Red Blossom Tea Company

I promised myself I would finish all the old tea sitting on my shelf before buying new. It takes me a while to go through even a small tea purchase, as even though I drink tea every morning and many evenings, I have gotten good at making them last through multiple steepings. I even pull White and Green teas through 3 to 4 steepings. And Oolong and Pu-erh? As many as they still have flavor.

That being said, I bought 4 ounces of this Lapsang Souchong over a year ago and am just now getting to the end of it.

Red Blossom has two ways to brew it. The first is a nice light tea; less leaves, lower water temperature and shorter steeping time. I have been doing it that way for a while, but decided to finish with a bang, so I went for the full flavor, in your face version, more like a traditional Black Tea brew.

3 tablespoons of leaves in my 32 ounce Bodum Assam, and after rinsing them I poured boiling water over them and let them steep for 3 minutes.

The end product is a beautiful dark reddish brown, almost velvety in color. The aroma fills the room with a dark, thick, juicy, ultra smoky scent.

And then there is the taste. I love the light style of brewing this tea, don’t get me wrong,. But sometimes you just need a tea to take you out back and kick the ever loving shit out of you.

This does that.

And I love it.

-E

I don’t normally drink this tea by itself. I’ve been using it a lot lately to add flavor to other teas, as anything even a little bit of these campfire tasting leaves go into immediately gets a nice smoky flavor.

But the other day I decided to give it a go solo again.

It really is a good tea. Red Blossom Tea Company has two different brewing methods outlined on their site, one a normal black tea brewing method for a thick, rich and robust taste, and a shorter time at a slightly lower temperature for a lighter and sweeter taste.

That’s what I went for. I tried it a week ago or so, and it was good, but needed refinement. Here we go:

I used 3 tablespoons of leaves, NOT heaping tablespoons, if anything not quite full tablespoons. I used water not quite at a full boil, just after bubbles begin to form. And I only steeped it for 1:30, very short for a black tea.

Those three things gave me a nice, light, but still super flavorful brew. The smoky flavor is still right there on top, like I’m sipping an actual campfire. You know the taste. You get home from a camping trip and crash, and the next morning you unpack your clothes and they have that smell. That campfire smell.

But with the shorter brewing time, it’s not overwhelming, it’s balanced and yummy.

Only problem is it does not bode well for multiple steepings. The 2nd steeping was pretty good, although not nearly as crisp and clear as the first. The 3rd, well, let’s just say I won’t do a 3rd next time I use this method. It’s kind of bland and the flavors just don’t pop anymore.

But that first steeping is damn good.

-E

Sitting here bloated and guilty from overeating yesterday, it’s time for some tea.

In the past, I have used too much Lapsang, giving it too much of that smoky flavor, hiding the white tea goodness of the Shou Mei, or too much mint, making it bity.

I think I got it pretty close this time. 3 heaping tablespoons of the Shou Mei mixed with about ½ of a teaspoon of Lapsang Souchong, and only 2 dried mint leaves in a 32 ounce Bodum Assam.

That mix gives plenty of smoke flavor from the Lapsang, plenty of mint flavor from the mint leaves, but neither hide the light, delicate, woodsy and nutty flavor of the Shou Mei.

I’m learning, and having fun discovering new blends and then trying to perfect them.

I was all ready this morning to go for one of my favorite, albeit unusual, tea blends, the white Organic Shou Mei, with a pinch of my good old Lansang Souchong. But then I thought, you know, I haven’t had just the Lapsang by itself in quite a while. And that sounds wonderful on this wet, rainy morning.

So I cruised over to the Red Blossom Tea Company website to make sure I had the brewing and steeping directions correct, and I noticed they had an alternate brewing method to get a slightly lighter, sweeter liqueur. Basically, slightly less leaves, slightly lower water temperature, and a low steeping time for this black tea.

So I used about 2.5 tablespoons of leaves instead of the normal 3+ in my 32 ounce Bodum Assam teapot, rinsed like usual, added water that was just starting to boil instead of at a full boil, and only steeped it for 1 minute, instead of the regular 3.

Success. Damn, it’s good. The color is still dark reddish black, but it is not quite as opaque as normal, I can see the tea basket in the middle of the teapot.

The smell is the first thing I notice as pleasantly different. It still has that strong campfire aroma, but it is not as overpowering as when I use a standard black tea brewing method. You can smell more of the underlying black tea qualities, and everything has a very nice balance.

