Lapsang Souchong

Lapsang souchong (Chinese: 拉普山小種/正山小种,; pinyin: lāpǔshān xiǎozhǒng; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: l a̍p-pho·-san sió-chéng; literally "Small plant from Lapu mountain"; cantonese: làaipóusàan síujúng) is a black tea (Camellia sinensis) originally from the Wuyi region of the Chinese province of Fujian. It is sometimes referred to as smoked tea (熏茶). Lapsang is distinct from all other types of tea because lapsang leaves are traditionally smoke-dried over pinewood fires, taking on a distinctive smoky flavour.

Lapsang souchong is the first black tea in history, even earlier than the famous Keemun tea. After the lapsang souchong tea was used for producing black tea called Min Hong (meaning "Black tea produced in Fujian"), people started to move the tea bush to different places like Keemun, India and Ceylon.

The name means "sub-variety". Lapsang souchong is a member of the Bohea family of teas ("Bohea" is the pronunciation in Minnan dialect for Wuyi Mountains, which is the mountain area producing a large family of tea in South-East China). The story goes that the tea was created during the Qing era when the passage of armies delayed the annual drying of the tea leaves in the Wuyi Mountain. Eager to satisfy demand, the tea producers sped up the drying process by having their workers dry the tea leaves over fires made from local pines.

Lapsang souchong from the original source is increasingly expensive, as Wuyi is a small area and there is increasing interest in this variety of tea.