Fruity Lapsang Souchong

Of the two unsmoked lapsangs from Trident that Daylon sent me, this is the one I was most looking forward to trying. Anything with “fruity” in the name sounds promising to me! I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml porcelain pot at 195F for 7, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some uncounted steeps.

The aroma of the dry leaves is of blackberry, lemon, roses, lavender, malt, soy sauce, and wood. The first steep is soft, with notes of blackberry, lemon, honey, roses and other florals, malt, soy sauce, and wood. The tea has a nice, thick body. The second steep is sweeter, and orange, molasses, lavender, more honey, and some tannins are noticeable. The orange, lemon, and blackberry/generic red berry notes are more pronounced in the next couple steeps, though the honey in the aftertaste is a little cloying. I also get whisps of pineapple in the aroma. In the next few steeps, the sweet blackberry, citrus, and honey remain constant, and I get more rose, florals (orchid?), and grass with some tannins. The fruity, floral flavours persist through many steeps, after which the session fades into malt, minerals, tannins, and wood.

This is a lovely lapsang that lives up to its name. I didn’t find it quite as compelling as the Wild Lapsang because I didn’t think it was as well balanced or complex. I liked the rose and blackberry, but it verged on being too sweet in places and the range of fruit wasn’t as wide as that in some other lapsangs I’ve had. Still, it has great longevity and is overall a very nice tea. It’s also from 2019, so the fruit may have been more vibrant a couple years ago. Thanks to Daylon for the sample.

Same flavor notes applied up above, but I’m ready to make a decision on it. It’s very similar to White2tea’s Fruitbomb, albeit older and a little bit more floral. I didn’t realise it’s a 2019 tea, so I need to finish it and or send it to Leafhopper quickly. This is one the teas I intended for the swap, but I hope it’s good enough when it gets to you Leafhopper.

It’s mellowed out a little bit, having a little bit more malt. Honey and blackberry are really obvious with the rosy scent, taste, and even thick texture. There is a little bit of woodiness too, but it’s really pleasant. I can see someone picking up on some tropical fruits every once in a while, because there is something that strikes my palette as guava here and there. It does do well Tumbler style, but it’s best suited for light western or gong fu.

It’s got a bit of a caffeine kick, which is probably why I’m not rating it as higher. I can feel my sinuses and gums after I drink it. So really, this tea has the qi. Unfortunately, it can kick my butt. I still highly recommend this one to anyone really-hits all the flavor notes a newer drinker would be sold by, and has enough complexity and qualities for a tea snob.