Speaking about balance, here comes the taste. I am a big fan of balance, in all parts of my life. I am a classically trained trombone player and music teacher, and my hobby is extreme long distance cycling. This brewing method brings out a balance in this tea I did not think was possible. Yes, it is a Lapsang Souchong that is actually light and sweet. The earthy, malty, almost woodsy black tea flavor finally has a voice, while the wonderful campfire taste is still the dominant voice, but it has a stage to stand on now, and that stage is what it needs for that proper balance.

Basically, I can almost taste what kind of wood is burning in the campfire, and it is sweet and light and allows the natural black tea flavors to shine through.

And they are wonderful.

-E

Time for a new blend! Sort of…

Today’s blend is an Organic Shou Mei white tea and a Lapsang Souchong black tea, both from Red Blossom Tea Company, and some freshly dried mint leaves from Nob Hill Grocery Store.

First, let me say two things:

1. I have tried the Shou Mei/Lapsang blend before and liked it a lot. The super smokey feel and taste of the Lapsang works really well with the simple, solid, woodsy flavor of the Shou Mei. For my 32 ounce Bodum Assam I found that 3 tablespoons of Shou Mei to 1 teaspoon of Lapsang is a good mix, but you have to add a bit more Lapsang for additional steepings.

2. The mint leaves were an experiment a couple weeks ago. I went to the local grocery store and bought the only fresh mint leaves they had and dried them hanging in my room. In the future I would go to a farmer’s market or natural food store like Sprouts or Whole Foods and get a more specific mint leaf. After I research, of course.

Now, on to todays blend. First, the mix:

32 ounce Bodum Assam teapot
3 tablespoons Organic Shou Mei
1 teaspoon Lapsang Souchong
4 dried mint leaves
Quick rinse, about 15 seconds
Pulled the water off the stove at first boil
2 minute steeping time (recommended by Red Blossom for Organic Shou Mei base)

Here we go!

I could tell when I poured the water over the leaves this would be a good one. The first whiff I got from it made me smile. The Shou Mei base is a great, solid, white tea base for a blend like this due to it’s light, gentle, fragile taste with strong hints of wood, nuts, and Earth. Mix a bit of that uber campfire smoke taste of the Lapsang Souchong, and the two blend very well.

Now add the mint. Here is where I didn’t know what would happen. I don’t notice much of the mint in the aroma, the Lapsang pretty much owns the nose. But when I taste it, there it is. The mint is right there, present and accounted for. It works really well with the base Shou Mei and the smoky Lapsang, adding just a bit more depth and flavor.

Basically, I get a lightish, woodsy tea with a strong feel of smoked mint. Very interesting.

I would certainly try this again, but maybe with slightly less Lapsang, maybe ¾ of a teaspoon instead of a whole one, and 3 mint leaves instead of 4.

But yeah, today’s blend is a damn good one! I can already picture myself sipping this while reading on a cool, rainy Winter’s day.

-E

Blend review:

The continued steepings of a blend of Organic Shou Mei white tea and Lapsang Souchong black tea, both from Red Blossom Tea Company. This review is for the 2nd and 3rd steepings.

2 tablepoons Shou Mei
1 teaspoon (at the most) Lapsang Souchong
1st steeping 45 seconds
2nd steeping 55 seconds
3rd steeping 1 minute
4th steeping (?) 1 minute
195(ish, when bubbles first showed)

The 2nd steeping is not quite as good as the first. These two teas have very different lives through multiple steepings, and with much more of the Shou Mei white tea leaves than Lapsang Souchong black, the 2nd and 3rd steepings are pretty much all Shou Mei. The campfire smoke aroma and taste of the Lapsang is much more subtle in the 2nd, so much so that if I didn’t know it was there I would not notice. And the 3rd steeping it is gone altogether.

So, long story short, I really like this blend. I think I got the mix right, and the steeping time and temp was right on. However, for the 2nd and 3rd (and beyond) steepings, I will add a pinch more Lapsang to keep it going.

Blend review: This Lapsang Souchong and Red Blossom’s Organic Celadon Pearl.

OK folks, I’ve done it. I’ve found the ultimate tea blend.

2.5-3(ish) tablespoons of Red Blossom’s Organic Celadon Pearl Green Tea, and <1 teaspoon (no more than that!) of Red Blossom’s Lapsang Souchong Black Tea. I wanted to add a bit of interesting to the Celadon, and this Lapsang, in all it’s uber campfire smoke deepness, is the perfect candidate.

