Victorian Afternoon Tea

yay, continuing my exploration of tea that are smoky but not too smoky…

I am finding this to be a delightful blend. I do see why people saw this is like Hu Kwa’s little sister. It has some of the same flavors as hu kwa, a slightly smoky barbeque-y type flavor but blended well with some other black teas – I think perhaps a ceylon and assam?

It’s a dark red lovely liquor to the tea. There is a lot of smoke but also a lingering sweetness in the finish. Mildly brisk but not overwhelmingly so, notes of tobacco present. This is another tea I would have to drink plain because milk or sugar would ruin it. I think between this and Russian Country from Harney I will have enough lapsang blends to last me for a while.

I did also do a second steep using the same leaves for only around 1 minute, the smokiness is mostly gone but it still has a light, sweet flavor kind of like a darker oolong. NICE!

This is really nice for an afternoon pickup! And yes, I really need to stop buying tea for a while. ;-)

Tea of the afternoon…….

And my first tea out of my Foodzie Box from LiberTEAS. OMG! What a wonderful box of samples! Really, this is a fabulous deal if you are new to tea, or have been around the tea table a few times. I received well over 20 samples, and only one out of the bunch is one I have tried (and I have tried a bunch of teas, and that particular one is an absolute favorite!) I highly recommend this for a fun tea adventure. I cannot wait to try them all.

This is the first tea I have selected. I purchased a gift for a friend from Mark T. Wendell last year. The service was great, and the friend loved the tea. I have not gotten around to ordering there myself, so I requested that LiberTEAs add some Mark T. Wendell if she had some. Here it is.

This is really good. It is a lightly smokey tea. Very well blended and rich. It kind of reminds me of Upton’s Lapsang Souchong Black Dragon. Both are perfect for beginning smokey teas. If I ever do order from Mark T. Wendell, I will probably get this one. TeaEqualsBliss called this Hu Kwa’s pretty little sister and suggested that it was lighter than Hu Kwa. I will probably have to check that out for myself at some point! Very good! Thank you for including it in my LiberTEAs Foodzie Box!

Usual mug method for 3 minutes.

Thanks to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me this one (yes, I got the huge box! Thanks SororiTEA Sister)

This one… scares me. It’s smoky. I gave it a quick rinse before steeping (which I have found helps me enjoy smoky teas more). The aroma of the liquor still smells smoky but not too smoky.

This is not too bad… and I say it like that, because I was expecting it to be much worse than it actually is, but I can drink this. I’m not gagging, I’m not repulsed after taking a sip… it’s actually good. There… I said it. It’s good.

The smoky flavor is there, it’s strong, but it is not overwhelming. The smoky taste has a nice caramel-y back note that I find intriguing.

This one is like Hu-Kwa’s younger, prettier sister! It’s a great pick-me-up and oh-so-slightly smoky flavor. If you are scared of smoky teas try this one! She’s the girl-next-door!

Wrote a more eloquent review for future posting to www.itsallabouttheleaf.com. Okay, maybe not eloquent, but at least more wordy and full of adjectives and verbs and things and even a lame attempt at quoting Shakespeare. But at any rate, here’s the first sip:

My first experience with lapsang souchong was pretty disastrous—-reminiscent of sucking pork rinds—-so when I first opened this tea packet and the first whiff that hit my nose was souchong-like “smoke,” I was very apprehensive.

But, intrepid tea taster that I am, I persevered and was pleasantly surprised. The big, black loose leaves brew up a luscious, clear red-gold color. At three minutes with boiling water (again, I erred on the side of caution thinking this was going to be really strong) the smoke taste does lead the caravan, but the other teas in the blend add a little sweetness and balance.

I’ve had this tea in my cupboard for so long that I’ve forgotten where it came from. It must have been from a trade as I don’t recall ever buying from Mark T Wendell.

I really enjoyed this blend, it’s a great afternoon tea that’s light and smooth enough to be drunk without milk, but is still full of flavour. It’s not nearly as smokey as, say, a lapsang souchong, instead being more like a light Russian Caravan. It’s more than just a one note tea as well, there’s a fruity sweetness that blends nicely with the smoke and gives the tea more body and character.

Thank to whoever sent me this one!

I have for many years been a big fan of Mark T. Wendell’s Hu-Kwa tea. So I decided to give this one a try. I loved it. The blend is excellent, with just a note of smokey Labsang Souchong, great for afternoons when you’d like a tea with some body but not as strong as Labsang Souchong. I also love it in the morning. This one is a permanent one in my collection.

I’ve had this tea for several years, but never wrote a note on it. This tea is full bodied with a nice, light smoke. Truely something I enjoy for “Afternoon Tea”. Brews quickly and can be overdone. Cheese and Crackers with VA, mmmmm.

Very strong— good for an afternoon boost.