Angry Black Tea Sampler

From Daylon! When I read your descriptions, I thought these would be great for a friend, so I dipped a sample from each and sent them on their angry way.

6 Japanese black teas, 5 of which have some level of smoky intrigue.

Dark Peach
Smokey, woodsy, smooth but also too astringent and thin for me to appreciate. Salty, bitter-dark tannins. Cloaked fruit. Cream gives a slight smoked meat flavor and draws the fruit out but the liquor is ultimately too thin to handle cream.

May Black
Papery, woodsy, did I write pulpy? Bold, fruity and floral but thin. Starchy, malty and buttery smooth but also astringent. Tastes like ‘tea’. Dry leaf scent and liquor aroma hold much more intrigue than what I experience in the mouth. In the dry leaf, there is old, whitened chocolate, berries, twigs and malt; in the liquor, I finnd a chocolately-woodsy aroma but also a really, smooth Darjeeling lilt of muscatel, apricot and vanilla. Too disjointed for my liking.

Cacao Smoke
Dark and dirty and oily. Bold and smooth. Ashy-smoky, bitter, earthy. I love it. Old mechanic shop being swallowed by overgrowth in a humid forest, an ashtray tucked somewhere in the undergrowth. The taste of staring into pitch black, no stars. Cream brings that cacao to front but also makes the tea almost too oily.

King
Fruity whiskey, smooth smoked meat. Has a nice astringency. This one’s a winner, too. No doubt why this is called King. Well done!

Yuzu Cloud
Slightly sweet smoked sausage with fruit — pineapple? Dark, smooth, light astringency, salty, fruity. This one is noticeably cooling in the mouth which adds a welcome dimension.

Whiskey Cloud 9
Whiskey like in King but milder, smoke is more like smoked salmon and more prominent but still smooth.

I’m pretty certain these are all teas that are sold by a Japan-based vendor well known around these parts.

I got these today, and they actually ran out of a few them and sent me a lovely note. I’m going to reach back to them for clarification because there were specific teas I wanted to try out that weren’t sent, specifically the Yuzu Cloud and Sakura Cloud, but the letter says there will be no additional charge for the send out for them. That is generous. Even the selection is generous.

So I got Cacao Smoke, Whiskey Cloud 9, May Black, Dark Peach, and their King blend. All of them smell bold and since they’re smoked, they have Lapsang Vibes. All of them were leathery and smokey and smooth, making me wonder if the company almost went for Kinky Black Teas as a name instead. I know, insensitive, but there is some nuance to the leaves so far.

I’m actually leaning more towards the May Black, but I was in the mood for some cocoa, and tried out the Cacao smoke to help me power through grading as I have Covid….again. This time, I actually have taste buds, so I’ll take the win.

I rinsed it, and it sat for about a minute. Bold, but not astringent, some definite cacao nib taste and powder character, a little bit woodsy, and light smoke. I was surprised it was not lapsang levels, and it was actually really, really smooth. It had a little bit of bitterness, so I decided to add some sweet cream oat milk. The profile kinda reminded me of a Hojicha latte with some of its dark charcoal woodiness and earth mixed with the sweet cream. I brewed up another cup western for 2-3 minutes, tried it black without any additions before adding cream. More cacao, and some roasty peanut vibes. Surprisingly more complex with the cream, and more chocolaty, and it doesn’t lose the charcoal or woodsiness.

That one is a little bit strong for my taste despite being a lot more approachable for a big o’ softy like me, but it kicks most breakfast teas butts out of the coast. The oatmilk creamer is making it sing. I don’t think it would be bad gong fu either, and this has a caffeine kick. I’m feeling a little bit jittery after having some. I’ll play around with it, and the others. I’ll probably share some of this with a certain someone I know.