Dylan Oxford

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Lapsang Souchong Imperial (ZS80) from Upton Tea Imports

Dylan Oxford drank Lapsang Souchong Imperial (ZS80) by Upton Tea Imports

So, this is my first lapsang souchong. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and wasn’t sure I’d like it… but at the Upton price, it was totally worth trying out a sample.

Brewing this tea really caused the house to smell like a campfire. Quite pungent. I could smell it upstairs, easily.

The taste is smoky, and just that – all I taste is the smokiness. What’s funny, it doesn’t taste bad, necessarily… but it just tastes like someone put a drop of liquid smoke in my warm water. If I let it sit in my mouth for a bit, I can kind of rationalize the smoke away, and begin to taste a little bit of the tea itself… but it is truly hidden by the smoke flavor.

But, let me add that the smoke doesn’t make it taste unpleasant, which is probably a sign that the smoke isn’t overdone. It just doesn’t seem to have any other depth to the flavor. Just doesn’t really work for me. Can’t see myself buying more of this.

2012-05-19 18:35:28 -0400

205 °F / 96 °C

3 min 0 sec

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SimpliciTEA 2012-05-19 20:06:28 -0400

I have heard this kind of tea called a ‘love it or hate it tea’. I happen to love it, but I can easily see how someone can go the other way, too.

Bonnie 2012-05-19 20:18:14 -0400

Don’t give up. It would be like having a bad other tea and giving up. There are different LS’s too. I could send you a couple different ones…one is a light version that even my grandkids like!

Dylan Oxford 2012-05-19 21:54:08 -0400

Haha, I figure I’ll try Teavivre’s when we put in an order. I’m not ‘giving up’ so to speak, this one just definitely wasn’t for me.

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My fiancé and I are beginning to enjoy tea infusion, and it’s slowly becoming an interesting hobby that the two of us can share. Maybe not slowly… it’s somewhat amazing how much tea you can buy when everything looks shiny and new.

Tea Rating system:

90 – 100: This is a tea I will always have on hand at work, and at home. I will leave it on altars as offerings of perfection.

80 – 89: This, or one of it’s close cousins, will likely be in my cabinet at home. When this tea runs out, I will buy more. I’ll always wonder if there is something better, but be too afraid to look to stray from home to find it.

70 – 79: Definitely good, but not a clear winner. I enjoy it, I’ll finish it, but I probably won’t buy it again until I’ve exhausted all other versions of this product from any reputable retailer. Though, it may enjoy a resurrection for custom blending.

60 – 69: This tea is okay, but definitely not something I’m going to brew again. I’m going to give what I have left away.

30 – 59: I didn’t finish drinking this tea. I actually poured it out, and went for something else. I’ll still give this tea away, but I’ll do it with a warning and a plead for forgiveness.

0 – 29: This tea is riding securely towards an iceberg at the helm of the failboat. I’ve taken this out of my tea tin, and laid it on a napkin as potpurri. I do not consider it fit for human consumption.