kentucky bourbon
by adagio teas
(48 reviews)
type: black
variety: black tea
ingredients: blue cornflowers cocoa nibs keemun concerto tea lapsang souchong tea natural vanilla flavor rose hips
caffeine: strong
price level: $$$$
Whether sitting cozy by a fire on a snowy winter day, or sitting out on a front porch swing on a sultry summer afternoon looking out over green rolling hills, our Kentucky Bourbon tea suits many occasions. With hints of malt, soft barrel smoke, caramel, roasted apple, and vanilla, this tea echoes the nuance of a good bourbon without the boozy side effects. Also try this tea iced with mint infused simple syrup for a teetotaler’s perfect mint julep. Sip slowly and savor.
Recent reviews
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Cameron Kilchrist
I'm not a huge fan of whiskey flavor (alcoholic or non) but my husband is quite the fan. It's not a perfect one to one but he says it's pretty good at mimicking the flavor. All that's missing is the burn (which I'm sure is a positive for some people!)
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Julee Kasserman
I like the early sweet taste of the tea but I don't like the smoky flavor. It's more smoky than what I remember in the bourbon drink.
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Julie W
This tea caught me by surprise the first time I tried it! Lovely blend of flavors! Makes a wonderful latte!! One of my favorite flavored teas!
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Sharon McConnell
This is an interesting black tea. Sweet candy apple aroma out of the packet. Strong black tea with mild sweet and smoky flavors.
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Katie Erickson
This Kentucky bourbon tea tastes just like bourbon, I honestly was surprised. It was even better after adding some sugar crystals to the tea because I prefer a sweeter tea. I am only giving 4 stars because I'm not a fan of plain bourbon.
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Benjamin Grimm
The smoke flavor in this tea is very strong. I couldn't really get over it. If you like Lapsang, more power to you. I just didn't jive on this
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L J
The caramel flavor in this tea predominates, with secondary notes of vanilla and whisky. Tastes like a sweet hot toddy made with the tiniest shot of bourbon, but without the unpleasant tang of real alcohol. Definitely a dessert tea. To note, the blend had a fairly strong smoke smell in the bag, but thankfully it all but disappeared after brewing.
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Jeffrey Podsobinski
Bought a small bag of this and it was so flavorful I bought a pound. Not overpowering with bourbon flavor just enough to give it a unique taste that I have not found anywhere else.
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Max Gibbsone
Not for me. Been told from trusted sources that this does not taste like bourbon. It is bitter and smokey. I might give it a second chance though.
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Janet Ross
I thoroughly enjoyed this complex black tea with smokiness and caramel in the background. I steeped at 212 degrees for 4 minutes and added sugar to enhance the experience! I got a second steep as well that was almost as flavorful.
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Zannah L
If you enjoy bourbon, you'll probably like this tea. It's got the same smokey, woody, sweet notes. This one's on my favorites list and gets reordered when I run low.
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Lauren S.
Tried it on a whim, and sad to say I didn't really like it. It's not that I don't care for lapsang, since I enjoy it in the S'mores blend but not here.
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Sharon Dawson
Very strong smell of bourbon when this is brewed. I found the taste to be like weak bourbon, but I didn't care for it. Though if you like bourbon, you'll probably love this tea.
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Jeanine B.
You’ve got to really enjoy lapsang souchong to enjoy this tea. Luckily I do! I recommend this tea to anyone who wants to try something unique and adventurous.
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Lilly Tryon
As a tee-totaler, I can't speak to this tea's similarity to bourbon, but the sweet smokiness reminds me of grilled fruit. The Lapsang Souchong is not overpowering. Caramel and vanilla notes are detectable, more so when sweetener is added. Not a bad blend--if you like smoky teas. (190°F x 3 minutes)
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Kai Dranchak
Pretty artificial. It's like tea and watered down liquor. The caramel apple and vanilla was there. It's TERRIBLE when room temp. I gagged.
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Rachel Emmel
I can't attest to it's likeness t bourbon, since I've never had real bourbon. I can say that the only flavor that stuck out for me was the 'barrel smoke' part. And I knew that'd be the lapsang's fault. The smokiness was too strong and covered up all the other flavors. As someone who i not a fan of overly smoky teas, this one is a pass.
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Cindi Drinks Tea
I had to throw out my bag of this. All I could taste is lapsang, ugh. It made me gag! To me it tastes like drinking Slim Jims boiled in hot water...I really do NOT like lapsang, or bourbon so it could just be me.
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Sleepy Greyhound
Delicious blend of smooth, smoky tea tempered with caramel, apples and vanilla. Really tasty!
