Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Harmoniously blending the smokiness of Lapsang Souchong, the malty chocolate flavor of Assam and the crisp and smooth flavor of Keemun, “Russian Caravan” is a welcome addition to our family of teas. Best when enjoyed hot, this rich and soothing blend of fine black teas will warm your soul and enliven your mind.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club subscription program here.
Taster’s Review:
I bring today’s review with some exciting news: first, my second box from Simple Loose Leaf’s Selection Club arrived yesterday! Yay! More tea goodness. I figured I better get busy and write the review for this tea since it’s from last month and now I have more teas to write about! The second bit of exciting news is that Simple Loose Leaf has a special offer this month only! Keep reading this review for more details!
For those of you who read my reviews regularly, you are probably aware of my less than enthusiastic feelings for smoky teas. So, it should probably come as no big surprise that this is the last of the five teas that I’m sampling from last month’s Selection Club box. But even though I’m not always excited to try a smoky tea, I’m actually enjoying this cup of Russian Caravan Black Tea from Simple Loose Leaf.
After a quick rinse of the leaves, I steeped this tea in boiling water for 2 1/2 minutes. The result is a flavorful cup that is smoky but not so smoky that I’m unable to enjoy the other flavors of the cup. The smoke level here is what I’d classify as “moderate,” and it melds nicely with the malty notes of the Assam in the blend. I like the smoky caramel notes that I taste.
I taste the sweet, wine-like notes from the Keemun. It’s got some “chew” to it – that freshly baked, bready sort of taste. There is a comforting taste to this tea. It evokes thoughts of the splendor of autumn, when the leaves are falling and there’s a crisp, cool feeling in the air. That air smells lightly of the smoke that billows out of the chimneys. It’s my favorite time of year, and I like how this tea brings those images to mind as I sip it. A really enjoyable Russian Caravan. If you’re a fan of smoky teas, you should add this one to your list.
As promised, here are the details about the special offer from Simple Loose Leaf: Check it out: This code >> 1DOLLARMONTH << (Just the 1DollarMonth part, these things: >< aren’t part of the code and are only added for emphasis) will enable you to get your first month of the Selection Club Subscription for just $1! Yeah, you read that right. Just one dollar!
Wow! So that means that you can get 1 – 2 ounces of two different loose leaf teas from Simple Loose Leaf’s menu for May … or you can get a sampler size of all five of the teas on the menu for May … for just one dollar!
This offer is good only through the month of April, so if you want to get in on this unbelievable offer (and really … why wouldn’t you?), you should act now.
What a deal! Be sure to tell the nice folks at Simple Loose Leaf that I sent you there.
Lapsang Souchong Black Tea from Tea Forté
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea Forté
Tea Description:
Exceptional, large leaves delicately smoked over smoldering embers of local pine for a tea with strong, smoky character. The burnished liquor delivers a teasing crisp quality in harmony with hazel-sweet notes.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Even though the photo above shows Tea Forte’s “signature” pyramid sachet, this Lapsang Souchong Black Tea actually came to me in loose leaf form, which I prefer over the sachets. Sure, the sachets are fancy and elegant, but, I’ll take the superior flavor of a loose leaf tea over fancy elegance any day.
Not a bad Lapsang Souchong. I brewed this with a quick rinse (15 seconds in boiling water and then strain the liquid and discard) and then for 3 minutes. The flavor is robust and smoky, with notes of caramel and a sweet nutty note.
I think that it’s the underlying sweetness of a Lapsang Souchong that actually won me over to the smoky side. I wasn’t always a big fan of smoky teas and Lapsang Souchong seems to be the smokiest of them all, so it was usually on my “least wanted” list. And while I can’t say that I LOVE Lapsang Souchong now, I don’t dislike it the way I used to.
Because once you get past that heavy smokiness, you find all these wonderful layers of sweet caramel and even a sweet nutty tone that melds beautifully with the toasty notes of the smoky essence. It becomes less like a “campfire” (or other, less appealing descriptives) and more like a sweet, toasty, cozy cuppa that I enjoy curling up to now and then.
