Lapsang Souchong Review

[silvermage2000]

I have not tried I't.

[brad4419]

I don't really know. What I had before, all had fairly strong smokey taste. The smoked kind, I almost like it, but I feel almost as guilty as smoking (even though I never smoke), especially the smokey flavor is from real pine smoke, which makes me feel drinking this tea almost equals smoking If I get a chance, I would like to try some non-smoked souchong.

Even some dark roasted dan cong and some other dark oolongs, I like them in one way, but feel if I were a smoker, I might have liked them even more.

Don't worry about the smoke because your not really inhailing the actual smoke from the burning wood, its just the smokes flavoring of the leaves coming out in the infused tea.

The only thing to feel guilty about is when you run out of lapsang souchong

[gingkoseto]

As you wouldn't eat BBQ everyday, lapsang souchong shouldn't be an every day tea in my opinion, but it can be enjoyed every once in a while.

I feel the same, somewhat like it, as long as not having it too often.

Don't worry about the smoke because your not really inhailing the actual smoke from the burning wood, its just the smokes flavoring of the leaves coming out in the infused tea.

The only thing to feel guilty about is when you run out of lapsang souchong

I am not that much worried about health effect. But I somewhat worry that for tea, once I go to the darker and heavier flavor side, there is no way back I definitely drink less and less green tea over years, and sometimes even make decisions to "retreat" to green tea for a few days. Lapsang souchong is definitely one of a kind, and somewhat intimidates me But I haven't got any expensive stuff of lapsang souchong yet, so there is still way to go

[Tea Noob]

I went yes. It was actually the first loose tea I tried. It was sold as Smokey Black at a local tea shop and I ordered it up because it was a black tea. Boy was it. I haven't had it since but that is probably because I have tried about 30-40 teas in the few months since.

I agree that inhaling smoke and ingesting a smoke flavored item are totally different things. However, sometimes you can ingest certain things that give you the same effect as smoking them. So I hear...

[Intuit]

Not sure if I had the "real deal" years ago when I first tried it. Whatever I had, the flavor was a real turnoff. However, I'm also convinced that one try of a type tea isn't sufficient to know if you're going to like it or not.

Part of the problem is accustomizing your palate to a new flavor, I guess. I've also wondered if flavor preferences shift over the seasons.

Teas sampled from two other notably smoky types- Keemun and a standard blend, Russian Caravan, have varied *enormously* in character, quality and preference. Revisiting these teas when purchased from different vendors was a wakeup call because I found myself liking them again after having several batches of off-putting teas -maybe due to use of different smoking sources/processes/tea quality???

[shardy53]

I received my samples of Lapsang Souchong and a milder Smokey Russian Caravan today. The aroma of smoke filled the air the second i opened the samples. I started with the milder Russian Caravan and made a cupfull. I will not make a descision about this tea untill I have tried it a few times and experiment with it a bit. I love smoked salmon and hickery BBQ so I should like this tea. It certaintly is not for the faint of heart though.

Steve

[rspear]

It is actually one of my favorite teas. I do like Russian Caravan a lot and have had some blends containing lapsang as well. I was kind of apprehensive when I first tried it because the smell was so smokey but I really do enjoy it. I like the smokey taste and really enjoy it with a little mandarin or apricot tea added. My husband really likes it too and so far I haven't been able to get him into tea yet. He is still a die hard coffee drinker but he will drink lapsang. So that is a start...

[lydia]

I prefer the light pleasant smoky taste in Keemum. Lapsang is too strong for me.

[Eugene]

I love the smokey aroma and earthy taste of Lapsang Souchong and its my all time favorite.

[Victoria]

The Seven Cups Bohea is very good, very light smokiness and
a mild flavor.

[silverneedles]

i love bbq, smoked salmon, smoked meat etc,
but drinking lapsang was gross

[entropyembrace]

I love Lapsang Souchong! though there are some cheap imitations out there that aren't enjoyable...smoking low quality leaves does not make a good Lapsang...

The best has always been those that are 100% from the Wu Yi region, so that's what I look for when I buy, also the leaves should look quite a bit like a good quality Keemun. The aroma for me is warm and comforting and the taste is sweet with strong notes of dried fruit along with the smoked flavour.

Also this is a good tea to age! I have small quantities of both 2005 and 2007 Lapsang Souchong from Wu Yi. At nearly two years old the smoke aroma is begining to fade and I find there is a better balance between the smoke and dried fruit notes in the taste. At nearly 4 years old the dried fruit is the dominant flavour and the smoke aroma and taste has faded to a strong hint like you would expect from a charcoal roasted tea and it's begining to take on some dry stored sheng pu-erh characteristics with hints of leather and chocolate and a silky smooth mouthfeel from the very thick tea liquor.

This year I plan to buy a large quantity of fresh Lapsang Souchong along with some airtight jars in which to age some myself.