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I purchased 3oz of Lapsang from Adagio, but its not quite as strong as I'm accustomed to. The local tea shop here has recently closed and I was wondering if anyone know of a good place on the internet to get a stronger flavored Lapsang Souchong?

I am patiently waiting the response...

Great question.

Peet's sells a fairly stout Lapsang.

http://www.peets.com/shop/tea_detail.asp?id=65&cid=2002

Thanks for the info. Something I already like about Peets is the fact they ship tea in tins, which seems to be a rarity these days. Since shipping is $8, I plan to order some other tea with a tin of Lapsang. Do you have any recommendations?

Their Assam Extra Fancy is always a good wake-me-up tea. Consistent from year to year. The Lion Mountain Keemun and Yunnan Fancy are also very solid black teas. The Holiday Breakfast Blend is usually pretty good. I'd stick with black tea and blends. The greens and oolongs can be hit or miss.

edit: I haven't had Peets LS in a few years, but I assume its still the fairly assertive version that they've carried for ages.

By stronger, do you mean more smoky, or having a more powerful black tea character (i.e. more bitter, stronger aroma, more caffeinated?)?

I find that the better Lapsang Souchongs almost all tend to be extremely mellow, with very little bitterness. They're also all low in caffeine because souchongs are made from large, mature leaves. If you want a stronger black tea character, you might want to look at a blend (like Russian caravan) or blend some yourself.

I'm mainly looking for stronger smoke flavors.

AlexZorach wrote:By stronger, do you mean more smoky, or having a more powerful black tea character (i.e. more bitter, stronger aroma, more caffeinated?)?

I find that the better Lapsang Souchongs almost all tend to be extremely mellow, with very little bitterness. They're also all low in caffeine because souchongs are made from large, mature leaves. If you want a stronger black tea character, you might want to look at a blend (like Russian caravan) or blend some yourself.

I'd also love a somewhat stronger TEA character - without the oolong like palette - any hints ?? Without blending...

And, BTW, Merry Tea Xmas

Jing Tea Shop sells a nice, mellow Lapsang Souchong which has good red tea flavor.

As for a Lapsang with a higher level of smokiness... sorry, I don't know, since I think that overwhelming smoke flavor does not necessarily identify a good Lapsang.

John dan... wrote:I'm mainly looking for stronger smoke flavors.

Lapsang Souchong Strong Smoke Black Tea 2009 from seven cups. Got some in 2008.

$8.48/100g. Can get 50g too. If this isn't smokey enough for you I don't know what is
It's actually better then I expected (though I did air it out a lot and let it sit. Has a slight malty sweetness, light body. Not particularly smooth going down though. I bought some keemun too so I could mix them and that's what I ended up doing, too smokey for me on its own though. Also good to mix a pinch with other fuller more complex blacks if you want a hint of smokiness on top.

This is the smokiest thing I have ever had.

http://www.teaspring.com/Smoked-Lapsang-Souchong.asp

Just a few leaves added to 4g (for 12oz cup) of Anhui Keemun and it takes on a very smoky flavor. I could not imagine making this straight.