Happy Lucky's Tea House

First review.

Last night my daughter and 3 teenaged granddaughters (18,16,14) came over for laughter (we seem to laugh till we cry at the dumbest things) and have tea.
I had fresh strawberries from California, cookies, 3 pots of different tea…Czar Nikolas II with Cherry Jam first, then Sweet Potato Pie Tea, ending with this very smoky Lapsang Souchong. I knew that noone had ever tasted anything like this tea before.

When we ended our array of tastings ending with this tea, my youngest granddaughter was absolutely loving it! Only the oldest didn’t prefer it… and thought it was like having a piece of smoked meat. Oh well, everyone else enjoyed it.

Here are the comments:
It tastes like you’re in a cabin in the woods…it brings you to memories of camping or a Winter day when the snow is falling. The smoke is real and not artifical or chemical tasting. Comforting…like having a wood fire in the fireplace and candlelight. I had only steeped a scant teaspoon for 2 minutes for 10 oz.

I’ve added Lapsang Souchong leaves to other tea’s that I wanted smoky like Czar Nikolas II once and in Earl Grey which was good also. I think this would be tasty while eating chocolate so I’ll try that next time. Good tea time.

Went to the tax lady today…got that ordeal over with!!! As a reward (as if I need an excuse) I stopped by Happy Lucky’s Tea House which has THE BEST service in the world! The regular 2 guys are terrific but today was the first intro of a new employee Diana who went out of her way to make sure I’d have a great time. I decided to try something way different than anything I have at home. Smoked Earl Grey. What in the Sam Hill would this taste like? There was a new frosting of snow out the window to look at…and a bamboo tray with a lovely white ceramic pot and cup was brought to my table “another 2 minutes and I’ll be back”, she said. OK. (about 4 min total on the steep I’m guessing). The first pour….transported me to a mountain cabin with a log fire crackling away to warm the room. There was the scent of flowers gently edging in under the smoke from some other room. Comforting but a really big smoke. I wanted some dark chocolate or a pear or aged dry goat cheese with this. The pairing would be the same as some red wines that I love. I added sugar and it brought out the floral in a good way. Diana and I were in cahoots (is this spelled right KAHOOTS?) “Let’s try a second steep and see where it takes us!” (I’m drinking a lot of tea…slosh) but…the second steep was way better…less smoke but not bland at all. So good. Not artificial. I liked this tea. Never thought of drinking anything like this. I did buy another smokier tea to cook with but may return soon for this one to keep forever. Thank’s to Happy Lucky’s for a memorable tea time!

It’s an herbal tea I purchase for road trip tea drinking. It’s floral, minty and is combined with a variety of herbal elements to give it a very earthy smell. It’s strong, almost pungent and bears little resemblance to many things you’ll ever drink. Wouldn’t recommend sweetening it, as that just makes it worse. Just an acquired taste herbal and I’m admittedly not an herbal tea drinker.

I added this tea to steepster after a jaunt to Happy Lucky’s in downtown Fort Collins. The tea masters are good fellows. They brewed up a hefty clay pot of this Velour ( great name) Pu erh and we talked and I sipped a 3 minute steeped brew with hot milk. So nice to have a tea bar with stools so high I can’t touch the floor and I’m tall! I got to put my big nose WAY into the big tin of Pu erh to get the bang of scent dry…and I could pinpoint where I smelled that scent before…in the barrel room at the winery! Old damp and cool barrels with dust in the corner and humid. The soury good smell. The dirt smell. Wow. The smell is something soily. The 3 minute steep with hot milk created a mocha cup that was not too bold, a bit smoky and not too weak either. Liked it. If this had been wine I would have been drunk! It was a big pot!

This is a local Fort Collins Colorado Tea House blend. Not too bad but a bit weaker than what I’ve been drinking. Heavy on the almond flavor which makes it a bit bitter. Would like this with less almond and vanilla and maybe a more caramel note. Just not that fond of it. Oh well. The tea house it awesome though. Service is great and they have a ton of other tea’s.