Lapsang Souchong Smoky Black Tea (Yan Xun Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong)

Thank you Teavivre for this tea sample!

Ya’ll know I love me some Lapsang Souchong…Amen! (left over accent from living in Texas years ago!…long story…)
When I saw everyone receiving the new samples from Teavivre and chattering about this LS I was so excited! I knew this was going to be quality tea!

Sunday, I was in Happy Lucky’s Tea House chatting with Sam (one of the tea Sommeliers) about Lapsangs. I had him smell the Teavivre dry leaf. He could tell this was good quality. We discussed something that many people (including myself) often forget when considering Lapsang Souchongs. We concentrate so much on the smoke that we forget about the tea leaves. Tea changes from year to year (we know that) and LS is no exception. Smoke should not obliterate the flavor of the tea . That being said, strong smoke can be done by a master with the correct tea. This gave me more to consider.

Last night was one of my pain nights. My bones hurt and my dreams were wierd because of it. I woke up with a migraine and nausea. I had to get up. This happens too often to stop me.
Caffeine helps stop a migraine and my anti-seizure meds help block some of the triggers in my brain like light or weather change that set migraines off.
Strong tea was what I needed and fast! I wanted a great tasting tea too, tea that would brighten my morning and make me smile! I just knew this Lapsang could do that for me!

I brewed a whole 24oz pot Western Style…2 minutes! Ummmm!
The liquor was a rich honey color with a medium mellow, smoky scent.
The flavor of this Lapsang is smooth but not too strong. A medium smoky brew that surprised me right away by reveiling a coolness probably derived from gentle contact with pine smoke. I had not experienced that in a Lapsang Souchong before. There was also a dry mouth-feel and burn on the tip of my tongue. I added some sugar after sipping several small cups straight. The sweetened version was the best.

Then, I remembered some Natural Maple Syrup. I couldn’t help myself…no self control whatever! I poured a small cup and put a teaspoon of syrup in the tea. It was good! (I am imagining several people at Teavivre freaking out at the crazy lady in Colorado who has ruined the LS by putting Maple syrup in it!.. I hope they’re laughing and having a good time with it!…Love you Teavivre!). The maple dripping off my finger…lick, and the smoke of the tea, slurp…I AM CURED!

My own favorite LS from my local tea shop is smokier than this one and has more pine and burn. It is better for cooking because of the extra smoky strength. I made a batch to test side by side at the end of my Teavivre cups and discovered that my local was more layered.
The difference: Teavivre is a refined, lighter and approachable Lapsang Souchong.
My Happy Lucky’s China Lapsang Souchong is stronger with a burnt, smoky sweet pine taste.

You never want to lose the tea in the smoke and Teavivre has achieved that sweet delicious point that you want to come back to.

I continued to drink this tea and nibbled on Whiskey Cheese! I got it at Whole Foods but my local cheese store carries a Whiskey Cheese and you may find others also. IT IS AWESOME with Lapsang Souchong! Sweet and tangy…perfect to pair with the smoke! Any other sweet cheese would go well with a Lapsang too!

Now I want to go camping. Anyone have a tent?

http://youtu.be/57tK6aQS_H0 The Platters, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes ; ) I Feel Better!

The last of my samples just arrived today from Teavivre – thank you again!

I know it seems like I was the only person on Steepster who was bothered by this, but I’m glad my samples all came in one large envelope this time instead of the little prepackaged samples each in giant envelopes. Yes I am fussy, what can I say. Go Mother Earth! heh…

I was glad to see this tea came from the Wuyi mountains and it has the characteristic smoky aroma that i have just come to love… yay! I did end up steeping this at a slightly hotter temp than what is suggested on the bag, they suggest 194F. The cup is a clear reddish/brown and was steeped via regular infuser mug method.

This is really nice! The smokiness is present but is definitely not overwhelming to me. The tea has a lovely, lingering sweetness in the finish which I really appreciate. If you don’t want to be overwhelmed by tons of smoke this would be a really nice one to try. I also feel like this has a slightly fruity element, a bit of peach albeit a pine smoked peach… yum. A bit of honey also and perhaps some cocoa? I would definitely purchase this one and may need to, soon!

