Lapsang Souchong Wild Black Tea (Ye Sheng Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong)

Tea type
Black Tea
Ingredients
Black Tea Leaves
Flavors
Caramel, Chocolate, Honey, Almond, Amaretto, Cocoa, Malt, Roasty, Stevia, Sweet, Sweet Potatoes, Caramelized Sugar, Wet Dog, Wet Earth, Mineral, Smooth, Orange Zest, Tangy, Autumn Leaf Pile, Bread, Brown Sugar, Cherry, Cinnamon, Cream, Creamy, Dried Fruit, Meat, Molasses, Tart, Thick, Fruity, Orange, Spices, Umami, Candy, Yams, Winter Honey, Yeast, Maple Syrup, Raisins, Tea, Black Currant, Blackberry, Raspberry, Berries, Dark Chocolate, Rose
Sold in
Bulk
Caffeine
Medium
Certification
Not available
Edit tea info Last updated by Shae
Average preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 3 min, 0 sec 4 g 17 oz / 488 ml

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47 Tasting Notes View all

From Teavivre

Strong honey and caramel flavor

Lapsang Souchong Wild Black Tea is known as Cai Cha Lapsang Souchong by the local people. You might assume that all lapsang souchong teas have a bitter, smoky taste, as long as you have some knowledge of the traditional pine-tree drying process used to make it; this time, however, since this is both a high-quality and semi-wild tea, this particular type has amazing unique characters and no hint of bitterness in its flavor.

Unlike other wild teas, TeaVivre’s wild lapsang souchong gives off a strong dried longan aroma, with a smooth drinking feeling without any astringency. The unusual wild undertone, mellow taste, and reddish liquid brought out by the traditional rolling process all contribute to its exotic and unique flavor. Once you drink this tea, you will never forget about it.

Recommend Brewing Method

Cup Method
Teacup: 12oz / 355ml
194℉ / 90℃
2 Teaspoons / 3g Tea
Brewing time: 3 – 5 mins

Chinese Gongfu Method
Gaiwan: 3.8oz / 110ml
194℉ / 90℃
5g Tea
5 steeps: rinse, 5s, 5s, 10s, 15s, 30s
Rinse time is around 5 seconds

Origin:
Wuyi Mountain, Fujian Province, China

Season:
Spring Tea

Dry Leaf:
Leaves are thick, robust, tightly rolled strips

Aroma:
Smelling of pleasant Longan aroma

Liquor:
Bright and clear reddish orange

Taste:
Strong flavor of honey & caramel aroma, smooth and rich mouthfeel, leaving an impression of sweet potato taste

Tea Bush:
Wild Caicha

Tea Garden:
Tongmu Tea Garden in Tongmu Village, located north of the Wuyi Mountain National Nature Reserve, is the source of the Jiuqu Stream scenic spot of the Wuyi Mountain, and also the hometown of Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong – the Chinese name for lapsang souchong. The four seasons here are clear, and this region experiences an annual total rainfall of greater than 2300mm on average. The tea here is grown in a semi-wild environment, lush with mountain forests spanning about 315,000mu, and at an altitude between 1000 and 1500 meters. The sea of clouds, rich vegetation, and crystal mountain springs come together to establish the marvelous scenery here, and make this land especially suitable for tea cultivation. Along with tea, bamboo is also an important industry in Tongmu.

Caffeine:
Less than 40% of a cup of coffee

Storage:
Store in airtight, opaque packaging; in cool, dry place

Shelf Life:
36 Months

https://www.teavivre.com/lapsang-souchong-wild-black-tea.html

About Teavivre View company

Company description not available.

47 Tasting Notes

82
537 tasting notes

Backlog – sipdown actually 6/16
unsmoked version of this tea
small twisty leaves that smell of chocolate
2min, 205F
chocolate

dry smells – bready, yam, cocoa
1. 3min 212F – yam, cocoa, fruit
2. 3 min 200F – fruit, sweet, coating as it cools
3. 4 min 200F – candy sweetness, fruit, juicy, small sour note in background.

It’s a better at a little lower temperature. But this tea is pretty old now and a lot of the flavor has been lost. Still I wonder, why would you smoke this tea? I might order some more to try.

Flavors: Candy, Cocoa, Fruity, Sweet, Yams

ashmanra

I love this tea. It is really great unsmoked.

hawkband1

I was surprised at how much I liked this. The smoked Lapsang seems like a waste. I have some and I’ll never drink it. Way too strong :(

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79
15477 tasting notes

tea from earlier this morning. On my own today and tomorrow for the most part to get whatever i can done around the house that isn’t super strenuous. Though husband dearest would prefer it if i just spent the weekend reading and playing video games while drinking tea. heh. I just can’t bring myself to do nothing to help us get organised. it’s not in my nature. Started the day with this one and it was a really pleasant cup. started out with notes of cocoa in it, and as it cooled became a little more fruity. Still a good cup :)

gmathis

How are you feeling?

Sil

Doing really well. I have very little to complain about. In to week 34, still working and getting around, just a lot slower than I’d like haha. Sleeping still for the most part and no major aches. :) Bean is treating mama well.

ashmanra

This is a fantastic tea. Bean will have such good taste.

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90
38 tasting notes

Have you ever tried a tea so bad that it traumatized you for the entire variety and you thought you’d never drink one again?

I felt that way about Lapsand Souchong until I tried this one.

Unlike every other one I’ve tried, “smokey” is not the first word that comes to mind. Instead, it reminds me rather of the smell of boiling wort (beer being made before it becomes alcohol): yeast, molasses, malt, and a hint of something slightly earthy and infinitely pleasant.

The flavor hits the front of my tongue with a smooth, coating sense of buttery-ness, turning to the sweet flavor of warm molasses as it hits the middle. By the back, I get a mild astringency and loam-y scent and flavor.

