Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Any of several varieties of black tea native to China and adjacent regions.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A kind of black tea. Also soochong.
  • noun Souchong tea is prepared from the souchong leaves, namely the fourth and fifth from the tip of the shoot, or is of a quality regarded as corresponding to these. The leaf is longer and thinner than in the congous, in the prepared state folded rather than curled or twisted. In drinking-quality the, souchongs are similar to the congous; the flavor is technically described as ‘tarry.’ Six trade subclasses are enumerated. Cf. congou tea, pekoe.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A kind of black tea of a fine quality.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Any of several varieties of aromatic, black teas from China

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a fine quality of black tea native to China

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Cantonese siu2 zung2 (caa4), small variety (tea), souchong (tea); akin to Mandarin xiǎozhǒng, small variety : Mandarin xiǎo, small (from Middle Chinese siaw´) + Mandarin zhǒng, seed, kind, sort, variety (from Middle Chinese tʂywŋ´).]

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Examples

  • Lapsang souchong (正山小种 or 烟小种): Originally from Fujian, China, Lapsang souchong is a black tea which is dried over burning pine, thereby developing a strong smoky flavour.

    All about Tea 1995

  • Chef Ming Tsai uses lapsang souchong at home and in the kitchen of his Wellesley, Mass. restaurant, Blue Ginger, as a stock for rice, a fuel for wok-smoked poussin and in a versatile chipotle-inspired tea-and-chile spice rub.

    Tea's Got a Brand New Bag 2011

  • On the voyage south, this belief had been exemplified when every afternoon at 4pm a steward had delivered a slice of toast spread with Marmite and a cup of lapsang souchong to the captain as he stood watch on the bridge.

    Why must a captain never leave a sinking ship? 2012

  • Desnuda It is the smell of the place that hits first when you walk in Desnuda, a slim, dark bar off Tompkins Square Park: Sweet, deeply vegetal, it could be the nostalgic perfume of college dorms, if your roommate regularly burnt offerings of lapsang souchong leaves and Sichuan peppercorns.

    Bare on the Half Shell 2011

  • When first opened, there's quite a bit of sulphur funk here, but it blows off pretty quickly revealing aromas of green apple, honey, lapsang souchong (a kind of smoked tea) and grapefruit.

    Long Island Wine 2009

  • Etc: Sherlock Holmes was one of lapsang souchong's most loyal fans.

    Tea's Got a Brand New Bag 2011

  • Every morning, he and Julia would sit at their kitchen table and discuss the workday ahead, discussing plans for her new show and downing oceans of lapsang souchong.

    A Covert Affair Jennet Conant 2011

  • Every morning, he and Julia would sit at their kitchen table and discuss the workday ahead, discussing plans for her new show and downing oceans of lapsang souchong.

    A Covert Affair Jennet Conant 2011

  • Martin Ramin for The Wall Street Journal CUPPA CUISINE: Teas such as from top to bottom lapsang souchong, sencha and Pu'er round out recipes for fried chicken and wild salmon.

    Tea's Got a Brand New Bag 2011

  • When first opened, there's quite a bit of sulphur funk here, but it blows off pretty quickly revealing aromas of green apple, honey, lapsang souchong (a kind of smoked tea) and grapefruit.

    The New York Cork Report 2009

Comments

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  • I'll have a fourth or a fifth!

    January 26, 2013