Samovar

This is a VERY SMOKY SMOKY tea and a perfect wake-me-up cup. As this tea is very intense, I added a shot of milk and some sugar to temper the smoky flavor. This is no problem for me as this is my custom for my first cup in the morning.. Without the milk, I would imagine this LS would be almost undrinkable…..On the other hand, if this were a milder LS, it wouldn’t be bold enough for the milk addition….

After reading the other reviews, Golden Moon’s LS is a milder option and one that I am interested in sampling and braving a taste milk-free…

Lap three. The self-talk, or more like self-prattle, that is going on right now is along the lines of “you can do it, do another one! Do Lupicia! Do American Tea Room!” While this may be appropriate while running actual laps, it seems clearly obsessive and possibly gastro-intestinal suicide when talking about a comparison tasting of a tea with this flavor profile.

The Samovar offering looks much like the Life in Teacup in color and leaf size. The dry leaves smell of smoke (quelle surprise!), more smoke than ash, but also have a salty meaty tang. Beef jerky more than bacon. It gives the impression of heartiness.

It steeps deep, dark and clear. Brandy, or maybe single malt scotch in color. It’s been so long since I had either that I can’t remember which is darker. :-P It’s the darker one.

The aroma is where it starts to get really interesting for comparison purposes. Underneath the smoke is the signature Samovar malty sweetness, with the beef jerky note roller skating figure eights through the rest of the aroma.

What an interesting flavor this is. It’s literally beefy. It’s smoky bouillon. It’s smooth smoky boullion with a sweet, almost wine-like, sugary undertone. I’m thinking of beef bourguignon now for some reason, though it really doesn’t taste that grapey. It has a very nice aftertaste. Sweet, smoky, and cooling to the mouth. It is, I’d say, full-bodied.

So now I have a dilemma. I don’t know where to rate this, comparatively. I like it quite a bit. But I also like the GM and I may have used too much water there. I’m not sure which I like better and maybe I’d like the GM better if I’d steeped it better. I have a feeling the Life in Teacup version is closer to the accepted lapsang souchong standard, just from what I’ve read about it in books. But these others are nice, too, and who says there isn’t room for interpretation. And I’ve only tasted three. I’m starting to work myself up into anxiety over this. Takes deep breath and exhales smoke. Maybe I should have a cup of tea and relax.

Final result, I’m calling it a tie with the LIT.

Thank you so much to LORI for sending me a sample of this tea. I can understand why many drinkers rave about it and I can also understand the audacity of the name “ecstasy”. The flavors are very complex and in some ways contradictory:

The aroma and taste remind me of an exotic market where one is besieged by a plethora of odor. The fish stand abuts the chocolate-covered fruits and the artisanal breads are next to a display of dripping honey. The garden soil is adjacent to the herbs and spices. It’s a mélange, and a very good one at that. I would say that the “earthy” aroma and taste predominate over the others. I could close my eyes and be carried away to the exotic bazaar of world flavours and foods.

I’m looking forward to multiple steepings.

Backlog. Let’s call this one Sipdown no. 2 of November 2019 (no. 107 of 2019 total, no. 595 grand total).

This was the last tea I sipped down before I fell off of tea for a while.

Three observations. One: I did ok in sipdowns for 2019, but I am a bit annoyed with myself for not making my goals each month. Also annoyed that I got all the way to November and then didn’t finish out the year. As it is already the third month of 2020, I’m not going to count sipdowns monthly this year, but I’ll count them as they occur (if any do — at this rate who knows).

Second, this tea didn’t age well at all. I usually don’t notice a lot of difference over time with teas. I have great storage capabilities and live in a climate that allows me to avoid humidity. But this one — no.

That sweetness that I remarked upon when I first tried this was totally gone, and all I could taste was a ricy flavor which, without the sweet green to offset it, was like drinking dissolved rice krispies and not wonderful. At least I have the memory of it when it was fresh recorded. I think the fact that this was not pleasant was what led me to an off tea period in the first place, which is surprising as I do love my Samovar teas.

Third, with this sipdown I am now at 17 cupboard pages. WOOT!

