Lapsang souchong (; simplified Chinese: ????; traditional Chinese: ????; pinyin: Lìsh?n xi?o zh?ng), sometimes referred to as smoked tea (??), is a black tea (Camellia sinensis) originally from the mountainous Wuyi region in the Chinese province of Fujian. It is distinct from other types of tea, as the leaves are traditionally smoke-dried over pinewood fires, imparting a distinctive flavor of smoky pine.
Xi?ozh?ng or Siu2 zung2 (?? / ??) refers to the larger, coarser tea leaves lower on the branch. Lapsang souchong is a member of the Bohea family of teas though not an Oolong, as are most Bohea 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).
Lapsang souchong from the original source is increasingly expensive, as Wuyi is a small area and there is increasing demand for this variety of tea.
Video Lapsang souchong
History
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 process by drying the leaves over fires made from local pines.
According to some sources, Lapsang souchong is the first black tea in history, even earlier than 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, such as Keemun, India and Ceylon.
Maps Lapsang souchong
Processing
"Souchong" (??) refers to the fourth and fifth leaves of the tea plant, further away from the more highly prized bud (pekoe) of the tea plant. These leaves are coarser than the leaves closer to the bud and have fewer aromatic compounds. Smoking provides a way to create a marketable product from these less desirable leaves.
The leaves are roasted in a bamboo basket called a h?nglóng (??), which is heated over burning firewood, which contributes to the dried longan aroma and smoky flavour. Pinewood is used as the firewood for lapsang souchong and imparts the characteristic resiny aroma and taste.
Chemistry
The aroma of lapsang souchong is derived from a variety of chemical compounds. The two most abundant constituents of the aroma are longifolene and ?-terpineol. Many of the compounds making up the aroma of lapsang souchong, including longifolene, originate only in the pine smoke and are not found in other kinds of tea.
Flavor and aroma
Lapsang souchong is noted for its rich aromas and flavors which include pine resin, woodsmoke, smoked paprika, hints of dried longan, and the evocation of peated whiskey.
It is common for even rather strongly brewed Lapsang Souchong tea to lack the bitterness common with other tea varieties.
Reputation
Lapsang souchong has a high reputation outside China; it is viewed as "tea for Westerners" inside China. It was drunk by Winston Churchill and Gary Snyder, who referred to it in Mountains and Rivers Without End.
In popular culture
- When told that his Captain Picard character from Star Trek: The Next Generation would drink a lot of tea, Sir Patrick Stewart originally suggested that he drink Lapsang souchong, but the producers were afraid the audience wouldn't know what that was, so the character drank Earl Grey tea instead.
- In the movie Phantom Thread, Daniel Day Lewis' character orders a pot of Lapsang souchong tea at a hotel restaurant.
See also
- List of smoked foods
- Black tea
References
External links
Source of article : Wikipedia
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