Lapsang souchong is the pronunciation in Minnan dialect for Wuyi Mountains, which is the mountain area that produces a large family of tea in South-East China). Lapsang souchong from the original source is increasingly expensive because of increasing demand for this variety of tea, as Wuyi is a small area. 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
Lapsang souchong a marketable product from these less desirable leaves. The leaves are roasted in a bamboo basket called a hōnglóng (), 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. The aroma of lapsang souchong is derived from a variety of chemical compounds. The two most abundant constituents of the aroma are longifolene and α-terpineol. Many of the compounds making up the aroma of lapsang souchong, including longifolene, originate only in the pine smoke and are not