Lapsang Souchong Cocktail

Name: Lapsang Souchong Cocktail
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: British, Chinese
Ingredients: 1 1/2 fl oz Lapsang Souchong; 1 jigger (1.5 fl oz) Hendricks Gin; 1/2 can or bottle (12 fl oz) tonic water; 2 sprigs of thyme

by Cory Varga

Updated 20 December 2024

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Our Lapsang Souchong Cocktail is a sophisticated, mysterious drink, with a woody nose and earthy flavor. It's a gin-based cocktail that calls for cold Lapsang Souchong tea, decorated with fresh thyme for added taste and fragrance.

If you love Lapsang Souchong as much as I do, then you are going to love this unusual cocktail. Not your ordinary cocktail, this is a bitter, smoky drink, with a wonderful fragrance that will linger in the air. It's very easy to make and it's perfect for cold autumn or winter days, as the aromas will give you a comforting warm feeling, as if you're by the fire, in a luxury chalet in the woods. And maybe that's exactly where you are while trying this incredible cocktail which will not disappoint.

What is our Lapsang Souchong Cocktail

Our Lapsang Souchong Cocktail is a delicious gin-based beverage made with cooled-down Lapsang Souchong tea. Expect a smoky, ashy aroma with an earthy taste.

This cocktail is best served in a whisky glass and you'll notice that the colour even resembles that of a warming whisky. But don't let the colour fool you, it's a delicious gin-based drink topped with premium tonic water. You can pick any cocktail glass you prefer, but we think a mysterious and classy drink such as this, deserves a matching glass.

Delicious lapsang souchong cocktail with gin

What is Lapsang Souchong?

Lapsang Souchong is a type of black tea that originates from the Wuyi Mountains region of Fujian in China. It's sometimes labelled as smoked tea and rightfully so because the tea leaves are smoke-dried over a pinewood fire. It is believed that Lapsang Souchong originated from the Qing dynasty.

The story of this tea varies depending on who you ask. It is believed that the civilians in the Wuyi mountains quickly dried tea over the fire and were buried in sacks to avoid spoilage during the time when they were forced to flee the area due to conflict. The tea was then sold to the Dutch traders who, despite the aroma, realised it's better at keeping fresh for the long journey across the seas. As so, the demand for a new type of smoky tea arose.

Lapsang souchong cocktail served with thyme

How to prepare Lapsang Souchong

Lapsang Souchong is prepared with water at a temperature a little less than boiling 95 °C (203 °F). Infuse it for 3-5 minutes and use one tbsp of loose tea per 150 ml 2/3 cups of water. Drink it hot or let it cool completely to be able to use it in our Lapsang Souchong Cocktail.

Lombardi, Gabriella in her book Tea Sommelier said that Lapsang Souchong has intense empyreumatic notes. Others mentioned the smell of wood smoke, pine resin, and even whisky.

Delicious lapsang souchong cocktail with gin as seen from above

How to make the best ever Lapsang Souchong Cocktail

To make an incredible Lapsang Souchong Cocktail you will need 1.5 fl oz (40 ml) of cold lapsang souchong tea, 1.5 fl oz (40 ml) of Hendricks Gin, and premium tonic water. I like light tonic water because we don't need the extra calories from sugar.

Add ice to a cocktail glass, mix the lapsang souchong tea, the gin and top up with your tonic water. Give it a gentle stir and add a couple of fresh sprigs of thyme. Enjoy it!

This recipe has been developed entirely by Yuzu Bakes. Any resemblance with other recipes is purely coincidental.