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Tea (pronounced Cha) is made from the young leaves of the tea plant.
The leaves are usually allowed to ferment, and it is the length of fermentation
that determines the color, taste, aroma and character of the tea.
The less fermented, the more green and
yellow the tea. Redder tea results from leaves that are more fermented. Baking
the leaves also affects the depth of color of the tea. Baked teas are darker.
Clearly, the less the leaves are
fermented and baked, the more natural the taste of the tea. We can classify tea into
the various stages of fermentation as follows:
Non-fermented
Green Tea, Lungching (Dragonwell), pilochun, Chenca
Semi-fermented (light)
Chinchua, White Tea, Jasmine Tea, Pouchong Tea
Semi-fermented (Medium)
Dunting, Ti Kuan Yin, Sueishen, Wuii, Oolong
Semi-fermented (Heavy)
Mandarin Oolong, Penfun
Fully-fermented
Black Tea
Post-fermented
Pu-Erh Tea |
