Oolong (, ; simplified Chinese: 乌龙茶; traditional Chinese: 烏龍茶 is a traditional semi-oxidized Chinese tea produced through a process that includes withering the leaves under strong sun and allowing some oxidation to occur before curling and twisting. Most oolong teas, especially those of fine quality, involve unique tea plant cultivars that are exclusively used for particular varieties. The degree of oxidation, which is controlled by the length of time between picking and final drying, can range from 8% to 85% depending on the variety and production style. Oolong is especially popular in southeastern China and among ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia, as is the Fujian preparation process known as the gongfu tea ceremony.
Baozhong tea, sometimes romanized as pouchong, is a lightly oxidized tea, twist shape, with floral notes, and usually not roasted, somewhere between green tea and what is usually considered oolong tea, though often classified with the latter due to its lack of the sharper green tea flavours. It is produced mainly in Fujian, China and in Pinglin District, New Taipei, Taiwan.
Lapsang souchong or Zhengshan xiaozhong is a black tea consisting of Camellia sinensis leaves that may be smoke-dried over a pinewood fire. This smoking is accomplished either as a cold smoke of the raw leaves as they are processed or as a hot smoke of previously processed leaves. The intensity of the smoke aroma can be varied by locating the leaves closer or farther from the source of heat and smoke or by adjusting the duration of the process. The flavour and aroma of smoked lapsang souchong is described as containing empyreumatic notes, including wood smoke, pine resin, smoked paprika, and dried longan; it may be mixed with milk but is not bitter and usually not sweetened with sugar. The tea originates from the Wuyi Mountains region of Fujian and is considered a Wuyi tea. It is also produced in Taiwan. It has been labelled as smoked tea, smoky souchong, tarry lapsang souchong and lapsang souchong crocodile. While the tea leaf grading system adopted the term souchong to refer to a particular leaf position, lapsang souchong may be made with any leaf of the Camellia sinensis plant, though it is not unusual for the lower leaves, which are larger and less flavourful, to be used as the smoking compensates for the lower flavour profile and the higher leaves are more valuable for use in unflavoured or unblended teas. In addition to its consumption as a tea, lapsang souchong is also used in stock for soups, stews and sauces or otherwise as a spice or seasoning. Beginning in the early 21st century, an unsmoked variety of lapsang souchong was developed in the village of Tong Mu Guan in the Wuyi mountains. The unsmoked variety has become increasingly popular, particularly in the Chinese domestic market.
Pu'er or pu-erh is a variety of fermented tea traditionally produced in Yunnan Province, China. In the context of traditional Chinese tea production terminology, fermentation refers to microbial fermentation, and is typically applied after the tea leaves have been sufficiently dried and rolled. As the tea undergoes controlled microbial fermentation, it also continues to oxidize, which is also controlled, until the desired flavors are reached. This process produces tea known as hēichá. Pu'er falls under a larger category of fermented teas commonly translated as dark teas.
White tea may refer to one of several styles of tea which generally feature young or minimally processed leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant.
Assam tea is a black tea named after the region of its production, Assam, India. It is manufactured specifically from the plant Camellia sinensis var. assamica (Masters). The Assam tea plant is indigenous to Assam—initial efforts to plant the Chinese varieties in Assam soil did not succeed. Assam tea is now mostly grown at or near sea level and is known for its body, briskness, malty flavour, and strong, bright colour. Assam teas, or blends containing Assam tea, are often sold as "breakfast" teas. For instance, Irish breakfast tea, a maltier and stronger breakfast tea, consists of small-sized Assam tea leaves.
Tieguanyin is a variety of Chinese oolong tea that originated in the 19th century in Anxi in Fujian province. Tieguanyin produced in different areas of Anxi have different gastronomic characteristics.
Chinese tea generally refers to a variety of teas which are grown or consumed in China.
Yellow tea can refer to Chinese huángchá and Korean hwangcha.
Gunpowder tea is a form of tea in which each leaf has been individually rolled into a small pellet. Its English name comes either from some resemblance of the pellets to gunpowder, or from a phrase in Chinese that phonetically resembles the word "gunpowder". This rolling method of shaping tea is most often applied either to dried green tea or to oolong tea.
Bai Mudan is a type of white tea made from plucks each with one leaf shoot and two immediate young leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. Bai Mudan is sometimes preferred by white tea drinkers for its fuller flavor and greater potency than the other major type of white tea, Bai Hao Yinzhen. The latter is made purely with leaf shoots, and so it is comparatively softer and more subtle. The typical taste of Bai Mudan is a result of both the processing and the tea plant cultivars employed in the production.
Baihao Yinzhen, also known as White Hair Silver Needle, is a white tea produced in Fujian Province in China. Amongst white teas, this is the most expensive variety and the most prized, as only top buds of the Camellia sinensis plant are used to produce the tea. Genuine Silver Needles are made from cultivars of the Da Bai tea tree family. There are other productions that look similar with downy leaf shoots but most are green teas, and as green teas, they taste differently and have a different biochemical potency than the genuine white tea Silver Needle. It is commonly included among China's famous teas.
Kamairicha (釜炒り茶) is a Japanese green tea produced by pan-roasting or pan-firing tea leaves during the early stages of production. It is most commonly produced in the western region of Japan. Kamairicha has a mildly roasted flavour with more sweet and fresh notes than bitter ones.
Tea blending is the act of blending different teas together to produce a final product that differs in flavor from the original tea used. This occurs chiefly with black tea, which is blended to make most tea bags, but it can also occur with such teas as Pu-erh, where leaves are blended from different regions before being compressed. The most prominent type of tea blending is commercial tea blending, which is used to ensure consistency of a batch on a mass scale so that any variations between different batches and seasons of tea production do not affect the final product. However, it is also common to blend tea leaves with herbs and spice, either for health purposes or to add interesting and more complex flavor notes. It is important that any one blend must taste the same as the previous one, so a consumer will not be able to detect a difference in flavor from one purchase to the next.
Korean tea is a beverage consisting of boiled water infused with leaves, roots, flowers, fruits, grains, edible mushrooms, or seaweed. It may or may not contain tea leaves.
Dongfang meiren or baihao (白毫), among other Chinese names, is a heavily oxidized, non-roasted, tip-type oolong tea originating in Hsinchu County, Taiwan. It is an insect tea produced from leaves bitten by the tea jassid, an insect that feeds on the tea plant. Terpenes are released in the bitten leaves, which creates a honey-like taste. Oriental beauty, white-tip oolong, and champagne oolong are other names under which dongfang meiren is marketed in the West.
Canned tea is a relatively recent method of marketing tea which has been sold traditionally as leaf tea and also, for the last 100 years, in tea bag form. It utilises the canning process to produce a ready made drink. Perceived advantages includes ease of use and the possibility of additives ; the disadvantages are the cost of shipment and a lack of freshness.
Fermented tea is a class of tea that has undergone microbial fermentation, from several months to many years. The exposure of the tea leaves to humidity and oxygen during the process also causes endo-oxidation and exo-oxidation. The tea leaves and the liquor made from them become darker with oxidation. Thus, the various kinds of fermented teas produced across China are also referred to as dark tea, not be confused with black tea. The most famous fermented tea is pu'er produced in Yunnan province.
Black tea is a type of tea that is more oxidized than oolong, yellow, white and green teas. Black tea is generally stronger in flavour than other teas. All five types are made from leaves of the shrub Camellia sinensis, though Camellia taliensis is also used rarely.