I really enjoy a good smokey tea, especially during the winter months and have found it interesting to drink this from Postcard teas. It is made of a blend of Assam, Lapsang and their Beijing Breakfast tea. I have been lucky enough to try and enjoy both their Lapsang and Beijing Breakfast and it is interesting to see how they interact with each other in this blend.
I have brewed in a gaiwan but have used longer infusions and slightly below boiling water. I managed to get 5 good infusions out of the tea, though the first 3 were by far the most rounded and full with later infusions leaning more towards a subtle smoke and mineral flavour with less of the richness and depth of the earlier brews. The earlier brews initially hit you with a good wood smoke taste which was followed by a smooth malty base to the tea with a touch of sweet brown sugar coming through as well.
Even though the tea is mostly about the interaction between the smokey Lapsang and the malty Beijing Breakfast, which is very enjoyable, it has been particularly interesting to note the mineral notes from the wuyi Lapsang coming through on later brews as the malt from the Beijing Breakfast fades away. Perhaps I will have to start making my own smoked blends as well……
Flavors: Malt, Mineral, Smoke, Wood