If you’re not a fan of smoky teas, I doubt this will make you a convert, but I’m enjoying my afternoon cup very much. Compared to the Harney and Sons L.S. tea this is downright dainty.

I also got a respectable 2nd steep out of this, which is not as smoky but still good.

Thanks Teavivre for the cool samples. :)

Tea of the morning……

This sample was provided by TeaVivre for review. (Thank you!)

I decided morning was a great time to try this one. We are in the midst of a slight cold spell…or maybe I just feel like it is a cold spell because it was a sweltering weekend last week. Anyway, a sweet smokey tea was a good match for the weather today.

Leaf is actually kind of fluffy for a black tea. There are even some golden pieces in there! The smell is of smoke and earthiness. I brewed it is with a little hotter water then they recommended (I used boiling, they recommended 195) but I still had a fabulous tea. I get notes of malt, cocoa, and smoke with a sweetness. Since I usually sweeten my hot tea, I ended up with a smokey sweet liquor. Once the tea got in the temperature range for drinking, I noticed that my cup was empty in a flash. That means it is incredibly good. I think I will try a resteep, too. Yes, this goes on the shopping list! I think I will replacing my Lapsang Souchong Black Dragon with this. I do think it is a sweeter tea than the Lapsang from Mountian Rose herbs, too, plus their shipping is cost prohibitive.

Usual teapot method with a 2 minute steep. Lightly sweetened.

Well, since there’s no way I’m drinking this, I tried cooking with it. I infused butter with some of the leaves and brushed it onto a spaghetti squash to roast. Then I added a bit more in there, and tried it that way. Couldn’t take it.

I ended up making avocado sauce too (lemon juice, garlic, avocado, salt, pepper) and that went along even better, though the raw garlic is pretty strong.

I just don’t like the smokiness. I am going to try it with meat instead, maybe spaghetti squash isn’t savory enough for me to enjoy lapsang (not that it tastes like anything anyway!). I will find a way to make the smokiness enjoyable!

My Dad bought this for me for Christmas as part of Teavivre’s Black tea sampler, and we tried it for the first time yesterday afternoon. It was the first time I’ve tried any Lapsang Souchong…ever. Wow is it ever smoky! I shared it with my Dad who had also never tried it before, and he said it reminded him of smoked salmon. He enjoyed it more with a touch of milk and sugar, whereas I liked it without anything added.

As I mentioned in my last tealog, I’ve been drinking nothing but honeybush for the last week or so. I’m not sure how much caffeine is in this tea, but it definitely kept me awake last night. Perhaps I’m not used to caffeine anymore. At the best of times I’m quite caffeine sensitive, so maybe it won’t affect others the way that it affected me. In the future I’ll have to be sure to only drink this one before 2pm. thankfully, today is a fairly low-key day. I’m just filling out a few forms for work, doing laundry, and a little later I’ll be going over to my Dad’s house for my step-sister’s bon voyage dinner. Her visits always seem too short :(

I do enjoy this tea, and I can see it becoming a “once in a blue moon” kind of treat that I would get in sample sizes and get really excited whenever I make it. If you’ve never tried Lapsang Souchong and you enjoy the taste of smoked foods I suggest checking it out. It strikes me as a tea that I would enjoy cooking with. hmmmm…perhaps I will peruse other tealogs…I always find great ideas from fellow Steepsterites

When I first started getting into loose leaf tea, there were two types of tea that frightened me. One was Lapsang and the other puerh. I am pleased to say that I conquered my fear, got past the smell, and like both very much now!

This was one of the samples in my latest box from them, and since my youngest daughter loves smokey tea I thought it would be nice to try it together on the patio with some Kerrygold Dubliner cheese.

