Surprising, curious: these are the words Mariage Frères chose for this Smoky Earl Grey, a blend of smoked black tea and black tea scented with bergamot. Two British traditions by adoption, Chinese smoked tea and Earl Grey, brought together in a single cup, with a very pronounced fragrance.

The smoked tea, dried over a resinous wood fire in the Fujian tradition, brings its woody, resinous notes and its smokiness; the bergamot, that citrus from Calabria whose essential oil flavours Earl Grey, brings its zesty freshness. The precise composition is set out on the packaging and on this page.

The liquor, amber and powerful, is built on this contrast. The smoke opens, frank and clear, then the bergamot cuts through it with a burst of citrus, and the finish blends the two into a warm length. This is not a compromise tea: it appeals to those who love bold fragrances, and surprises the others.

It is drunk during the day, plain, without milk, and pairs better with savoury than sweet: a breakfast of eggs, smoked salmon, a matured cheese, grilled meat. It also goes, more unexpectedly, with dark chocolate with orange.

Allow 2.5 g for 200 ml of water at 95 °C and five minutes’ steeping. Smoky Earl Grey is sold loose leaf, weighed and packed to order in our shops in Bordeaux and Nice, from the 5 g sample to the kilo, in a bag that keeps its smoke and bergamot apart from other teas.