Tip: When blending multiple types of tea, keep the steeping time in line with whatever the lower count is. For example, blending a green tea (45 seconds recommended) and a black tea (1-2 minutes recommended), go with the lower time of 45 seconds. You will still get plenty of the stronger tea in there without ruining the lighter tea and making a mess of it.

This Celadon Pearl is a great green tea to use as a base with its wonderful grassy, earthy taste and feel, with a clean, crisp, dry finish. It really is deep and complex, at times I get an ocean breeze aroma. Add just a touch of the Lapsang Souchong. No really, just a touch. I used less than 1 teaspoon. The is an incredible strong and potent tea, any more than that and the campfire smoke will take over everything.

Just a touch, and you have a great blend. The color is a nice dark, clear yellow, almost orange. Every aroma, taste, and feel of the Celadon Pearl is allowed to shine through, and the Lapsang adds a wonderful bit of dark punch, just a hint of that campfire smoke it’s known for. This blend screams fall, and with that upon us, it’s time!

I’m still new to blends, and I have a lot to learn, but this will be one I will come back to from time to time.

-E

This review is for the 2nd and 3rd steeping of a blend of this Lapsang Souchong black tea and Red Blossom’s Organic Shou Mei white tea.

Yesterdays 2nd steeping was wonderful, even better than the first. The 1st steeping, in my opinion, had too much Lapsang taste, too much campfire smoke. I wanted more balance. The 2nd steeping took care of that. The campfire smoke was much more subdued, and the white tea background was able to pop through.

Now on to today’s 3rd steeping. I upped the steep time to 1:15 from 1:00, everything else is the same. Just under 3 tablespoons of Shou Mei white with 1 teaspoon of Lapsang Souchong black.

The color is still golden straw, just a tad darker, closer to a green tea color. Almost looks like a filtered hefeweizen, for those beer fans out there.

The aroma also reminds me of the fruity, almost banana-y beer. The 1st steeping aroma was all campfire, but now the balance is much better, the white tea is actually more in front, and the thick, malty smoke of the Lapsang is secondary. Still has that same dry, clean finish.

Taste and mouthfeel are exactly the same as yesterday’s 2nd steeping, it hasn’t lost any of it’s power, strength, or balance. I still have a strong sense of malty campfire smoke from the Lapsang, but the Shou Mei is much more present. It has an almost bitter, dry aftertaste, but still crisp and clean. 3rd steeping and it’s still kicking nice and strong.

The next time I do this blend, I might try rinsing them separately, and giving the Lapsang some extra time to possibly clean off some of that extra campfire.

Home made blends! My first time taking this step, and I started with the two most opposite teas on my shelf. This Lapsang Souchong and the light, woodsy, nutty, white Organic Shou Mei, both from Red Blossom Tea Compeny. Let’s see how this goes:

I used mostly Shou Mei leaves, about 2.5 (maybe close to 3) tablespoons of it to only one teaspoon of the much more potent Lapsang Souchong. I figured that might give me a decent balance, especially with the short 1 minute steep time of the white Shou Mei, instead of the 2 minute + time of the black Lapsang Souchong.

Now to dig in:

The aroma right off the bat is dominated by the smoky, campfire Lapsang. It’s not as in you face as when I brew the Lapsang alone, and it does have that light, almost airy smell of the Shou Mei.

First sip is all Lapsang. It is a nice flavor though, it’s s much more subdued and light compared to a cup full of Lapsang leaves. The first taste is all Lapsang, and it dominates the pallet, but I can certainly taste and feel the lightness of the Shou Mei, followed by that woody, earthy, nutty taste. I would like to have a bit more of that in the balance, so next time I will probably cut down the Lapsang leaves to 1/2 or even 1/4 teaspoon. It’s that potent.

I think, in the end, what I have done is actually make a REALLY good Lapsang Souchong by giving it a light white tea base. I’ll certainly be mixing these again.

Going to take a sharp left with this one today. I used it for sun tea.

Yeah, that’ s right, a Lapsang Souchong sun tea. Had to at least try it.

How did it come out? Pretty exactly how you would expect. I thought the much longer steeping time at much lower temperatures would hold down the intensity and bring out a better balance. It did, a bit. This batch did get a pretty good balance between the piney campfire taste and the black tea base. But it still tastes like campfire.