One or two lapsangs have really turned me off because they smell like an ashtray. Having grown up with smoking parents and keeping a cough most of my young life, that is a bad association, plus cleaning the ashtrays was one of my chores. O.o

This Lapsang reminds me a bit of Upton’s Baker Street Afternoon Blend in the aroma. This is a sweet, bacon-y smoke, like maple bacon perhaps. It was an excellent match for the Dubliner cheese. But where I find Baker Street to be almost chewy because of its taste texture, this one is lightr bodied.

I don’t like biting, astringent tea, not even to get me going in the mornings. When I want a tea that asserts itself enough to get my attention even while foggy headed, or just because I want something more bold, I think Lapsang is an excellent choice. This one has the right kind of smoke for me, a sweet, food-y smoke. The tea base is sweet, mild, and tasty. No sugar or milk is needed to mask astringency or to add flavor and I can enjoy it plain. My youngest daughter takes all of her tea with milk and sugar, and she enjoyed it that way, so it can handle additions if you want them.

Thank you, Teavivre! This made a lovely start to our day! I am resteeping it now to sip on for the rest of the morning.

Not really ready to review this, just giving more of an update. My tea and my kettle set up were the last things I removed from office. I had two grocery sacks of tea – mostly samples. This morning I finally have my brewing station unpacked. Forced retirement looks pretty good at the moment. My tea is still somewhere lost in the kitchen – I don’t have a spot yet. I do know where my Teavivre stuff is though because it is important. Being laid off is new and a little scary territory so I wanted a tea that scared me a short time ago and now I have learned to love. Lapsang Souchong fits the bill. This smells so incredibly smoky in the press yet is much less aggressive in the cup. I am not sure I got the temp just right as the sound of the kettle is different at home. Yeah, I get to relearn how to judge it.

Most important bonus – I have a Russell Hobbs brewing station that includes a kettle, glass tea pot with infuser, and a warming tray. I use a French press instead of the pot/warming tray. My wife has always thought my obsession was, well… obsessive ;) Today she asked, can I use this to heat water for tea? I don’t mean to make her sound like a doofus, she has always used the microwave and thought a kettle was a waste of time. Anyway, she heated the water and used the infuser and pot to brew, and now has the warming tray going. She is brewing a vanilla hazelnut decaf and commented on how good it smells today :)

Now if I can get her away from my kettle I need another cup of Lapsang.

Thankyou to Angel and Teavivre for this sample
I was a little scared to try this tea, it smells very smoky. And the brew is golden amber.

The taste is suprisingly good. But really, not much from Teavivre suprises me anymore….everything is so good! I was expecting more of a burnt taste, but it is much sweeter than I thought it would be, and more delicate. I am not sure I would drink this everyday, but I think I could get used to this. I think it would be great to use in cooking.

No resteeps today, I got too busy and then it was too late in the day to drink more black tea.

Forgot to log this from this weekend. Thank you to Michelle for this sample, it was on my shopping list so yay! Been awhile since I’ve had Lapsang Souchong but tis the season, happy first day of October! I only had a few sips of the first three infusions, as I poured this as an offering during a healing rite Saturday night. Between the peat moss incense and this the house was filled with lovely smokey smells.

After the ritual I indulged in a few mugs of this and it was perfect, still smokey but in a lighter, cooler, sweeter way, which is how I like it. Actually I’m not surprised this is a Wuyi. Will be coming back to this soon and will log the first infusions as I burnt my tongue on this in the kitchen trying to sneak a taste.