While I was waiting for the water to heat up to black tea temp this morning I thought I’d give this a try, since I’d seen a flurry of notes and comments about it recently.

Interesting. The dry mixture looked and smelled identical to the Den’s Genmaicha Extra Green. Seriously, I couldn’t find a difference, except perhaps that the Den’s leaves were a bit longer. I liked that one pretty well, so I expected to like this about as much.

The first departure was in the steeping instructions and in fairness, I really should do a side by side comparison of the Den’s using the same steeping parameters. That one called for 30 seconds/boiling, but I followed the instructions on the Samovar sample packet and used cooler water for a longer time with the Ryokucha. The liquor of the Ryokucha was reminiscent of the Den’s but not as atomic-green. More of a chartreuse.

The nose was toasty rice, as expected. But the defining characteristic for me is something Ricky mentioned and that I echo. The sweetness. There’s a green, juicy sweetness to this that dances with the rice flavor in a really interesting way. It’s almost like a very very light soy sauce. Or the aftertaste of edamame. In any case, I’m not sure it’s crack (I guess that’s what they all say the first time) but it’s worth getting to know. I do like it a bit better than the Den’s on this try, but I will go back when I get more of this and do a side by side to be sure it’s not just the Olympic effect (i.e., that the last to go tend to get the higher marks).

This tea brews up to a neon retro lime green. What fun I thought! I had high hopes for this tea based on the reviews and my positive experience with Samovar. But, alas, I just don’t like genmaicha tea. I can’t get over the liquid popcorn taste. Worst, as I take my tea with sugar usually, the addition of sugar, only turns this into liquid kettle corn….

This seems like a fine version of a genmaicha although not my type. I will set my numerical rating to reflect the consensus so I don’t skew the ratings….

I know this is a poor excuse for a tasting note but I completely ditto/agree with Ricky’s note on this particular tea. It just tastes like tea to me I wanted to taste the sweet potatoey goodness, bakey taste others describe about this tea but I’m not getting that I mean maybe vaguely I’m getting that but not as much as I do with Golden Monkey. I also do not care for darjeelings and this maybe why I’m not crazy about it.

Thanks to AUGGY who sent me a generous sample of this. I thought I would probably like it because I’m fond of sencha and genmaicha. The roasted rice adds a very nice nutty flavor to these teas which always seems to result in an irresistible aroma and taste.

I am not on the fence at all, but I do have quite a few other genmaichas that I like. I’m going to give this one another go. It may be essential to keep it in stock. It’s salty-malty; it’s ricey-nicey; it’s sweet and beautiful. Splendid aftertaste, too.

Another sample from the order I received last week.

In reading the ingredients, one might think that this is kind of like a green chai tea with peppermint, but, it doesn’t taste like a chai to me. The peppermint is the strongest flavor here, and the other spices in the blend act more as an enhancement or an accent for the peppermint than as the basis for a chai blend.

Either way, it’s quite tasty. I like the ginger in this blend especially, it has a pleasant, peppery kick to it – a nice contrast with the crisp, vibrant flavor of the peppermint. The green tea base really is just that – a base, but not much definition to it.

Overall, though, a pleasant and soothing cup.

(Tea 2 of 8 in the my-boyfriend-is-awesome series)

This tea is utterly confusing. When you take a sip, it tastes plain and grassy, but after you swallow it, a sudden sweetness creeps up your throat out of nowhere!

If I drink it unsweetened, it’s not sweet enough for me. If I add sweetener, it tastes fine while drinking it but the aftertaste is almost medicinal.

I honestly can’t tell whether I like this tea or not, so an inconclusive rating of 50/100 seems only appropriate.

Fantastic! – very berry – very fruity – very tasty … I had a sample pouch that I finally used this afternoon. I’m hooked and I will be buying a tin

I’m not sure what it is about this tea, but I find the flavor/texture amazing! The first tangy sip surprises me every single time. I have to be in the right mood to drink it (and I swear, despite the lack of caffeine it always makes me need to pee) — but when I am, it’s, well — fun. A really fun tea, if you like different and tangy.

One of my favorite white teas for the days where I want something more subtle and less sweet. Very smooth.

