Laoshan Black
by Verdant Tea- Tea type
- Black Tea
- Ingredients
- Black Tea Leaves
- Flavors
- Cherry, Cinnamon, Dark Chocolate, Graham Cracker, Marshmallow, Sweet, Malt, Mineral, Bitter, Cacao, Chocolate, Floral, Roasted Barley, Rye, Spices, Dark Bittersweet, Dates, Raisins, Sweet Potatoes, Honey, Cream, Roasted Nuts, Bread, Umami, Brown Sugar, Caramel, Burnt Sugar, Cocoa, Dark Wood, Molasses, Roasted, Tannic, Cotton Candy, Green Beans, Toasty, Wet Wood, Graham, Wood, Honeysuckle, Toffee, Black Pepper, Nutty, Smoked, Smooth, Flowers, Roast Nuts, Creamy, Fig, Fruity, Grain, Vanilla, Apricot, Nuts, Oats, Peach, Broth, Tea, Brown Toast, Earth, Licorice, Peat, Plum, Butter, Toast, Wheat, Dried Fruit, Stonefruit, Rose, White Grapes, Coffee, Rum, Salt, Smoke, Oak, Stewed Fruits, Black Currant, Toasted, Dill, Chestnut, Burnt, Cannabis, Hops, Coconut, Toasted Rice, Soybean, Butterscotch, Custard, Walnut
- Sold in
- Loose Leaf
- Caffeine
- Not available
- Certification
- Fair Trade, Organic
- Edit tea info Last updated by Kittenna
Average preparation
205 °F / 96 °C
2 min, 30 sec
5 g
11 oz / 311 ml
Currently unavailable
We don't know when or if this item will be available.
David from Verdant is currently doing a Spring tea tour of China. I’m hoping he brings back a spring harvest of Laoshan black. I’m starting to forget why I loved this tea so much to begin with. :(
Also, I’m glad you agree that it tastes different than the old batch. I was afraid I was losing my mind. :)
You haven’t lost your mind. It’s changed but not like ZOMG it’s SOOO different, but enough that today i’d probably only rate it like an 80?
It’s true that it isn’t SO different. I can recognize the elements that I loved in the old batch, but it’s different enough that I actually can’t tolerate more than half a cup before I have to toss it. Might also be because my high expectations create extra disappointment. But anyway, I emailed Verdant about it and they told me to let them know next time I plan to order and they’ll let me know if the Spring batch is available. :) I just have to get enough of the spring batch to last all year.
let me know if you hear about the spring batch. i for sure want another 4 oz since that apparently lasts me 7months or so in between all the other teas i drink lol
The main difference I noticed was that the ‘bean’ flavor has be ome more prominent
I’m one of those who uses a little less leaf than Verdant recommends. I think that adjustments have to be made with each harvest because they’ll never be exactly the same. All the factors of earth and climate is what makes tea do exciting…much like wine and perhaps we’ve yet to taste the best Laoshan Black.
Bonnie – pretty sure i’m with you on that boat…verdant suggests a tablespoon if i recall. I pretty much treat this like most other teas with a 1-1.5 tsp per cup ratio.
So there is a difference, although a fairly small one taste-wise. Interesting. Well, all years can’t be equally good, I suppose.
I did 1 tbsp per 20 oz the other night, and my impression was still chocolate and dirt pies. Nice loamy dirt, but still dirt! I really want to try a different harvest…
For me, the worst thing about this current batch is the very roasted, almost burnt flavor. It overwhelms the natural chocolate flavor that I fell in love with. :( OMGsrsly, I’ll send you a bit of the spring batch when I get some, cause I’m sure I will. :) just remind me in case I forget.
I am fascinated by what you just said Mercuryhime. I bought some Laoshan Black for the first time a couple of weeks ago and was so excited to try it. I’m really not sure I like it, though, and it’s specifically because of the roasted, burnt quality you just mentioned. You can see what I said about that in my last tasting note.
Well I am glad to read all the comments here. I just got an oz of this because of the great reviews and although I enjoyed the tea I didn’t quite understand why everyone was describing chocolate as opposed to heavily roasted.
Yeah – I felt the need to do this comparison because I was seeing so many recent reviews of people saying less than stellar things. Not that i think everyone has to love this tea but some of the comments were confusing me as they didn’t jive with my experiences. So a plot was born by mercuryhime and i! bwahahahahaha Stay tuned for scenes from our next plot – spring harvest – is the chocolate back? :)
Tune in next season for the exciting continuation. ;)
Early Spring harvest is going to be the first oolong from Laoshan and Verdant bought it prior to picking. Laoshan Black would probably come after since the fields will produce the rest of the Spring tea’s we all love. We’ll see.
Oh, that would be awesome Mercuryhime. I’m giving the rest of my package to the guy who runs my local tea shop. He likes it, and I don’t want to waste the Autumn Harvest!