I received my shipment from Teavivre the other day wickedly excited of course. As I am finding with other teas there are many degrees of the lapsang…like Kevin Bacon. Which reminds me of one of the most amazing sandwiches I had from Melt in Cleveland named the 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon(six kinds of bacon!). A great tie in to lapsang or Tea review ADD? You decide. I do love lapsang and I’m finding that I like the more subtle lapsangs as well. I’m starting to appreciate lapsangs that have a great black tea base as well as the smoke. This one is a little less smokey. Much like the Upton Black Dragon as opposed to the strong smokiness of Dr. Tea’s. There’s a little sweetness that comes through. I’m also detecting some nuttiness(almond) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qtEjJuGo_U As much as I love drinking lapsang I also love cooking with it. I combined this with Man tea’s Jalapeno black and made a turkey brine and then smoked the turkey. Another great lapsang

Random Teavivre Sample…though there will be more today :)

I haven’t had too many Lapsang Souchong – the last time i had one it was used to cook with :) The aroma of this one isn’t overly strong, it’s a softer smoky scent. This is a really nice tea. I can’t say that I’d drink a Lapsang daily but every now and then, this would be a really great cup to enjoy. I like that with this cup the smoke blends really nicely with the tea.

I took a page out of Bonnie’s notes and added a bit of maple syrup to this tea and it was fantastic! I actually think it would be interesting to make some chicken with the lapsang and a bit of maple. Smokey maple chicken anyone? :)

Lance tried this one with me because Lapsang is one of his favs he loves the smoky Lapsangs. Lance has had many more Lapsangs than I have and he says this is one of the better ones that he has had.
This one smells nice and smokey when dry and just as good when wet.
The smoky flavor is slightly subtle so its not very over powering but it’s remains for a few steeps, there is little to no astringency to this one which to me personally is awesome because a lot of Lance’s Lapsangs ae stringent to me. This is perfect for a person who wants to try a smoky tea but thinks that Lapsang would be too smokey, It’d Subtly and sweet and a very nice tea :)
2 or 3 good steeps with this one, and thats not bad :)

Mmmmmm…..

Okay, so my first experience with Lapsang, the sample I got from Upton, made me think that it (surprisingly) wasn’t going to be my cup of tea. I expected smokey, but I didn’t expect my fire alarm to go off. Okay, I kid, my fire alarm didn’t go off, but I feel like it should have.

This? Whole different story. The smoke is much lighter on this blend, which means it actually tastes like a good, quality black tea with some smokiness. The flavor here is almost indulgent, sweet, lightly malty, and just enough smoke at the end to make you think about what you’re drinking.

Congratulations, Lapsang, you have been redeemed. I’m curious as to whether the steeping parameters from Teavivre (195 instead of 205) could make that much of a difference on the smoke aspect. Maybe the Upton one is better with a slightly lower temperature? I’ll probably never know.

I’m not sure I will keep this around as a permanent tea. Both the keemun from Teavivre I want to keep around, and the Baker’s Street blend from Upton have enough of a smokey aspect that it will probably satisfy my smokey tea cravings, without keeping this one on stock. But, I will definitely pick a few samples of this up every second order or so from Teavivre, just as a special treat.

Man, I just cannot say enough about the quality of Teavivre’s teas. These are so good.

_{Free sample provided by Teavivre for review}

Among the boxes of tea that rained on my house yesterday was my free sample box generously provided by TeaVivre Such a nice surprise.

I placed my first order with Teavivre in such haste that I missed out on a lot of teas that I wanted to try, so I am grateful for the free samples. As has been mentioned, each sample is in a small mylar foil type pack and all 5 fit back into one resealable foil/mylar pouch. Very nice. Teavivre has great customer service and follows up with an email to make sure that everything was okay with the package.

First up is their Lapsang. One of the misconceptions I think people have about Lapsang is that it is a strong, slap you around tea like a robust Irish Breakfast or East Frisian blend. Or maybe they think it will be spicy hot like chili peppers.

However, Lapsangs are neither of those. Good Lapsang, like this one from Teavivre, are actually rather gentle and smooth, often with some sweetness.

The dry leaves on this tea are beautiful tightly rolled strips of chocolate brown with some golden brown tips mixed in. As you would expect, their aroma is smoky and piney. Not overwhelming, but a little more subtle. Very pleasant. The brewed leaf develops a bit of a peat moss aroma-milder than some other Lapsangs. The liquor looked to be a deep amber color.