It would seem that some Lapsang Souchong teas are more smoky than others and I would say that this one from Tea Forté is not quite as smoky as some that I’ve encountered … it’s what I’d categorize as a medium smoky quality as compared to some of the heavier smoked Lapsang Souchong teas. Sure, it’s still SMOKY but it’s less intense as some I’ve tried, making this an excellent choice for those who are looking for a good, middle-ground sort of Lapsang Souchong. An enjoyable cuppa.
Smoky Bacon Flavored Black Tea from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
Smoked Lapsang Souchong blended with imitation bacon bits and all natural bacon flavor.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
I was a little bit apprehensive to try this Smoky Bacon Flavored Black Tea from 52Teas, to be completely honest. I had seen one review of this and the taster said that it was so bad that she had to go brush her teeth after drinking it. That’s bad. Funny … but bad.
So, I worried about whether this would be a tea I’d like. I mean, I love bacon. Seriously, it’s one of my favorite foods. And the moment I saw that 52Teas had offered a maple bacon tea way back when (for the week of November 16, 2009 – wow … time flies!) I was buying it as quickly as I could. That became my very first purchase from 52Teas.
But, with my prickly history with Lapsang Souchong, I was really unsure if this was a tea that I’d like. But, when a “Bacon package” was offered as one of the rewards on the recent campaign fundraiser that 52Teas had, I decided to choose that as one of my rewards. I figured, hey, if I don’t like it, hopefully, I’ll find someone who does and I’ll send it their way.
And, I’m enjoying this. There is more Lapsang Souchong flavor than there is bacon-y flavor, and I’d like there to be more bacon. I think that a slightly lighter base (perhaps a blend of Lapsang Souchong and a Keemun and a little bit of Ceylon to soften things up a bit?) might have offered a less robust background so that the bacon flavors could develop more.
However, I am enjoying this. I’m wondering how it will taste when I combine this with some of the maple bacon tea. I’m thinking yummy.
I brewed this the way I would brew a Lapsang Souchong, by first giving it a quick rinse and then steeping it for 2 1/2 minutes. I added a pinch of Kosher salt and about half a teaspoon of turbinado sugar to the brewed tea.
The result is a strong tea that has a good amount of smokiness, but it doesn’t completely overwhelm the bacon-y goodness. The sugar brings out some of the sweeter notes of the bacon, and the Lapsang Souchong does give this a nice “smoky bacon” kind of flavor. As I said before, I’d like more bacon-y goodness, but bacon is almost like chocolate as far as I’m concerned: more bacon = better.
Overall, a really enjoyable cuppa. It’s difficult to compare it to other bacon teas because as far as I know, there aren’t any other bacon teas out there with which to compare it except for the bacon teas that 52Teas has created: Maple Bacon (after I wrote this review I found a better way to brew the tea and I’ll be doing a follow up review for this blog sometime in the near future), Chocolate Bacon, and Pineapple Bacon Rooibos. Of these four bacon teas, I think I enjoyed the Chocolate Bacon one best, then again, I’m a chocoholic who loves bacon.
By the way, yeah, I’m aware of the “bacon” teas that some of the Adagio customers have custom blended, but those aren’t bacon teas that have been made with bacon flavoring, instead, they’re teas made with Lapsang Souchong and other teas that are supposed to trick the taste buds into thinking that they’re tasting bacon. Nice idea, I suppose, and I haven’t actually tried those so I don’t know how close to the mark they are.
But I do know that this tastes like smoky bacon to me. As the tea cools slightly, I notice an almost “burnt” kind of flavor to it, kind of like the edges of the bacon that got a little too done. But I like my bacon crisp so it works for me. A good bacon interpretation.
Gingerbread Smoke Black Tea Blend from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
As for this week’s Tea of the Week, I think this is the tribute blend I should have done months ago when I released the Inscape blend. Inscape was maybe a bit too deep and complicated, whereas this one gets right to the heart of the (dark) matter.
If you haven’t read Joe Hill’s new horror novel NOS4A2 (think Nosferatu), you’re missing out. This week’s blend attempts to capture the essence of the insidious Gasmask Man’s terrible gingerbread smoke, which he uses to daze and sedate his victims. The tea is a blend of our premium black teas, ginger root pieces and just a hint of smoked lapsang souchong. It tastes a bit like the gingerbread cookies my mom used to make (she had a habit of burning cookies, but don’t tell her I said so).
