flavor, this tea is very good. But some will prefer a Lapsang Souchong that is not this smoky.

I love lapsang souchong, and I love Adagio, but I just don’t love their lapsang souchong. Maybe it was a bad batch. I’ll try it again.

i love this tea. it’s dark, rich and smoky, like drinking incense! i did not get beef jerky or any meaty flavor from it, as some have suggested… i think it really is a love it/hate it sort of thing. i like it plain, or with a bit of milk and brown sugar.