Lately I’ve been experimenting with adding a little bit of jasmine pearl tea in and the two mix remarkably well!

As Lauren suggested, I decided to enjoy my sample of this tea that I received a few days ago… and I’m glad I am!

I love Yunnan tea. In fact, I think it may be my favorite black tea variety. But then, it’s hard for me to pinpoint a favorite right now, I’ve tasted so many outstanding black teas. This absolutely belongs in that category.

There is just something about this Yunnan’s complexity that draws me in. Earthy, sweet, and wine-like. Deep, intriguing notes of pepper and other spices that are hidden within the sweeter flavors of fruit and roasted nut. Caramel… and I am also detecting a deep, earthy cacao note. Delicious!

I am writing my review of this tea for the Tea Review Blog as I write this tasting note… This tea absolutely deserves high marks – it is incredible! I look forward to the infusions to follow…

Now this is a tea to start your day! Yes the does start off smoky (and strongly smoky) but rounds off to other non smoky tea flavors. And even though sometimes I may let it steep for >5 minutes, still does not taste bitter or astringent…

Now my daughter tried this one and prior to tasting said," Mom, this smells like beef jerky!" but after she tasted, “Hmmm,,,this does not taste like beef jerky. Wow! This is good….”

One problem- As I am new to world of smoky teas and based on the reviews, I may have been spoiled early by this excellent blend …

Having just finished cups of Black Orchid by Mariage Freres and Starry Night by the Jade Teapot, I’ve turned to this one as the third in my tale of three vanillas.

The dry leaves look quite a bit like the Black Orchid. The color is similar and you can see vanilla beans in this one, too. I’d venture to say that the leaves of Black Orchid are slightly longer, which is probably owing to a difference in the variety of black tea used.

And that’s where the similarities end. I get the same chocolate note from the dry leaves of the Dian Hong that someone else mentioned instead of the amazing vanilla that came out of the Black Orchid. This, however, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s just a different thing. The aroma of the tea also has a chocolatey note — in any case, it is not overwhelmingly vanilla, though I can smell some vanilla in it. Mostly what it has going for it is that aromatic Samovar black smell that is common to all of the black teas of theirs I’ve tried. It’s a brown sugary, malty, smooth, delicious foundation for all the other flavors to frolic on and among.

The two notes here, chocolate and vanilla, are like two for the price of one. If you’re looking for a vanilla flavored tea, you’d probably be more satisfied with the Black Orchid, which is classically vanilla flavored. But if you’re looking for something with vanilla flavor and something more, give this a try.

I’m not sure which I prefer to tell you the truth. Both this and the Mariage Freres Black Orchid are exemplary blends. Black Orchid is a Rembrandt, this is a Jackson Pollack. Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t. I’m calling it a tie.

Woo Hoo! My samples from Samovar arrived today! I ordered several samples, this is the first one that I’m going to try…

As the package does suggest and since it worked so well with the Vinegar tea that I tasted earlier, I chose to pre-rinse this tea, and then steep at a lower temperature for 3 minutes.

The aroma is amazing. The dry leaves remind me very much of a flowery Oolong. However, when it’s brewed, the liquor is buttery, nutty, earthy, floral, fruity with a nice note of muscatel that I adore in a Darjeeling – but I don’t ever recall noticing in an Oolong! Remarkable! There is also a savory cocoa note to this tea’s fragrance. This may very well be one of the best smelling “unflavored” teas I’ve ever had the opportunity to smell. (It always seems weird to me to refer to teas as “unflavored” as I have found such remarkable complexity of flavors within a high quality “unflavored” tea)

And it tastes incredible! I am not going to suggest that it’s my favorite Oolong but it is an extraordinary Oolong that I really like a lot. So much, in fact, that I may just have to break down and purchase a larger quantity of these leaves.

A delightful Oolong – I look forward to many great infusions with this one!

This was pretty interesting… very full-bodied and bold. The smokiness was surprisingly yummy, and the sweetness sneaks out from behind the smokiness as a lovely afterthought. I think I may need more of this tea…

Iced :)

This has become part of my nightly ritual – started to run out already 0_0