Lapsang Souchong
Also known as Zhengshan Xiaozhong, Lapsang
A black tea from the Wuyi Mountains in Fujian whose leaves are smoke-dried over pine fires. The best comes from the village of Tongmu, where genuine production is limited to about 50 square kilometres of a nature reserve. In China it is called Zhengshan Xiaozhong.
Taste
Smoky and resinous, with notes of pine and dried longan; not bitter
How we brew it
95 °C, 3 g per 250 ml, 3 minutes.
Our personal recommendation – adjust it to your taste.
Cultural background
Its beginnings are unclear; one account dates it to 1646. A local story tells of soldiers passing through Tongmu at harvest time, so the leaves were dried over pine fires. The smoky tea was sold to Dutch traders and on to the British; in Britain it is linked with Winston Churchill. Today pine disease and a 2020 ban on bringing pinewood into Tongmu make smoked tea scarce.
Where to drink it
No places on the map yet.
See also
Sources
For everything above except our personal notes.