Summer Vacation! I’ve been meaning to try this one for some time and had yet to get around to it. My first experience with a Lapsang Souchong was awful and I never drunk the stuff (even in a blend) ever again — the experience was like trying to drink a cup of black tea while sitting next to a campfire while a strong Idaho wind was blowing the smoke right into your face the entire time. Since smoke is a very strong migraine trigger for me, the aroma alone was enough to actually give me a migraine from drinking just one cup. It was very unpleasant. But when I saw this included in a sampler package I got during a Veteran’s Day deal from Dazzledeer last November, then read the description, I was intrigued. Lapsang Souchong that isn’t smoked? Such a thing exists? I really wanted to try it. Since my head problems were linked entirely to the smoke-aroma and taste, it seemed a viable way to get to enjoy the tea. Not to mention I was curious to get to actually taste the tea without the overwhelming smokiness getting in the way.
Opening the 5g sampler packet, all I could smell was dark, bittersweet chocolate. Oooooooh, now that is already a good sign! Yes, definitely excited to brew this to drink with my breakfast while watching the episode of Ducktales I have waiting on my Amazon account this morning. Aah, Sunday mornings are the best. I prepared half the sampler (2.5g) in 350ml of water @ 200 F, steeped for 3 min. western style.
Brewed up, the cup still smells very sweet. It has a malty aroma, and is a little savory, like sweet and sour mandarin sauce, but I can also make out honey, cinnamon, and dark chocolate. It has such a pleasing scent it took me a bit to even take the cup from my nose to take a sip. The tea liquor has a stronger maltiness than the last few blacks I’ve sipped on, with a deep, sweet fruitiness to it. It actually reminds me of chocolate-covered oranges. Towards the tip of the tongue I get that sweet honeyed taste that I find so pleasant from many Chinese blacks, and late in the sip I get a deep cocoa note with a slight peppery spice that lingers on the tongue. The whole cup is extremely smooth, lacking astringency.
This is a fantastic cup of tea. Easily one of the best black teas I’ve ever tasted, and one that is going onto my, “I need this back in my cupboard!” list, since this 5g sampler will be gone by the end of the day. I’m a little sad to see Dazzledeer is currently sold out, but then, I’m not surprised, either; tea tastes good, yo, who wouldn’t want to buy it? And better yet, I’ve finally found a way to enjoy stinky lapsang souchong.
Flavors: Cocoa, Dark Bittersweet, Dark Chocolate, Fruity, Honey, Malt, Orange, Smooth, Spices
Preparation
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Unsmoked Lapsangs (aka Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong) are one of the best Chinese blacks in my opinion. Especially the wild ones. If you liked this offering from Dazzle Deer and can’t find it anymore you may want to check Yunnan Sourcing, Teavivre or Verdant: they offer quite a few.
I’ll admit one of the advantages I get from Dazzledeer (besides supporting a small vendor) is that it ships within the US, but it looks like taking a second look at Verdant they ship from within the US as well, so I may take that option to tide me over. Thanks! (Unless I am placing a massive tea order, and I just have no need to be making any massive tea orders at this point in time, I tend to avoid international shipping). I would have to agree with you, this is probably not only one of the best Chinese blacks I’ve had, but just one of the best black teas in general I think I’ve ever tasted. I’m pretty smitten in tea love at the moment.
Unsmoked Lapsangs (aka Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong) are one of the best Chinese blacks in my opinion. Especially the wild ones. If you liked this offering from Dazzle Deer and can’t find it anymore you may want to check Yunnan Sourcing, Teavivre or Verdant: they offer quite a few.
I’ll admit one of the advantages I get from Dazzledeer (besides supporting a small vendor) is that it ships within the US, but it looks like taking a second look at Verdant they ship from within the US as well, so I may take that option to tide me over. Thanks! (Unless I am placing a massive tea order, and I just have no need to be making any massive tea orders at this point in time, I tend to avoid international shipping). I would have to agree with you, this is probably not only one of the best Chinese blacks I’ve had, but just one of the best black teas in general I think I’ve ever tasted. I’m pretty smitten in tea love at the moment.