From being horrified by lapsangs in general, this tea has totally turned me around! I’d be happy to have it on my shelves.

Flavors: Malt, Molasses, Sweet, Wet Earth, Winter Honey, Yeast

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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98
171 tasting notes

Today I was craving a good black iced tea. This… is really good!
I brewed it hot and poured it between a few containers to cool it down before pouring it over ice. It’s just as great of an experience, but different. I will need to make this more often, now that I have my own supply of wild unsmoked Lapsang Souchong! The malt is very strong, and so are the sweet honey notes. Mmm!

Flavors: Honey, Malt, Sweet

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 3 min, 15 sec 3 tsp 16 OZ / 473 ML
Kawaii433

I can’t wait to try this one. I have it in stock. Working on sipdowns right now. >.<

Mastress Alita

It’s a good one. I haven’t tried it iced yet, but I’ve been sipping down an ice wine flavored black at the moment.

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90
75 tasting notes

Lately I’ve been trying to finish off some of my samples, and avoid buying tons of new tea for a little while, but I’ll definitely get this when the opportunity appears. I’m finding I really love teas from the Fuijan region, because they seem to have that chocolatey/sweet profile I like so much. I expected this one to be smokey, since I think I’ve only ever had smoked lapsang souchong, but it’s instead a soft, toasty flavor. I loved it utterly.

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89
289 tasting notes

If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought this was a Laoshan Black Tea. It tastes of chocolate and malt. I was surprised at how small the leaves are given that it is a wild grown tea. It is quite tasty.

Sil

Interesting!

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94
226 tasting notes

What an interesting tea. I got it as a free sample from Teavivre. It cannot be farther away from the smoked version. The dry leaf has an intense sweet smell of blackberry, raspberry and malt. After steeping it for 45 secs in a gaiwan it developed a nice amber color and an incredibly sweet taste of forest berries, malt, spices and honey. Both the taste and the smell are quite complex, well balanced, and powerful.

I do not remember having anything like that before. It is probably the sweetest tea I ever tasted, with the long spicy and bitter aftertaste. This tea grabs your attention from the very beginning – as soon as you put it in a Cha He – and keeps it well after you finished the cup. It is a great tea to have a conversation over, as well as being a “lift me up” cuppa.

With the repeated infusions (starting with the 4th) the taste profile becomes simpler and less balanced: bread, biscuit and malt come forward, while berries and honey disappear. It also becomes sourish. So, you can get 3-4 good steeps and that’s that but those steeps are totally worth it.

I will most certainly order it again and put it into a heavy rotation. This is the tea that you offer to your Lipton teabag friends to demonstrate what they are missing, to recruit and convert.

Flavors: Black Currant, Blackberry, Bread, Honey, Malt, Raspberry, Spices

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 0 min, 45 sec 4 g 100 OZ / 2957 ML

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96
676 tasting notes

I wasn’t expecting much from this inexpensive sample but the taste and aroma of this tea really caught me by surprise. Out of the bag, an explosion of dark chocolate and molasses hits your nose. Placed in a heated pot, the dry leaves emit aromas of ovaltine and s’mores. The steeped tea has a complex and wonderful chocolatey flavor that reminds me of Laoshan black tea. But there’s so much more to it than just chocolate. I also detected hints of rose, berries, and a little sweet potato earthiness in the finish. Normally I don’t care for the sweet potatoey note found in Dian Hongs however here’s it’s subtle and balanced. There’s no smokiness to this Lapsang at all, just a lingering caramel like sweetness.

The flavor does fade quicker than I’d like. By the fourth steep most of the flavor had been drained. Nevertheless, this is really an exceptional tea for the price and one that I will definitely repurchase.

Flavors: Berries, Caramel, Cocoa, Dark Chocolate, Rose, Sweet Potatoes

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 30 sec 3 g 5 OZ / 160 ML

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100
152 tasting notes

This tea has a nice bready aroma. It is rich and sweet with flavors of raisin bran cereal, molasses, and maple syrup. I really enjoy the flavor of this tea. It has a nice balance to it and a pleasing aftertaste.

Flavors: Bread, Maple Syrup, Molasses, Raisins

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 g 5 OZ / 147 ML

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3294 tasting notes

Teavivre makes a really lovely smokey Lapsang Souchong, one of my favorites, and although I know that all Lapsangs aren’t smokey, I kind of assumed this one would be.
It is not smokey, but it is delicious!
I dumped the 7G sample into a 16oz teapot and steeped 3 min, resteeped 5min.
The aroma of the leaf is sweet, bready, fruity, and a little floral.
The tea is essentially the same: honey, molasses, malt, stone fruit, and roses (in the 2nd steeping). I’ll have to remember to add some of this to my next Teavivre order.

Comm Guy

Sounds interesting. I just learned about Lapsang Souchong and assumed it was all smoky…

Fjellrev

Sounds like my kind of LS haha.

Terri HarpLady

Lapsang Souchong, aka Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong, is the name used for a black tea coming from Wuyi, Fujian. It’s made from the 4th & 5th leaves, instead of the 2 leaves and a bud preferred for most black teas. It is also supposedly the first tea in history, according to some sources. I used to think it was always smokey as well, but I’ve enjoyed some really tasty non-smoked versions too :)

Comm Guy

Interesting. And informative. When I was waist deep in coffee, I used to just call all of it “tea”. The more I learn, the more I realize how little I ever knew.

ashmanra

Comm Guy – I have some of this one if you want to try it!

Terri HarpLady

Yunnan Sourcing also has some really tasty non-smokey Zheng Shan Xiao Zhongs, although I don’t have any on hand at this time. I’m overdue for a YS order.

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