Like, the 2nd morning camping when you wake up and realize that you set up your tent directly downwind from your campfire and stayed up late drinking and burning all the wood you brought, continuously filling your tent with that piney woodsy campfire smoke.

Mmmmmm….

But seriously, it is actually really good. I do like it. And the final product after leaving it in the sun for all the day long was a really poppy, woodsy, pine smoky black tea that actually has a decent balance. The natural tea flavors were able to pop out.

Not the best sun tea I’ve had, but certainly one I would do again.

2nd steeping of the same leaves. I lowered the steep time down to just under 2 minutes, and that seems to have improved the balance even more.

The aroma is still overwhelming smoke with a hint of, well, more smoke. It’s a damn smoky smell. And it’s roasted with pine needles, invoking in it that campfire memory. But the taste is much more balanced.

Here’s today’s process:

Rinse the leaves for 30 seconds.
Tumble water at first boil over 7 teaspoons of leaves in 32 oz Bodum Assam tea press.
Steep for just under 2 minutes.

I can’t change this now since I want to know what the 3rd steeping will be like, but the next time I do this with fresh leaves I will use the same process as above but with less leaves, maybe 5 teaspoons instead of 7+.

Still experimenting with this punch you in the face, full flavored, uber smoky campfire of a tea. I think I’m getting closer, and I have a good idea of what to do next time.

I used a little less leaves than last time, and cut the steeping time, and both of those seemed to do the trick, but both need to be done even more so next time. And, of course, the pre-rinse is a necessity with this tea. It’s just too smoky without it, you get the smoke from the roasting but no tea flavor. The rinse cleans the leaves, removes just enough of the smoke, and opens the leaves up to bring out more of that black tea flavor.

I went from 9 teaspoons to 7, next time I’ll use 5 or 6. Steep time was lowered from 4 minutes to 3, and it still needs to be lowered. Maybe even as little as 1 or 1.5. Next time.

All three of those things really helped balance the final flavor much better. The smoke still dominates in both aroma and taste, but the tea leaves at least stand a chance in the fight.

I think I’m finally figuring this one out!

I was planning on trying a shorter steep time for this 3rd steeping of these leaves. Damn you opinion section, I got caught reading and missed it, letting it steep for nearly 4 minutes. Going to need to remedy that soon.

Anyway, 3rd steeping, same strong flavor. Just as bold and potent as the 2nd, nearly the same as the 1st with just slightly less smoke presence. Slightly.

Still a ton of smoke aroma and flavor.

2nd steeping, with a pre rinse this time. The rinse helps a bunch. The smoke aroma and flavor was overwhelming yesterday, today it is just what it should be. Bold and to the fore but not so in your face that it feels like you just spent the entire night with campfire smoke blowing into your tent.

With the rinse, the earthy tea flavor is allowed to come out and actually create a nice balance of smoke with that rich sweetness it is advertised to have.

Tomorrow I’m going to try a shorter steep time to see what that does.

Smoky. Only word needed to describe this brew.

The aroma smells like campfire. This first steeping is the strongest, and it’s really in your face.

The taste is the same. Very smoky, like a campfire in the backyard. Wonderful smell, wonderful taste, but close to being overdone.

4th steeping. It’s finally loosing some of it’s big, bold flavor. The strong, almost overwhelming smoke flavor the first 2 steepings is now a bit more subtle. It’s still there, still big and bold, but not as in your face. Still love it!

3rd steeping. The smoky flavor is really embedded now, the tea in general is getting even more balanced. The intensity has backed off a bit, but the flavor is still going strong!

2nd steeping. Still amazing. Full of flavor, super smoky. Better balance the 2nd time, the smoky aroma, taste and feel aren’t quite as overwhelming.

Holy crap this is a smoky tea. Great big, bold smoky flavor. 1st steeping, great stuff!

Dramatic stone fruit notes up front, especially plum, with minor hints of papaya, and malted barley, followed by increased sweetness and earthiness with successive steepings.

Sometimes my simple brain convinces me that I am sick of Tieguanyin. Then I see it sitting there in the cupboard, and grab it and smell it and say, “Hot damn this is some good stuff in here.”

Such a great, solid brew. So full of flavor, so bright and crisp, such a clean finish, with hints of tropical fruit and flowers.

I’ve had several Tieguayins in my life, this one is very close to the top, only surpassed by a gift from a student years ago bought in China when they were back visiting family.

This is possibly one of my favorite teas in general. So. Damn. Good.

-E