What is smoked tea?
The great particularity of smoked tea is that the tea leaves are heated with coniferous wood (often spruce branches) after harvest. This allows the leaves to dry more quickly than in the open air and in the sun. But above all it plays on the taste, giving it great originality.
THE MOST UNIQUE BLACK TEA
Like all black teas, smoked tea undergoes total oxidation. After harvesting, the tea leaves are left in the open air, in a humid atmosphere, causing them to blacken. Oxidation corresponds to the disappearance of chlorophyll, responsible for the green color of plants. The specificity of smoked tea lies in its manufacturing process. After being dried, then rolled, it is placed in baskets, generally made of bamboo, which are placed over a wood fire, following ancestral methods. It is this second drying which gently impregnates it with the vapors of the fire and which gives it its unique taste.
THE EXTRAVAGANT HISTORY OF SMOKED TEA
There are several legends recounting the birth of this tea. The first would say that a tea factory was occupied by the army and that when it left, the planter wanted to dry the tea leaves over a wood fire so as not to lose them. The leaves would have become too oxidized and damaged by remaining in the open air for too long. The tea leaves absorbed the smoke: smoked tea was born! The second legend joins the first, with the same urgency to dry the tea. She says that Chinese tea producers, behind on their delivery deadlines to England, decided to save time by drying the tea leaves by placing them over a spruce fire. The English appreciated this tea with its very special taste and asked for more!
WHAT DOES SMOKED TEA TASTE?
Its taste is very different from other black teas. Depending on the varieties of tea and their production process, the smoky taste will be more or less marked. Some will have earthy or woody notes, close to the taste of mushrooms, barbecue… or whiskey (this is very subjective, depending on the palate!). In short, a particular flavor that will not necessarily please everyone, but which will remind others of walks in the forest!
WHY ARE CERTAIN SMOKED TEAS CONTROVERSIAL?
Certain smoked teas like Lapsang Souchong have caused controversy. In question: the smoking process which releases, through combustion of wood, particles harmful to health, potentially carcinogenic (in the same way as grilling!). This is why the only reference of smoked tea offered by Kusmi Tea is a very lightly smoked tea, which meets the new European regulations. Several studies have, in fact, shown that the harmful particles released during smoking are not found in the tea once infused.
BEWARE OF COUNTERFEITS!
The other danger you will need to be vigilant about is counterfeits, made up of poor quality black tea, sprayed with a spray with a smoky flavor. To avoid them, choose reputable tea houses. Like Kusmi Tea, which only sells organic teas and herbal teas. In addition, it is in France, in Normandy, that the brand (which became French in 2003) thinks, creates, mixes, flavors and packages tea. A sure value!
Everything you need to know before tasting it
Want to discover or introduce smoked tea to those around you? Here are our tips for choosing it, for successfully infusing it, but also for using it in cooking to enhance your favorite dishes. But how did you manage without it until now?
HOW TO PREPARE SMOKED TEA?
The preparation looks like to that of a classic black tea. Simply bring the water to a simmer, at 80-90° C. before letting it infuse for 3 to 4 minutes. For more details, because this also varies depending on the variety of tea, the simplest thing is to rely on the temperature and infusion time indicated on the box. Smoked teas are enjoyed plain or very lightly sweetened. The sugar should not mask its delicately smoky taste too much. That would be a shame...
WHICH TEAPOT TO USE FOR SMOKED TEA?
If you drink several types of tea (green tea, white tea, classic black tea, etc.), you will need to opt for a “memory-free” teapot, which is the case for the vast majority of them (glass, cast iron, ceramic, etc.). Only unglazed terracotta teapots are “memory”, that is to say they retain the aromas from one infusion to the next. They are not recommended for smoked tea, because the smoky taste could remain encrusted on the walls of the teapot, because of the tannins, and modify the flavor of green tea or white tea. For more information, do not hesitate to consult our teapot guide.
WHEN TO TASTE SMOKED TEA?
We savor it throughout the day. Smoked tea is very popular at breakfast. Especially, if you already love the toasted taste of Japanese Genmaicha tea. We also recommend it to accompany a sweet and sour brunch, to combine its incredible smoky taste with a wide range of flavors. Some will prefer to consume it in the afternoon at tea time (we remind you that the English love it!). Finally, note that smoked tea can also be used in cooking to prepare several dishes.
SMOKED TEA, AN UNUSUAL INGREDIENT TO COOKING
Several recipes use it to easily and quickly add a smoky touch, without having to use the barbecue! Here are some very tempting suggestions: a lentil salad with smoked tea, a pumpkin cream with smoked tea, a salmon gravlax with smoked tea, a guinea fowl with kumquats and smoked tea, an apple crumble with smoked tea or even a rice pudding with smoked tea. Enough to concoct an entire meal with the theme of smoked tea. Even if it means playing originality, you might as well go all out!
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF SMOKED TEA?
Whether smoked or not, black tea contains - like all other teas - antioxidants known for their beneficial effects on health. Certainly, in a smaller proportion than green tea which is the most antioxidant of teas. But black tea is loaded with antioxidants of its own: theaflavin and thearubigin. Molecules which would play an important role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and which would promote digestion.
Did you know that antioxidants help fight the action of free radicals and the development of certain diseases? Yes, yes... So we run and drink a cup of smoked black tea to benefit from all these benefits.
One of the many virtues of smoked tea is also its caffeine/theine content, which makes it a great ally in the morning. Enough to give a boost to start the day off right. It therefore constitutes a good alternative to coffee.
WHAT SMOKED TEA IS OFFERED BY KUSMI TEA?
It is a blend of black teas and lightly smoked tea. The promise? A base of black teas with rounded flavors, to which are added smoked leaves of Tarry Souchong tea, releasing their subtly woody notes. This unique association is rich in contrasts. Indeed, this blend of teas combines the intense and the delicate, the traditional and the atypical, the classic and the very aromatic. Quite a program!
Did you know that our natural black teas have the organic designation? This guarantees you a tea without pesticides and of good quality due to the controls carried out during development and production.