I’m still looking for a strong, good lapsang souchong to replace my favorite of this from Zen’s in Canada. Ashes of Autumn sounded promising. I’m sipping at night and it’s a good tea, brisk and smooth, malty and smoke. It is not the replacement I am looking for as my go-to lapsang, but it’s a worthy tea for the cabinet. I haven’t had a blend like this one that’s fresh, smokey, sweet all at once. I approve.
I have a drink obsession in general – daily lattes and coffees, and of course teas of many varieties. I mainly drink hot tea in Florida, but still enjoy the occasional southern sweet iced.
My preference is black tea, although I’m open to trial and error with others. I like the old fashioned English style tea cups, tea parties, food pair-ups, mini desserts and pies, cubes of sugar, small collection of Rose Red tea pets, you get the idea. I will always have an old fashioned tea kettle on the stove, but have recently purchased an electric tea kettle that I absolutely adore. I’m lazy by nature, so I have switched to stuffing tea bags for the loose teas to save on clean-up and disposal with other strainers.
I love smokey teas, non-bitter, not overly astringent, strong tea background mixed with flavored teas, no artificial sweetener tastes, balanced florals IF there must be a floral. I used to love spice, but it has to be done right. A former chai fan – now it reminds me of colored pencils. Cinnamon sounds good but so many teas have it artificial or odd tasting. Same goes for chocolate, some things have to be done just right to work.
Primary Tea Companies currently in 2022 – Harney and Sons, August Uncommon, Simpson & Vail, Fusion, Tea Spot, English Tea Store for odds and ends, The Tea Table
Most missed tea place and tea: Plum Brandy Cheesecake by Butiki
Very picky with anything Roobios, and Darjeeling/Oolong are hit or miss depending on the blend and my taste buds. Mint works in a mood but I’m not a big fan. Gravitate toward good name blends and fall themes when doing yet more sampler orders.
I like adding a cube of sugar to almost all teas, not usually milks. I don’t like stevia or any artificial sweetener taste. I adore honey, but to me it doesn’t suit tea unless I have a sore throat as both the tea and the honey change their flavor profile quite a bit if I mix them.
Lakeland, Florida, United States
