Upton Tea Imports Whiskey Barrel Smoked Japanese Tea Review

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B+

Bourbon barrel coffee has been a thing for several years now, which suited bourbon-lovers cum coffee drinkers just fine. The problem with that bad, watery coffee turned my palate off so badly when I was younger that I’ve never been able to overcome the “ick” ever since. I find coffee notes in things like beer and ice cream are fine, but I detest the real thing. Almost by default, I became a tea drinker, and with my predilections I became the kind of tea nut who made a point of going to places like Darjeeling and the Cameron Highlands.

That put me inadvertently on the crest of a wave, because tea consumption in the US has risen by 20% since the turn of the century. Just as there has been a Bourbon Boom, there has been a Tea Surge. Even so, there are few options for enjoying a whiskey-tweaked tea product, just a (depressingly) few whiskey cocktails utilizing tea and the old sailor’s standby of putting a little whiskey in the teapot.

Until now, that is, because I was recently introduced to Upton Tea Imports, who have a Japanese black tea that has received six to eight hours of smoking using chips from a ground up Japanese whisky barrel. I suppose you could say both halves of my heart rejoiced.

The Tea
I found my brew to have a solid current of smoke, coupled to a balanced pairing of a floral note and stone fruit sweetness. It’s the sort of thing a fan of smoky whiskeys should enjoy, especially if they have discovered an especial love for the recently emerged practice of American single malt smoked using peat from the Pacific Northwest.

The Price
A 30g package costs $38.50, or $2.89/cup.