Jin Xuan Xiao Zhong, Taiwan Lightly Smoked

Tea type
Black Tea
Ingredients
Not available
Flavors
Bread
Sold in
Not available
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by Pamela Dean
Average preparation
Boiling 3 min, 45 sec

Currently unavailable

We don't know when or if this item will be available.

From Our Community

1 Image

2 Want it Want it

3 Own it Own it

9 Tasting Notes View all

  • “My order from Norbu Tea arrived and I am thrilled! As an affordable indulgence, what I got were 10 gram samples, shipping was only $3.00 and super fast from Texas to California. It’s so great being...” Read full tasting note
    92
  • “Brewed this western style, using a Finum basket. Gave it 3-4 minutes, and it needs that time to open up. The leaves are long, long, long and blacker than a moonless night. They take time to open...” Read full tasting note
    95
  • “sipdown! I am falling behind, BUT i managed to travel for work and NOT buy more tea even though i did find some lol. I had the last of this today in an effort to have a cup that could kick me...” Read full tasting note
    85
  • “So I attempted pouring a “splash” of maple syrup once again and though I may have been just a touch heavy handed with the syrup, the result is quite nice. The maple and smoke are both very present...” Read full tasting note
    71

From Norbu Tea

Highlights:
Lightly Smoked Spring Black Tea
Harvest: Spring, 2011
Growing Area: Jenai Township, Nantou County, Taiwan
Elevation: +/-4,000 ft (1,200 M)
Varietal: Jin Xuan
10 Gram Sample Available

This tea is a uniquely Taiwanese spin on the classic smoked Wuyi Mountain black tea known in China as Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong (Lapsang Souchong in the West). The amazing tea producers I have the honor to work with in Nantou County, central Taiwan produced only a small amount of this tea this Spring, and I was lucky enough to get the last few KG that were left by the time I got to visit their gorgeous plantation in mid-April, 2011. (The photos below are of the terraces these tea leaves came from)

Our Jin Xuan Xiao Zhong is processed much like the traditional Wuyi Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong or Lapsang Souchong, but there are obvious differences. First, just like the real Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong, this tea is nothing at all like the super smoky “Lapsang Souchong” available in your local supermarket. The smoky aroma of this tea is subtle and sweet when compared to the hard-core pine smoke aroma that is most often associated with Lapsang Souchong in the West. This tea was not smoked using pine wood at all; rather, it was dried/smoked using (dried) sugarcane stalks for the fire! Smoking this tea over sugarcane imparted a slight caramelized sweetness to the smoky aroma and resulting flavor of this tea. The other major difference between this tea and traditional Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong is that the source materials are taken from Jin Xuan varietal tea plants. Jin Xuan is a popular tea varietal in Taiwan which generally produces a rather subtle flavor that is often described as leaving a creamy or milky sensation and flavor in the mouth, and this tea is no exception.

The underlying black tea flavor is mild with a low level of astringency, which provides a very nice backdrop for the sweet smokiness to shine through. The liquor is a lovely, clear amber color, and the mouthfeel of the infusion is moderately thick. It leaves an intriguingly sweet and smoky aftertaste on top of a slightly creamy or milky sensation from the Jin Xuan source materials.

When steeping this tea, I recommend using a more “Western” approach to achieve a balance between smoky sweetness and the mild astringency of the black tea. Steeping this tea Gong Fu style is pleasant, but the resulting infusion is primarily smoky and milky/soft in the mouth without much astringency to balance it out. I recommend using 1-2 grams of leaf (more than a big pinch, but smaller than a handful) per 6-8 oz cup, water at a full boil, and an infusion time of about 3-4 minutes. These are just recommendations, so please adjust to your taste.

About Norbu Tea View company

Company description not available.

9 Tasting Notes

92
2816 tasting notes

My order from Norbu Tea arrived and I am thrilled!

As an affordable indulgence, what I got were 10 gram samples, shipping was only $3.00 and super fast from Texas to California. It’s so great being able to try a smaller quantity of tea before you commit to a larger size.

Most of my samples are oolongs which they recommend steeping in a gaiwan, but this one can be steeped Western style so I decided to try it. I’m willing to try any smoked tea and this one sounded so intriguing. Tea smoked over dried sugarcane? Sign me up! When I opened the package the black wiry leaf smelled like roasted chocolate. woooo!

So this got steeped in an infuser mug, their recommendations are for 3-4 minutes and I believe my steeping time approached that. I got a dark amber color of tea and the leaves smell earthy and lightly smoked.

The cup is a dark amber and smells a bit like a lapsang. My first sip of tea is lovely, a sweet infusion that reminds me of caramel and wood. It’s only in the finish of the tea that the delicate smoke becomes subtly apparent, along with a lovely sweetness that is lingering in my mouth. This is also oddly relaxing, or maybe I’m just falling asleep after lunch. ;-)

This reminds me of a really light lapsang in that it has the same tangy sort of barbeque-y element, but since the smoke is very light this would be a great entry into smoky teas for someone who’s afraid of them. :P

Norbu’s note mentions a slight astringency which I am not picking up on too much. Overall this is a really neat tea with a lot of different elements to it and I could certainly see myself ordering the full size. So glad I tried it and can’t wait for the weekend when I can try gonfu’ing my new wuyi and fenghuang oolongs!

p.s. I also got a lighter, but still lovely second steep out of it.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 30 sec
Azzrian

Sounds very good and their shipping is fairly priced!

TeaBrat

Yep. So far I am a happy customer.

Tamm

This sounds really amazing!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

95
423 tasting notes

Brewed this western style, using a Finum basket. Gave it 3-4 minutes, and it needs that time to open up.
The leaves are long, long, long and blacker than a moonless night. They take time to open up, and patience is required for them to release their exquisite flavors.
This is very gently smoked tea, that tastes like a very, very good Keemun – it has some of the malt/bread flavor to it, with a gentle smokiness that does not feel artificial, but gives it depth and body. There is something of the sweetness of sugar to it, and I did not experience any astringency when drinking it. A great intro to smoked teas,and a wonderful companion for a cold winter’s night, in a large steaming mug, with your hands wrapped around it for warmth.
Norbu did it again!

Flavors: Bread

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

85
15006 tasting notes

sipdown! I am falling behind, BUT i managed to travel for work and NOT buy more tea even though i did find some lol. I had the last of this today in an effort to have a cup that could kick me into action. it didn’t work all that well. I did really enjoy this in the morning though, as it was a little cooler than normal :)

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

71
6444 tasting notes

So I attempted pouring a “splash” of maple syrup once again and though I may have been just a touch heavy handed with the syrup, the result is quite nice. The maple and smoke are both very present which is leading to a flavor reminiscent of tasty maple bacon or delicious BBQ. What an amazing combination! Plus, this is a lovely tea. Thank you Sil for both the sample and the maple suggestion. It would be interesting to try this out with an even smokier blend such as lapsang as I feel it would be quite pleasant.

Sil

this is not overly smokey as far as smokey teas go…i tend to find the smokier the tea (as long as it’s drinkable), the better the maple + smoke blend is for me

VariaTEA

I can see that. While drinking his, I found myself wanting more smoke because I figured it would cut down the maple sweetness just a touch.

Terri HarpLady

yeah baby! Although I enjoy my lapsang plain, a little maple lifts it to a wonderful flambé like dessert :)

VariaTEA

I can see that.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.