Smoked Lapsang Souchong
The pine-smoked style of Lapsang Souchong, dried over smouldering Masson pine in a wooden loft. It is a distinct product from unsmoked Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong, which is the older tea, and confusing the two is the most common error made about the whole category.
Character
Heavily smoky at first, with a sweet dried-longan base that becomes obvious once the smoke settles. The best examples are balanced rather than merely smoky.
- Flavour
- Smoky, Woody, Fruity
- Aroma
- Toasted
- Mouthfeel
- Full bodied, Smooth, Rich
- Complexity
- Moderate
- Notes
- pine smoke, tar, dried longan, resin
- Aftertaste
- Smoke that clears to reveal fruit underneath.
Moderate intensity: noticeable weight or grip, but neither dominates the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- China
- Region
- Wuyi Mountains
- Cultivar
- Cai Cha
- Oxidation
- Fully oxidised
- Roast
- Medium
- Harvest
- Spring
- Processing
- Withering → Rolling and shaping → Oxidation → Drying → Charcoal roasting
Authenticity: Most heavily smoked 'Lapsang' is made outside the protected Tongmu area from cheaper leaf. Genuine Tongmu production is now mostly unsmoked, which surprises people who know only the export style.
History
The heavily smoked style was standardised for the European export trade in the nineteenth century, and most of it has been made outside the protected Tongmu area for a long time. The style and the origin diverged early.
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1–1.5 g/100 ml · 95–100 °C · 1 authored infusion
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
4–5 g/100 ml · 90–95 °C · 5 authored infusions
No caffeine estimate is authored for this tea. TeaHQ does not infer one from its category, because category predicts caffeine poorly — matcha and gyokuro carry more than many black teas.
Common mistakes
- Assuming all Lapsang Souchong is smoked — the original Tongmu tea is not.
If you like this
Grouped by why they were suggested, strongest reason first. Nothing here is a blended score — a suggestion appears under the best reason that exists for it, and never under a weaker one as well.
Editorially linked
Someone wrote down why these two belong together. The note below is theirs.
- Russian Caravan
Both smoky blends, and Russian Caravan usually contains Lapsang. The caravan-campfire story is repeated everywhere and documented nowhere; the smoke now comes from deliberate blending.
- Lapsang Souchong
Two names for the pine-smoked style, used interchangeably in the market despite one being a place and one a process.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Wuyi rock tea (yancha)
Shares 6 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: woody, fruity, full bodied, rich, smooth and toasted.
- Aged Shou Mei
Shares 5 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: fruity, woody, full bodied, smooth and rich.
- Aged white tea cake
Shares 5 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: woody, fruity, full bodied, rich and smooth.
- Anhua dark tea
Shares 5 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: smoky, woody, full bodied, rich and toasted.
- Ba Xian
Shares 5 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: fruity, woody, full bodied, rich and toasted.
- Chen Xiang Tie Guan Yin
Shares 5 descriptors with Smoked Lapsang Souchong: woody, fruity, full bodied, rich and smooth.