The taste is as advertised-smoky and pleasant and slightly sweet in the finish. Very tasty. If you like Lapsang, you should enjoy this tea. If you are curious about Lapsang, it’s a good tea to start with.

I’ve managed two steeps so far, and will be going for a third shortly.

Another knockout hit for TeaVivre! SWEET!

Before I start, thank you TeaVivre for this terrific sample!

The dry tea smells exactly like a campfire in the middle of autumn. It feels and smells like roasting hot dogs on a fire, making smores, and everything wonderful about the autumn season.

This tea is insanely good! It gives the impression of a regular tea at first sip and then envelops your tastebuds in a primal smoky flavor that lingers in your mouth well after the liquid goes down your throat. This is my first smoked tea (although a blend I had previously had a hint of Lapsang in it if I recall correctly) and I love it.

I’ve heard from many people here that Lapsang is essentially a hit or miss tea for anyone that tries it. This is without a doubt a homerun for me, a tea that I must get very soon.

Thanks to Teavivre for this free sample!

Rainy day tea! We took the dog to the park and he loved diving in the water and barking at rocks. Why he can’t chase sticks or toys like a normal pup, we’ll never know. And then it started to rain so we packed up and came home.

This is lovely and smoky but somehow clear at the same time – like drinking a summer’s night where the smoke isn’t being blown into your eyes!

I love the scent of this – it is umami and smokey and meaty in a great way.
This is so neat – it’s completely different from the other lapsang souchong I like. It is sweet! It has a nice astringency to it – I never really like astringency in my tea but this is nice because it balances out the sweetness.
This lapsang is a little lighter on the smokey flavor. I actually really like super dark smokey flavors in lapsang souchong, but I’m still enjoying this. I am going to try it with milk. The addition of milk brings out the sweetness – I love this as a breakfast tea.

I really wanted to try this one after the lapsang I had tried from Upton. For a while, I thought that I liked smokey flavors in tea but not a tea based on the smoke. This is really good and has corrected my opinion.

When I take a sip, I think dainty and light. The smoke seems to be middle of road. It’s not super strong, but there will be no mistaking it either. This really seems to be on the sweeter side as well. I think it makes a good balance for the smoke. I can see keeping a small bit of this around for some thing different to drink. This was quite enjoyable.

The second I opened my sample packet, I was hit with the strong scent of woodsmoke. I immediately thought of burning leaves in fall. (And I also thought of Brimstone, a Texan whiskey known for its powerful campfire taste.) It wasn’t exactly something summer-appropriate, but the curiosity got the better of me anyway. I’ve had one Lapsang Souchong before, from Adagio, but that was several years ago and I was less experienced then. It frightened me away and I ended up trading it.

Even though I gave the tea less than two minutes to steep, it still brewed up as dark reddish amber as a standard four minute black tea. I lightly sweetened it, and let it cool for a little while. I was a little hesitant, but I trusted Teavivre. Surprisingly, the smokiness seems to be more extreme in the scent. The actual tea is much more subtle and smooth. It reminds me of their other black teas with that sweet, bread-like taste.

I should not have been afraid to try this. But I may save it for the first chilly nights of fall, for the full effect.

Free sample from Teavivre

It’s a wet and windy day here. It’s raining stair rods and I find myself looking for something to brighten the day up. Most of the samples I have are oolongs and green teas, and that did not suit my mood. Fortunately, Teavivre must have seen today coming because they packed me up with this Lapsang Souchong. Opening the bag I am greeted by a beautiful and not overwhelming smoky aroma. Hmm, smoky bacon crisps I think. It’s definitely a meaty smell and the tea is the same: smoky, sweet with a slightly sour aftertaste that perfectly complements the other flavours. Three steeps in and I am still getting all of this. It reminds me of camping and cooking over an open fire. I like this lapsang souchong. It does not blow me away with the range and depth of flavours. It does give me a sense of a reliable tea that will always bring comforting thoughts of open fires and sleeping under the stars. The flavours are very well balanced so there is enough depth to keep it interesting too. Good one, Teavivre.