Smoky Earl Grey

…a very elegant tea. The refreshing hints of lemon are pushing trough in a rather pleasant kind of way. The flavors of the Lapsang are balanced perfectly and very harmonious which still allows one to detect all the other notes that are part of this blend.I am extremely pleased to find that there is no astringency going on…something that is normally quite common with Lapsangs. However, it seems to me that, if brewed with water on boiling point, the tea tends to come across a bit rough.
If one keeps the water temperature below 85 degrees Celsiuis the tea starts to unfold it’s fragile flavors in a very gentle manner…the whole story becomes soft and silky.
It would not be my first choice for breakfast as there is no strong awakening effect…but it is a great tea for late afternoons…

Fortnum & Mason Advent Calendar 2021 – Day 6

Ooh, an interesting one today! I wouldn’t say I’m a lapsang lover generally. I don’t dislike it, but it’s not something I drink often or would buy. That being said, there’s a smoked Earl Grey from Lupicia that I adore, so I’m excited for this!

I quite like this. I will say, I’m surprised that some people found this to be overpoweringly smoky, as I don’t get that at all. The smokiness has a nice balance of savory meatiness with more earthy charred wood. I would maybe call it a moderate level of smokiness. The bergamot is there as well, and it has refreshing lemony flavor that cuts through the rich smoke well. It’s a rather mellow amount of bergamot, but this is still obviously an Earl Grey to me. Underneath the smoke, the Chinese base is smooth and earthy.

This won’t replace my Earl Grey Grand Classic, as I’m missing the juicy longan flavor, but I will enjoy working my way through the mini tin. Also, I had this with toast and some Bonne Maman Sweet Orange-Passion Fruit Spread, which was very yummy. I’m not generally a marmalade lover, as I find it can be quite bitter, but that wasn’t the case here. And the passion fruit added a nice punchy tartness! :)

Fortnum and Mason Advent Day 5

YAAAAAS! I really like this one and I am so glad they included it in the advent!

Smoke is not too strong – way less than Upton Black Dragon or Lapsang Crocodile from Dammann or same name tea from Thé O Dor. I give the smoke a level four or five on a scale of 0 to 10. The bergamot is pretty light, definitely there but not stealing the show.

Well done.

There was a huuuuge tin of this in the tea box, and the smoky scent was much too strong. I put it back thinking that I definitely wouldn’t like it, but hey, what’s a tea box for if not expanding your horizons? I just put the tea in my cup and strained it instead of using a steeper because I didn’t want my steeper to be permanently scented. It’s that strong. I added lots of sugar and milk to try to tame the smokiness. It’s super smoky and meaty. I don’t dislike it as much as I expected, but I spent several days trying to finish my large mug and never could. There’s not much bergamot here, unfortunately. I really can’t picture someone enjoying this, but I guess there are plenty of people who do!

As I said in a tasting note a day or two ago for Fortnum’s Russian Caravan, last weekend I went to a teahouse with three friends. I didn’t order this tea, it was the selection of one of the friends I was with – however he kindly poured me the last teacup worth from his pot so that I could try it as well!

Smoky Earl Grey doesn’t appeal to me as a concept – I think that’s too busy/aggresive in terms of flavour profile. Lapsang is already a VERY intense/bold flavour, and Earl Grey also has the potential to be quite intense and aromatic. Combined? That’s a fine line you’re walking, good sir!

That said – my pot of selection tea, the Russian Caravan, had been VERY thin tasting and felt under leafed so switching from that somewhat disappointing infusion to this one was like drinking water after walking for miles in a hot dessert. What would normally have been borderline for me was rich flavour compared to a disappointing first pot of tea. I actually liked it a lot in this situation even if it wasn’t something that normally would have spoken to me.

A tea bag only.

Busy days recently. And I haven’t slept well too. So, after sleepless night (I slept few hours only in total) – I was craving for caffeine boost. I found in my tea bag stash this one. And it’s certainly from “huge bags section”.

Maybe it’s even sipdown, I am not really sure if I have another bag there. I don’t care to be honest.

Tea itself was steeped quite short, but I was afraid of getting too bitter drink. Brew is very dark, brown colour. Looks steeped even after two minutes. And they sugest three.

I took the bag out, went downstairs to enjoy it with my dad. He felt earlier this week and he have partly broken bone in the leg. So, I have to bring him food, drinks and so on. We had nice discussion together, although (and naturally) we don’t agree in all points.

Back to the tea. It is maybe too smoky for me. I don’t mind little smokiness, but this was too smoky and bergamot / citrus fruits were hard to find in taste. They were there, but smokiness was way stronger. Almost meaty.

Not a bad cuppa, but more citrus fruits would be great in this blend. Diary/tasting note over.

My absolute favorite tea. I discovered this by chance back in 1995 on a trip to London and quickly developed an addiction. With milk and honey it becomes quite a decadent treat., to be savored and saved for when you need a reset moment. This is not for everyone, but those who love it, love it with an obscene passion.

It does its name justice, and it’s an excellent, assertive, distinct tasting tea.: smoky oolong tea with bergamot oil.

I am so happy to have tried this tea! The smokey flavor is well balanced and astringency is minimal. I expected this to be a lot drier. This is the first smokey tea I’ve tried, but I am excited to try a larger variety!

Love the smokiness; however it is dominating the entire range of flavors / aromas. I can still taste the other flavors but they are being overpowered by the smoke. I really like this tea, however, I can understand if people tire of this tea quickly.

A good alternative in my opinion is Lupicia’s Earl Grey Grand Classic which has the smoky flavor along with some fruit flavor too. I wish I had some on hand so I could do a side by side comparison.