Confucius

I’ve fallen in love with smoky teas;
Their ashy taste will always please.
The flavors are strong with no dearth
Of tar and of peat and of earth.

That’s me! I know that most people disagree with me, but smoke is my niche; my dream lover; my mystic muse. I went to France to obtain this—or really, I emailed to France. I also ordered a superb jelly and just had a most smoky afternoon snack: I felt as if I were in a Paris “une boite de nuit” with the smoke of Gitanes and Gauloises curling all about me. Let my calico cat stand in for Josephine Baker, and I’m flying “en avion de l’ame!”

Here’s the jelly, which I had with bread and un p’tit beurre:
«Tarry Souchong» tea jelly:

Created by the Mariage family in the 19th century, these collection of tea jellies, manufactured in the traditional way in copper pans, are a wonderful accompaniment to toast, brioches and scones. The fruit of this ancestral knowledge, this tea jelly, flavoured with a smoky Formosa tea, combines its subtlety with the splendour of the best teas."

I am utterly enthralled! The smoky teas that I adore are typically far less costly than the delicate whites and the carefully cultivated greens, so I am in luck. This is my moment of Tea Nirvana, of ecstasy that fills my being with a thousand pulses of pleasure.

I like smoky teas, and this is a good one, though not as great as their Lapsang Souchong. Here I find that the tea leaves themselves do not have as robust a flavor as I’d like to stand up to the smoke – they appear to be Oolong. I’ve learned to be careful with the steeping time and temperature on this one: slightly lower temperature and slightly longer steeping time than I usually employ. This is one I always drink without milk or sugar.