I think this is one of those tea types that you will either love or hate. I don’t think that there’s a lot of room for somewhere in between, here. I am in the latter camp. So far, this is the worst tea I’ve ever had.
I was excited about the prospect of trying a completely different, new-to-me kind of tea, and I am still very happy that I got to try it. I’m even happier that I didn’t go out on one of my tea-buying adventures and spend a bunch of money on this; the Golden Moon sampler was more than enough.
I put the water to boil, took out my kitchen scissors, and snipped the end off the packet. There was no need to stick my prodigious proboscis in the packet and inhale deeply—it was like the aroma was just waiting to escape, and within a matter of moments my whole kitchen smelled like a smokehouse. Having no knowledge of lapsang souchong, I was quite taken aback and rather sceptical. Instead of adding my customary demerara sugar to the tea, I actually felt like adding salt. The whole thing was a very strange experience, and I hadn’t even tasted the tea yet.
Well, things only rolled further downhill from there. I took one (unsweetened) sip of the tea and the flavour accurately matched the aroma. I didn’t like it, but I thought I would give it a chance, so I tried a few more sips. In my mind, I was drinking water that had been poured into a mug by way of a bed of coals. This might be the first mug of tea that I couldn’t finish because it made me physically ill. Lesson learned: I do not like lapsang souchong. =)
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It is definitely a polarizing tea. Though I like it, I can’t drink it often. With some of the particularly resiny versions, the taste stays with me much longer than it is welcome. The smokiness feels like its still in my skin and the inside of my nose for days after I’ve had it. I prefer the ones that have a salted meat or pine needle flavor along with the smoke to the ashy, resiny ones.
I can see the appeal of that, I think. I might be tempted to try a shot glass-sized sample of bacon tea, if such a creature exists. After I get over the trauma of this tasting, that is. =)
If you ever get some Maple Bacon tea from 52teas Nik, the smoke flavour is VERY light, so I think you might enjoy it!
If we ever do a swap, I’ll throw some in :3
Although I’m not a big fan of drinking Lapsang Souchong, I have a recipe that uses it to marinate a baked chicken, which was an interesting change of pace. If you’ve got some of the tea sitting around & want to use it up, I’d be glad to pass the recipe along.
Not all Lapsang Souchong is created equal, either. I recommend trying the Lapsang Souchong from Dr. Tea http://www.teagarden.com/black-lapsang-souchong-c-38-p-2-pr-400.html … or even trying an unsmoked Lapsang Souchong like this one from Townshend’s Tea http://www.townshendstea.com/black-teas/unsmoked-lapsang-souchong
Thank you for the suggestions and replies, everyone. @Terri: This was just a sample, so I haven’t any of it left (thank goodness). @DaisyChubb: omg there is such a beast‽ That’s pretty awesome. Thanks for the swap offer! I’ll drop you a line when I’ve updated my cupboard and maybe we can sort something out.
Sounds good Nik! No rush, I’m waiting on some funds before I have some money to send off a package, but I will definitely save you some for when the time comes :D
If you ever run across one that says it is very lightly smoked maybe try it again some day…it might grow on you.
If I do, Jenny, I will need to remember to use a different mug. Two days and three washings later, my mug still smells like that blasted tea! [growly face]
It is definitely a polarizing tea. Though I like it, I can’t drink it often. With some of the particularly resiny versions, the taste stays with me much longer than it is welcome. The smokiness feels like its still in my skin and the inside of my nose for days after I’ve had it. I prefer the ones that have a salted meat or pine needle flavor along with the smoke to the ashy, resiny ones.
I can see the appeal of that, I think. I might be tempted to try a shot glass-sized sample of bacon tea, if such a creature exists. After I get over the trauma of this tasting, that is. =)
If you ever get some Maple Bacon tea from 52teas Nik, the smoke flavour is VERY light, so I think you might enjoy it!
If we ever do a swap, I’ll throw some in :3
Although I’m not a big fan of drinking Lapsang Souchong, I have a recipe that uses it to marinate a baked chicken, which was an interesting change of pace. If you’ve got some of the tea sitting around & want to use it up, I’d be glad to pass the recipe along.
Not all Lapsang Souchong is created equal, either. I recommend trying the Lapsang Souchong from Dr. Tea http://www.teagarden.com/black-lapsang-souchong-c-38-p-2-pr-400.html … or even trying an unsmoked Lapsang Souchong like this one from Townshend’s Tea http://www.townshendstea.com/black-teas/unsmoked-lapsang-souchong
Thank you for the suggestions and replies, everyone. @Terri: This was just a sample, so I haven’t any of it left (thank goodness). @DaisyChubb: omg there is such a beast‽ That’s pretty awesome. Thanks for the swap offer! I’ll drop you a line when I’ve updated my cupboard and maybe we can sort something out.
Sounds good Nik! No rush, I’m waiting on some funds before I have some money to send off a package, but I will definitely save you some for when the time comes :D
If you ever run across one that says it is very lightly smoked maybe try it again some day…it might grow on you.
If I do, Jenny, I will need to remember to use a different mug. Two days and three washings later, my mug still smells like that blasted tea! [growly face]