There was a time (when I studied in Yorkshire, UK where I would buy my teas at Betty´s, an “institution” over there for tea and coffee and all events concerning tea and coffee ;-) ) that I drank Lapsang Souchong quite regularly. I remember that even my father liked it although he ´s not at all a tea drinker.
So, I bought this LS from Via del Tè – for old times´sake??? – a few years ago, and hadn´t opened the pouch yet. In nose (for the dry tea leaves) the smoked character is clearly present, and it also steals the show once steeped, both in nose and mouth where it lingers on and on and on, giving a nice smooth finish. The slightly sweet sidenotes present in mouth when actually drinking the tea don´t mess up the experience, and might even make it easier to drink this tea. These also differ from the LS of my memories (Taylors of Harrogate tea), where the black tea backbone was stronger. Nevertheless, this is a solid LS I´ll enjoy a lot over the winter months.
Note : I drink my teas “black”, while a LS in UK is typically enjoyed with milk.
Flavors: Smoke, Tea
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Oh, I drink almost all my teas black. I did not know that they typically add milk to Lapsang in the UK. Ashman does not care for Lapsang, but I wonder if he would find it palatable that way. I may have to test that out on him.
@ashmanra : in UK most of the tea is made using teabags and served in a cup where first of all a bit of milk is poured into, before adding the tea. For instance. until I was 28 I didn´t drink coffee, because my stomach was always upset after trying it. But at home in Belgium my parents drank coffee with milk, and it seems that I have a problem with…milk. As my sister-in-law introduced me to tea and she didn´t add milk, I went to UK and kept to tea w/o milk, and when I arrived in France we used to drink coffee together with the colleagues every morning and also after lunch, and as they didn´t have a fridge, there was no milk…and I discovered that I actually liked coffee, that it didn´t make me ill, but adding milk surely did! BTW, a lot of English Breakfast blends are quite strong, just because it is assumed milk is added.
I am glad you found the milk was the problem so you can enjoy tea now!
Oh, I drink almost all my teas black. I did not know that they typically add milk to Lapsang in the UK. Ashman does not care for Lapsang, but I wonder if he would find it palatable that way. I may have to test that out on him.
@ashmanra : in UK most of the tea is made using teabags and served in a cup where first of all a bit of milk is poured into, before adding the tea. For instance. until I was 28 I didn´t drink coffee, because my stomach was always upset after trying it. But at home in Belgium my parents drank coffee with milk, and it seems that I have a problem with…milk. As my sister-in-law introduced me to tea and she didn´t add milk, I went to UK and kept to tea w/o milk, and when I arrived in France we used to drink coffee together with the colleagues every morning and also after lunch, and as they didn´t have a fridge, there was no milk…and I discovered that I actually liked coffee, that it didn´t make me ill, but adding milk surely did! BTW, a lot of English Breakfast blends are quite strong, just because it is assumed milk is added.
I am glad you found the milk was the problem so you can enjoy tea now!