Learn more about this blend here.
Learn more about Zoomdweebie’s fundraising campaign to reopen the Tea Bar here.
Taster’s Review:
Recently, 52Teas released a second tribute tea for the horror novel NOS4A2 by Joe Hill … this tea: Gingerbread Smoke Black Tea Blend. And whenever there is something alluding to “smoke” in the name of a tea, I tend to be a little bit cautious. However, because there was also “gingerbread” in the name of this tea, I was actually kind of excited to try it, having LOVED the Gingerbread Chai 52Teas released a few years ago.
And I am loving this Gingerbread Smoke tea too! The smoke is not overwhelming at all. Even when I opened the package and smelled the dry leaf, I didn’t notice an overpowering smoky tone to the fragrance. Some hints of smoke … but certainly nothing that would have set off the alarm for me. The aroma smells of fresh gingerbread – with a well-defined note of ginger – and hints of smoke.
And the flavor is very much the way the scent suggests: spicy-sweet gingerbread with hints of smoke! But before I notice the gingerbread or the smoky notes, I notice the black tea base. It’s a robust yet well-rounded base, providing a satisfying background of tea flavor for these flavors. Rich, earthy, and sweet with caramel notes. Nice.
The gingerbread hits the palate next. I notice a balance of sweet and spicy here. Warm, peppery ginger and a sweet, slightly buttery, cake-like flavor. Then I notice the smoke from the Lapsang Souchong. I like the way the Lapsang Souchong is blended here — there is just enough of a smoky note to let you know that there is some Lapsang Souchong in the blend of teas, but not enough to overpower the balance of flavors.
The smoke adds just enough interest to the cup to make it a not-so-ordinary cuppa … which is exactly what I’ve come to expect from 52Teas!
Time is running out for the fundraising efforts to revive Zoomdweebies. If you haven’t yet contributed … please consider doing so! Check out what I’m talking about here.
Lapsang Souchong Black Tea from English Tea Store
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: English Tea Store
Tea Description:
The Lapsang Souchong China Tea blend from English Tea Store is a smooth crisp character with the remarkable heady aroma of a pine and oak wood fire.
The tea originates from Fujian province. The Fukienese word ‘souchong’ means subvariety – that is a subvariety of other black teas from the Wuyi mountains of Fujian. When Lapsang Souchong was first exported to western European countries and became famous on the international markets – it was no doubt due to the distinct aroma and flavor. Interestingly the best Lapsang is produced in the nature preserve located in the Wuyi mountains where the high mountains with thick pine forests and heavy mist provide the ideal environment for growing top quality tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
As I’ve said on many occasions, I tend to be wary of heavily smoked teas. And Lapsang Souchong … well, it really doesn’t get much smokier than that, does it? This Lapsang Souchong Black Tea from the English Tea Store is so smoky that I could smell the smoke before I even opened the tin that I had it stored in. Smokin’!
The reason for my wariness of smoky teas is that … I find the heavy smoke to be a bit off-putting. It smells to me a bit like a campfire combined with cigar smoke and I’m not … into drinking a liquefied version of that. And as I’ve mentioned a few times, my first few experiences with Lapsang Souchong have not been positive. I have since learned better ways to brew the tea so that I can enjoy it.
Here’s what I do: I bring the water to a boil and then I steep the leaves for about 10 – 15 seconds, and then I strain off the liquid and discard it. A little rinsing of the leaves. Then I steep the tea for 2 1/2 minutes in boiling water, and strain it immediately. From this process, I get a tea that is smoky, but not so smoky that I can’t lift the cup to my lips without feeling put off by the smell of smoke. It smells smoky, it tastes smoky … just not as smoky as I’d experience if I were not to do the rinse and steeped it longer for 2 1/2 minutes.
And when I say I can enjoy the tea … I really do like it! The smoky tones are still very clearly defined, but, I also taste other aspects of this tea that I really like. I taste the caramel-y undertone that sweetens every sip. It has a rich, robust taste to it that is invigorating.
No, Lapsang Souchong is not my favorite tea now. It probably never will be. But I like it now. It’s not something that I’d drink daily, but it’s something that I do enjoy about once a week … and this Lapsang Souchong from English Tea Store is a really pleasant example of a fine tea.