What is Lapsang Souchong Tea?
Tea men may know black tea was invented in 16--17century and in Tongmu Guan ,WuyiShan City ,Fujian Province,China.And it was named as Wuyi Bohea by Europeans at that time,and the producers named it as 乌茶,in chinese it means black tea.So black tea is "red tea".Wuyi Bohea is the first kind of Chinese sold to Europe and America at about 16--17century.So we can say Wuyi Bohea was the real Chinsee Black Tea at that time but not Lapsang Souchong Tea,and we may say Wuyi Bohea was the mother of Lapsang Souchong Tea. Please let me explain.
What is Lapsang Souchong Tea? Lapsang Souchong Tea is litter familar with Wuyi Bohea,because the method of producing Lapsang Souchong Tea is copied the method of Wuyi Bohea,but the fresh tea for producing Lapsang Souchong Tea is not grew in Tongmu Village,so the taste is litter similar. And why did the Lapsang Souchong Tea be invented ? Tongmu Guan region is not very big ,and the quanlity of fresh tea is low, but Wuyi Bohea was famous and welcome in Europe and other places , so many tea producers who were not in Tongmu Guan,copied the method of Wuyi Bohea and producd the fake Wuyi Bohea and sold them to Europe under the name of Wuyi Bohea. So we can regard the fake Wuyi Bohea is Lapsang Souchong Tea. Why did the Lapsang Souchong Tea take place of Wuyi Bohea in Europe market and became the primary black tea exported to Europe? There were many reasons and the primary reason was the war in China for nearly 100 years,and because of the war,the people who producing Wuyi Bohea dodged to other places and the way for transporting Wuyi Bohea had been broken and stocked---Tongmu Guan became a revolutional bace.So the quantity of Wuyi Bohea was zero for so many years.
The products can not meet the market demonds. But at that time ,Lapsang Souchong Tea did not face so big problem,every place near Wuyi Mountain can produced Lapsang Souchong Tea and Lapsang Souchong Tea is also a kind of Chinese black tea and is litter similar with Wuyi Bohea.So Lapsang Souchong Tea took the place of Wuyi Bohea year by year and became the primary Chinese Black Tea in Europe.The most improtant is that many people equal Lapsang Souchong Tea to Wuyi Bohea. This caused a seious problem.
Please let me explain why did it called Lapsang Souchong Tea? "Lapsang" means smokey.The primary step for producing Lapsang Souchong Tea is that making the tea smoked by a kind of tree`s smokey,through this step ,the fake Wuyi Bohea(Lapsang Souchong Tea has the similar taste with Wuyi Bohea).So when this kind of tea was sold to the business men in Fuzhou or Xiamen as the ports ,they call this tea "烟熏", when translate to English according to the pronounciation by the business in Fuzhou or Xiamen,it pronounced as "lapsang"; What is "Souchong"? Souchong is a kind of tea tree in Wuyi Mountain,in chinese it means 小种.So from that time , Europeans called it Lapsang Souchong Tea.
We can know Wuyi Bohea is the first kind of Chinese black tea sold to Europe,and at that time,the fake Souchong Tea,which is Lapsang Souchong Tea,was also sold in the market.So the people in Tongmu Guan named the Wuyi Bohea as 正山小种红茶(ZhengShan Souchong Black Tea) too,ZhengShan means the only place where produced the Wuyi Bohea,in order to sepatate from the faked souchong tea.
As the time gone by,Wuyi Bohea had missed in the market,but Lapsnag Souchong Tea was accepted by more and more consumers and became the primary Fujian Black Tea in the world market. After 1949, Chinese govenment wanted to produced Wuyi Bohea again ,but the market had been suitable for Lapsang Souchong Tea but not Wuyi Bohea,so the new Chinese tea companies produced Lapsang Souchong Tea but not Wuyi Bohea.
I want tell a real story in England about Wuyi Bohea in 1999.My Japanese friend who named 僟淵猛 took Wuyi Bohea from my home to England,and made it to a heir of Lipton`s family who was 96 years old .When he drunk the Wuyi Bohea, he lost his tears at once and said to my friend,"This is the real Chinese Black Tea,when i was very young,my grandfather made this kind of tea to me ,and i rememberd it deeply and missed it very much.I lost it for so many years......"
You can know what is the real Chinese Black Tea now.And Lapsang Souchong Tea had replaced Wuyi Bohea and it also taken place of the real Chinese Black Tea in Europeans`mind for hunderd years .It had been regarded as Wuyi Bohea.
This is the narration of Chinese black tea,including Wuyi Bohea and Lapsang Souchong Tea. The Qimen Black Tea in Anhui Province is produced by a officer in Qing Dynasty.The officer named YuGanchen ,who was the officer in Chongan Count(Wuyi Shan City),when he went back home,he took the method of producing Wuyi Bohea and plant tee trees in Qimen of Anhui Province,after some years` study ,he produced Qimen Black Tea. Some other kinds of Black Tea has the same history with Qimen Black Tea.For example,Assam Black Tea in India ,the tee tree and the produceing method were stolen from Tongmu Guan ,Chongan Count,Fujian Province,by an English man named David,who worked for east india company at that time.
In the world market now,Lapsang Souchong Tea is a kind of famous black tea and is in primary position ,this is a realisty. I think no history no future,Lapsang Souchong Tea should not replace Wuyi Bohea`s position in people`s mind as the historied and best Chinese black tea. The rather that ,there are many fake Lapsang Souchong Tea, produced in Taiwan or Java or other places, in the world market now.