Tea types and varieties

Anji Bai Cha | A rare Chinese green tea from Zhejiang Province. Despite the name (white tea in chinese), it’s a green tea made from a pale leaf cultivar. Very light, vegetal, and umami-rich.

Assam | A bold, malty black tea from the Assam region of India. Grown in tropical conditions with no winter dormancy. Assam teas are full-bodied and excellent with milk.

Autumn teas | Typically the third harvest that takes place around September to November. Produces aromatic, smooth, honeyed teas at a lower price than spring or summer flushes.

Bancha | A Japanese green tea made from larger, older leaves harvested after shincha. Lower in umami, higher in astringency, often used for daily drinking or roasted into hojicha.

Bi Luo Chun | A famous Chinese green tea from Jiangsu Province. Rolled into small, tight spirals. Tastes delicate, fruity, floral, and light.

Black tea | A fully oxidised tea type. Bold, malty, and often higher in caffeine. Popular examples include Assam, Darjeeling, Keemun, Ceylon. Called “red tea” (hong cha) in China.

Bud tea | A tea made exclusively from unopened leaf buds (tips) and not mature leaves. Silver Needle white tea is the most famous example.

Ceylon | Black tea from Sri Lanka. Bright, citrusy, and medium-bodied. Excellent for iced tea or with lemon.

Darjeeling | A black tea from West Bengal, India. Often known as the “Champagne of teas”. Grown from China-variety bushes. Produces muscatel grape notes, especially in the second flush.

Dark tea | A post-fermented tea category (not just oxidised). Puerh is the most famous example. Aged for months to decades.

Dian Hong | A Chinese black tea from Yunnan. Golden tips, malty, and has chocolate and sometimes peppery notes. Often less astringent than Assam.

English Breakfast | A bold black tea blend, typically Assam, Ceylon, and Kenyan teas. Designed to pair with milk and sugar. Strong, malty, and high in caffeine.

First flush | The first harvest of the year (usually late Feb till April). High in L-theanine (umami), low in tannins, delicate and sweet. Most prized and expensive.

Green tea | An unoxidised tea type where leaves are fixed by heat, either by pan-firing or steaming, to prevent oxidation. Usually tastes grassy, vegetal, or even nutty. Famous examples include Longjing, Sencha, Matcha.

Gyokuro | A shaded Japanese green tea. Covered for 2-3 weeks before harvest to increase L-theanine and umami notes while reducing astringency. One of Japan’s finest teas and can be very costly.

Hojicha | A Japanese green tea that has been roasted at high heat. Low in caffeine, nutty and toasty in flavour, with a brownish red liquor.

Irish Breakfast | A stronger, more robust version of breakfast tea. Usually heavy on Assam, sometimes with a higher proportion of malty, full-bodied leaves.

Jin Hou | Or Golden Monkey tea. A Chinese black tea from Fujian and Yunnan. Named for its golden, monkey claw shaped tips. Sweet, malty, with cocoa and honey notes.

Jin Jun Mei | A premium Chinese black tea from Fujian’s Wuyi Mountains. Made only from buds. Honeyed, chocolatey, and smooth. One of China’s most expensive black teas.

Kangra tea | Black tea from the Kangra Valley in Himachal, Pradesh, India. Grown at lower elevations than Darjeeling. Floral, slightly spicy, with a unique muscatel-like character.

Keemun | A Chinese black tea from Anhui province. Winey, fruity, and slightly smoky. A key component in many English Breakfast blends.

Kukicha | A Japanese tea made from twigs and stems of the tea plant. Light, slightly nutty, lower in caffeine. Also called twig tea.

Lapsang Souchong | A Chinese black tea from Fujian province that is smoke-dried over pine fires. Intensely smoky and bold. An acquired taste.

Long Jing | One of the top ten most famous Chinese teas of all time. Comes from Long Jing Village in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Pan-fired to create flat, sword-shaped leaves. Nutty, buttery and sweet.

Matcha | A powdered Japanese green tea made from tencha leaves grown under shade. Whisked with water and not steeped. High in umami, caffeine, and antioxidants.

Oolong | A partially oxidised tea (8 to 85% range). Flavour spans from light and floral (green oolongs) to dark and roasted (black oolongs). Famous examples include Tie Guan Yin and Da Hong Pao.

Puerh | A post-fermented dark tea from Yunnan, China. There are two types: sheng (or raw, and ages naturally) and shou (ripe, accelerated fermentation). Earthy, smooth, and improves with age.

Russian Caravan | A traditional black tea blend (often lapsang souchong, oolong, and keemun). Named for the tea caravans from China to Russia. Smoky, bold, and warming.

Second flush | The second harvest of the year during summer. Lower in umami, higher in tannins, fuller body. Darjeeling sescond flush is famous for muscatel grape notes.

Sencha | The most common Japanese green tea. Steamed, rolled, and dried. Fresh, grassy, and slightly astringent.

Shincha | “New tea”, or the first harvest of Japanese green tea. Available only in spring. Fresher and more umami than sencha.

Tie Guan Yin | One of the most famous Chinese oolongs from Fujian Province. Also known as Iron Goddess of Mercy. Floral and has orchid-like aroma. Can be light or roasted.

White tea | The least processed tea type. Young buds and leaves are withered and dried. Delicate, subtle, and sweet. Popular examples include Silver Needle (buds only) and White Peony (buds + leaves).