types

Types of Tea

Tea is generally divided into categories based on how it is processed. After picking, the leaves of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) soon begin to wilt and oxidize unless immediately dried. An oxidation process is triggered by the plant’s enzymes that causes the leaves to turn darker. This darkening can be stopped at a predetermined stage by heating, so in the production of black teas, halting by heating is carried out to produce the desired tea.

  • White Tea

    white tea and leaf

    wilted and unoxidized

  • Yellow Tea

    yellow tea and leaf

    Unwilted and unoxidized,
    but allowed to yellow

  • Green Tea

    green tea and leaf

    Unwilted and unoxidized

  • Oolong Tea

    oolong tea and leaf

    Wilted, bruised, and
    partially oxidized

  • Dark Tea

    dark tea and leaf

    Unwilted and unoxidized

  • Black Tea

    black tea and leaf

    Wilted, sometimes crushed, fully oxidized.
    Called [hóngchá] in East Asia