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Casey Covel
Malty and smoky without being too bitter. There's a nice, caramelly, almost candied char throughout, with hints of smooth vanilla. I've never had whisky, but this blend definitely seems inspired. If you like sultry flavors, you can't go wrong with this one.
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Siobhan Dunlop
I like the flavours of this tea, which is deep and smoky, but the bourbon flavouring I find mostly way too much for the morning as it actually makes me think too much of alcohol to enjoy it!
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Emily Cargile
I guess I was feeling adventurous when I decided to buy a whole bag of this. The flavor profile makes it sound like it would be totally amazing, but it mostly tastes like fake smoke and chemicals. I didn't know enough about lapsang souchong to know that it's not something I like. The rubbery/smoky flavor does NOT work for me. I hope I can find someone to give this to, or it risks sitting on the shelf until it expires. :(
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Carolina Kowalczyk
This is my least favorite adagio tea! I was expecting more bourbon, but this is all smoke. Like campfire smoke, no bourbon flavor at all. I know some people like this, but just not for me.
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Kat I
Unfortunately I cannot stand the smoke taste, the bourbon taste is spectacular though so I gave it 3 stars anyway
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Holly Akins
This is not a tea for the faint of heart. Although the dry tea leaves smell sweet, once brewed there is a predominantly smoky flavor. It's quite unusual but very enjoyable.
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Caroline Nitirahardjo
It, incredibly, smells and tastes like it's named. The smokey flavour is very strong. This is a tea I'd only have once in a while and definitely one that needs to grow on you, if you're not a burbon fan.
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A. M. Baskerville
Good and malty! Not quite bourbon with the taste as it is missing a bit more bite but the scent is there.
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Marion Black
The smell alone was wonderful, the aroma while waiting for it to brew was amazing. Thought it would be great but it tasted like another black tea. Slightly disappointed with the flavor was hoping for more maple notes
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Cassie W.
The smell of this tea is as intoxicating as bourbon itself. I know some reviewers haven't liked it, but I personally thought the flavor was perfectly balanced with a caramelly, oak barrel tone.
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Rebekah Strickland
The package smells exactly like bourbon and the tea tastes nothing like bourbon. I ended up getting the taste I wanted by adding actual bourbon.
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Max Sugerman
I cant say this was my favorite tea but the flavor was certainly unique and smokey
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Tracie Anderson
This tea is alright. I wouldn't say its one of my favorites. I kind of has a chocolate, coccoa coffee taste. I like the chocolate flavor. I don't like it nixed with a coffee flavor though.
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Kelly Horn
I was surprised how much I liked this one. I got it in a sampler pack, and it was my favorite of the lot. It's complex without being overwhelming. I usually prefer my flavored teas with only one or two flavor notes, but this tea really does a fine job bringing together various elements. When I first tried it I thought it was merely okay, but with each cup I found I liked it more and more.
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Laura Hietala
I love the hint of smokiness in this rich, warm tea. It combines surprisingly well with the cocoa and fruit flavors that are predominate in this brew. I like to sip it slowly as a morning cup when I need a little extra comfort.
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Han lastname
Hated this! My partner said it smelled like tobacco and tasted worse. One of the only teas I've ever poured out.
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Rebecca Haley
While not one I will rush to order, once I got past the smoke smell, this tea really wasn’t bad to drink. Had a sweet flavor profile underneath the smoke. Had hot with some sugar.
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Lydia Dschankilic
The scent threw me off at first, as it has a very caramel-appely scent, not at all like a bourbon. But if you take your time, the bourbon does waft through. I may be biased as a scotch fan, but the lapsang souchong is in a perfect ratio here, to give just enough smokiness to give a bourbon effect, but not so much as to overpower the other flavours. A great rendition of bourbon. Perfect for summer nights by the campfire, or cool autumn evenings with cozy blankets. Also delightful cold brewed into iced tea and drank completely plain.
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Karie B.
This tea is interesting. Right off, it did smell like whiskey to me. It tasted ok, but no big wow.
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Jeff Meiczinger
I was excited to give this a try, thinking maybe it would bring out the hidden Southern gentleman inside of me. Alas, it didn't, and I really didn't like this. The smokey note turned me off.
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Michael M
I was disappointed with this when I tried it in the communitea box. Just not good.
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Red Wolfe
Smokey, and slightly sweet. Definitely not an everyday tea, but still really good.
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Sky Kutil
A nice smoky tea. If you give it about 5-8 minutes to cool down you get more of the caramel and vanilla tones to come through in the tea.