Lapsang Souchong Black Tea

A legendary Chinese black tea transformed by smoke, with deep woodsmoke, pine, and campfire character over a smooth, full-bodied cup.

The Experience

Lapsang Souchong Black Tea is one of the most immediately recognizable teas in the world. Before you even take a sip, its distinctive smoky aroma announces itself.

Originating in Fujian Province, China, Lapsang Souchong is traditionally associated with the Wuyi Mountains (one of the world's most important historic tea-producing regions) and a style of black tea in which the finished leaves develop their unmistakable smoky character through exposure to pinewood smoke during processing.

In China, this tea is better known as Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong (正山小种 / 正山小種), often written Zhengshan Xiaozhong. The name helps tell the tea's story.

• Zheng Shan (正山) can be understood as “original mountain” or “true mountain,” traditionally distinguishing tea produced in the original Wuyi growing area from similar teas produced elsewhere.
• Xiao Zhong (小种 / 小種) literally means “small variety” or “small kind.” The term became Souchong in the historic Western tea trade, which is why most English-speaking tea drinkers know the tea today as Lapsang Souchong.

The cup opens with assertive woodsmoke and pine, followed by the deeper character of the black tea itself. Beneath the smoke, you may discover impressions of dried wood, resin, malt, and a subtle natural sweetness that becomes more noticeable as the tea cools.

One distinction is important, however: not every Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong is intensely smoky. Today, Chinese producers make both traditionally smoked and unsmoked versions. In Western markets, the name Lapsang Souchong has become particularly associated with the dramatically smoky style.

Our Lapsang Souchong belongs to the flavor tradition that made the name famous internationally: pine smoke, dark wood, and a distinctive campfire-like aroma surrounding the underlying black tea. It is not designed to be delicate, but is bold, distinctive, and atmospheric—the kind of tea people remember after tasting it for the first time.

Tasting Notes

• Top: Pine smoke • Campfire
  
• Mid: Dark wood • Malt
  
• Finish: Lingering smoke • Subtle sweetness
  
• Body: Full

Why You’ll Love It

Lapsang Souchong is an essential tea for anyone interested in exploring just how dramatically craftsmanship can transform the character of the tea leaf. Its intense smoky aroma makes it entirely different from the floral, fruity, or malty black teas many drinkers encounter first.

It is especially appealing to people who enjoy smoked foods, peated whisky, wood-fired flavors, or savory teas. For adventurous tea drinkers, it can become a fascinating favorite; for newcomers, it is a memorable demonstration of the extraordinary range possible within pure black tea.

Tea Type: Pure Black Tea
Style: Smoked Black Tea
Chinese Name: Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong (正山小种)
Also Known As: Zhengshan Xiaozhong • Souchong • Lapsang Souchong
Origin: Fujian Province, China
Ingredients: Black tea - Specialty leaves of Lapsang Souchong
Caffeine: Yes
Body: Full

How to Brew

Use approximately 1 heaping teaspoon per 8 oz of water at 212°F / 100°C. Begin with a steep of about 2 - 3 minutes and adjust according to taste.

If Lapsang Souchong is new to you, start with a shorter infusion. Its smoky character can become increasingly powerful with a longer steep. We recommend tasting the first cup without milk or sweetener so you can experience the full relationship between the smoke and the underlying black tea.

Perfect For

Lapsang Souchong is particularly satisfying on cold mornings, rainy afternoons, evenings by the fire, camping trips, and anytime you want a tea with a strong sense of atmosphere.

Its savory, smoky personality also makes it unusually food-friendly. Try it with aged cheeses, roasted or grilled foods, dark chocolate, smoked nuts, hearty breakfasts, or savory pastries.

From the Wuyi Mountains of Fujian

Lapsang Souchong is historically associated with the Wuyi Mountain region of Fujian Province, an area that occupies an important place in Chinese tea history.

The tea's name also tells us something about its traditional leaf style. Souchong historically refers to larger, more mature leaves from farther down the tea shoot, rather than the tender buds and young leaves emphasized in many fine tippy teas.

But it is the smoke—not the leaf size—that made Lapsang Souchong internationally famous. Traditional smoked versions are associated with the use of pinewood during processing, allowing the leaves to take on an aroma that can evoke everything from a wood-burning fireplace to pine forests and campfires.

For some drinkers, the first aroma can be startling. Then you take a sip. The smoke begins to integrate with the black tea underneath it, and what initially seemed like a single powerful flavor starts revealing additional layers. That's part of the pleasure of Lapsang Souchong: learning to taste beyond the smoke.

Why Is Lapsang Souchong Smoky?

Most pure teas develop their flavors entirely through the tea plant, growing conditions, oxidation, heating, rolling, roasting, and other production choices. Lapsang Souchong introduces another powerful element: smoke.

During traditional production, exposure to burning pinewood gives the tea its characteristic aroma. Smoke compounds settle into the leaves, creating a flavor that remains noticeable even after the tea is dried and eventually brewed. That means the smoky character isn't simply a tasting note like the natural cocoa impression you might find in Golden Monkey or the muscatel character of Darjeeling.

Smoke is part of the processing itself. It demonstrates something important about tea: two teas can begin with leaves from the same species—Camellia sinensis—and through different methods of production become almost unrecognizable from one another.

A Tea That Divides the Table

Few teas inspire quite as immediate a reaction as Lapsang Souchong. Some people smell the cup and think: Campfire. Pine forest. Fireplace. Wonderful. Others take one sniff and decide this may not be their tea. Both reactions are perfectly reasonable.

Lapsang Souchong doesn't try to please everyone, and that is part of its importance in a serious tea collection. Exploring tea isn't only about finding flavors that are universally easy to love. It's also about discovering how broad the world of tea can be.

Taste Lapsang beside a floral Darjeeling, a malty Assam, and a cocoa-rich Chinese black tea, and it becomes difficult to believe they all come from the same tea plant. That's exactly why it's worth experiencing.

Beyond the Teacup - Into Cocktails

The strong smoky character of Lapsang Souchong also makes it an interesting tea to use beyond traditional drinking. A concentrated infusion can bring smoky depth to culinary applications, allowing cooks to experiment with tea in sauces, marinades, broths, desserts, or other recipes where a woodsmoke character complements the dish.

This makes Lapsang one of the more unusual teas in the collection: it can function not only as a beverage, but as an ingredient for customers interested in exploring tea through food.

Packaging: Our loose teas are sold by the ounce and packaged in food-grade resealable bags.

Explore Our Distinctive Chinese Black Teas

Chinese black tea can range from naturally sweet and cocoa-rich to toasted, wine-like, and intensely smoky. Exploring several styles side by side reveals the extraordinary influence of origin and craftsmanship.

Lapsang Souchong Black Tea (This Tea)
Pine smoke • Dark wood • Malt
→ Best for: adventurous tea drinkers and anyone who loves campfire, woodsmoke, or savory flavors

Keemun Breakfast Black Tea
Toast • Malt • Wine-like depth
→ Best for: those seeking a full-bodied Chinese black tea with refined aromatics and much less smokiness

Golden Monkey Imperial Black Tea
Cocoa • Toasted grain • Buttery sweetness
→ Best for: those who prefer a naturally sweet, smooth Chinese black tea with abundant golden tips

Duchess Breakfast Black Tea
Silky malt • Gentle earthiness • Toasted warmth
→ Best for: those seeking a rich Chinese black tea with a smooth, approachable character