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A[]YS O\R ;Wdd]de continued from page 39 2 epending on whom you ask, Lapsang Souchong is characterized either as a deeply smoked black tea or an overpoweringly smoked black tea. A sip of this highly polarizing infusion is about as likely to elicit a grimace as it is a smile. Casual tasting notes often include descriptors like "cigar smoke" or "smoldering charcoal," and most tea merchants warn that Lapsang Souchong is decidedly not for the faint of heart. However, despite its reputation for a bold, fireside flavor, traditionally produced Lapsang Souchong is a tea capable of carrying delicate longan-fruit notes and a smo- kiness that's defined more by subtlety than strength. Recently, in response to Lapsang Souchong's widespread reputation, some American tea importers and purveyors have even begun to argue that most of the very smoky teas marketed as Lapsang Souchong are not the genuine article but imposters marring the reputation of "true" Lapsang Souchong. Once one cuts through the smoke, what is the real deal with this tea? A TEA IS BORN When asked about the origin of Lapsang Souchong, tea merchants will likely tell you a riveting story of loss and redemption. Sometimes the story involves a hopelessly late shipment … that was miraculously saved when it was rush-dried over a fire. Other ven- dors tell the story of a tea merchant (perhaps one not too different from themselves, save the differences in time and space) whose storage area flooded, but the drenched batch of tea was salvaged with pine blazes and then became a smash hit amongst European buyers. Finally, there are those more historically minded folks who may tell the story of a tea producer whose factory was commandeered by military forces, which postponed the usual production cycle and seemed to cause the tea leaves to oxidize beyond usefulness … but that all was saved by an innovative method of tea processing—one differentiated by an extended oxidation time and drying above smoldering pine boughs. Of course these are only myths, and they may have little to do with the realities of this intriguing and often misunderstood tea. As Michael Coffey, founder of Tea Geek (teageek.net), puts it, "There are a number of stories, and I haven't found one that I'd " TEA ALMANAC 2012