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PaperclipPerfector  1yr ago (text post)   2260 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for June 30, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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Ha! An amazing experience, thanks for sharing. I would like to hear the old crone story at some point down the line as well, if you ever feel like telling it. The most obscure tea I have had is Lapsang Souchong which some call "bacon tea" and which was purportedly Churchill's favorite tea. I measured out a bag of it last time I was in the US (though it is a Chinese tea it is hard as hell to find in Japan). I have to keep it wrapped in said bag and locked in a metal tin to contain the odor--which I like, but which is a bit potent. Never had any groovy experiences drinking it, but a hot cup of it is great, nothing at all like the usual Earl Grey (that I also enjoy.) Did you ever get any names of those teas you drank?

Hah, Lapsang Souchong is a flavor blast to be sure! I like it from time to time, but my favorite use for it is actually to steep it in bourbon for a day to get a more complex, smokey Old Fashioned out of it.

No other tea I know of is so deliberately and strongly smoked, but some very rural/single family teas still have a bit of a smokey aroma from having been dried just in the rafters of their family homes, which tend to accumulate smoke from cooking or heating fires.

The specific teas we were drinking are long gone - they were aged Pu'erh teas, which like wine are sold by grove and year, each production being a small and local affair, and many were several decades old at that point. But you can find various ones like them, say, here - https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/aged-raw-pu-erh-tea

I stay stocked up on them, imho it's the most interesting genre of tea out there. Stark and bitter, though! It's an ascetic enjoyment.

Rock Oolong and Dragon Well are two excellent teas that will also reliably give you a tea buzz, but if you're in Japan a high-quality Sencha can do the same. Wouldn't try with Lapsang or Earl grey, you're gonna blast out your taste buds and stomach before you get close.

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