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“A wonderful aroma is emitted from the dry leaf. Woodsy. Cleansing. Has the body of a tea from India but the smooth presence of Yunnan. Dark brown with lots of golden strands. The wet aroma has...” Read full tasting note
“I’ll admit I was incredibly ignorant of the tea-making history of Laos, but this beautiful black from Rakkasan has been an eye-opener in more ways than one. This tea is woodsy, full-bodied and has...” Read full tasting note
Lan Xang Black is a large-leaf, sun-dried black tea (known as a “shai hong”) consisting of two leaves and a bud. While most black teas are roasted to stop oxidation, the process for this tea is stopped by drying the leaves in the sun. This technique is little known in the West and it lends the tea characteristics similar to a Pu’erh. The farmer that produces Lan Xang Black oxidizes it in a banana leaf with no machines for oven drying. This tea ages very well over six months or a year, becoming deeper, richer and more complex with time.
About Our Tea From Laos
Bordering China’s famous tea-producing Yunnan Province, Laos is a “cradle country” of tea and home to some of the oldest trees in the world. While Laotian tea is superior, conflict throughout the 20th century harmed the industry. During the Vietnam War, the U.S. secretly dropped more bombs on Laos than were dropped during the entirety of World War II. That devastation largely prevented Laotian tea from reaching U.S. consumers for decades. Fortunately, times have changed.
Our Laotian tea comes from Xiengkhouang Province near Phou San (“the tea mountain”) in the northeast and from the Bolaven Plateau in southern Champasak Province—an area known for its stunning waterfalls. All of our teas from Laos are organically grown in biodiverse environments and carefully hand-crafted by selected artisan families.
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A wonderful aroma is emitted from the dry leaf. Woodsy. Cleansing. Has the body of a tea from India but the smooth presence of Yunnan. Dark brown with lots of golden strands. The wet aroma has notes of sweet honey, decaying wood,
Flavor: Woody. Deep woods. Coniferous and deciduous forest. Slight grapefruit? Malt o meal and slight malt. Smooth mouthfeel with little astringency.
I’ll admit I was incredibly ignorant of the tea-making history of Laos, but this beautiful black from Rakkasan has been an eye-opener in more ways than one.
This tea is woodsy, full-bodied and has an incredibly smooth mouthfeel. It’s reminiscent of an Irish Breakfast tea without that astringent bite at the end and there are notes that remind me of decomposing late-autumn leaves and something that makes me think of mushrooms (though it’s certainly not any flavor in particular).
This feels like a tea you should sip while leafing through a leather-bound book…probably while studying for law school or med school or something equally stressful and prone to creating good in the world.
(and on a personal note it’s heartening to hear that the company “imports solely from carefully selected estates in post-conflict countries as a way to promote peace and economic growth.”)
