How to distinguish different types of tea?

In social relationships, many times, we start by inviting each other for a cup of tea.
And nothing could be better than when you open with: “Is this the … tea?”
If that is exactly the name of the tea being served, surely you will score points in the eyes of the tea host!

So, is it difficult to recognize different types of tea, especially if you are not a regular tea drinker?

Below, this article will specifically classify 5 common types of tea, describing their characteristics in an easy-to-understand way with illustrations.
By carefully reading the article below, you will be able to easily recognize and correctly identify over 80% of tea types you encounter.

Inviting for tea
Chairman Xi invites Donald Trump for tea during an official visit to China.

If you ask me how many types of tea exist in the world, honestly, I don’t know. Every time someone asks me this, I imagine myself lost in an herbal medicine warehouse! Here, I only want to talk about authentic tea (made from the Camellia Sinensis plant – Family: Theaceae) because worldwide there are about 3,000 types of leaves used daily as drinks and all are called tea, for example, in Vietnam we have vối bud tea, dây tea, vằng tea, lotus leaf tea, monk fruit tea, etc.

Why are there so many types of tea? There are two main reasons:

• First: Worldwide, about 40 countries grow tea and produce around 3 million tons annually, mainly in Asian countries such as China, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, Nepal, Thailand… Outside Asia, Kenya in Africa, Argentina in America, and Australia are also large tea producers. China alone has over 200 types of tea.

Even the same tea variety grown in different countries produces unique products because of differences in soil, climate, and cultivation conditions.

Tea-producing countries
According to the Vietnam Tea Association, Vietnam ranks 5th in the world by tea growing area and 8th by production volume.

• Second: Tea is processed from the Camellia Sinensis plant, but this plant has 9 different varieties, with new hybrids developed annually through agricultural science. From one tea plant, many different teas can be made based on the fermentation process (degree of leaf oxidation). Oxidation ranges from 0% to 100%, creating a diversity of flavors, not to mention other processing techniques and special recipes.

By now, you probably understand why I cannot give a precise answer about how many types of tea there are. Most Vietnamese tea drinkers have access to teas from Taiwan, China, Japan, India, Sri Lanka, so they have some knowledge, but teas from other countries are less known. Recently, I had the chance to try some Thai green tea and Nepal black tea given by a friend. The flavors were very unique!

Basic types of tea
From left to right: Pu’er Tea, Black Tea, Oolong, Green Tea, Yellow Tea, White Tea

There are thousands of types of tea worldwide, so how do we classify them? A particular stage in the tea processing is used as a benchmark to classify tea products.

The basic tea processing includes 5 stages, some teas may skip some stages or repeat others multiple times. These stages are:

• Picking: harvesting tea buds or leaves and bringing them to the processing area

• Withering: removing moisture by sun or shade to soften leaves

• Crushing: by rolling, crushing, or tumbling the leaves

• Oxidation: enzymes in tea react with oxygen, changing chemical components

• Drying: stopping reactions and drying the tea

Among these 5 stages, the 4th — Oxidation — is crucial as it creates the diversity in flavor by altering the leaf’s chemical composition.

Based on oxidation level, teas are commonly grouped into 3 main categories: Green Tea (no oxidation), Oolong Tea (partial oxidation), Black Tea (full oxidation). However, to help readers understand better, this article classifies teas into 5 types (besides the 3 main types, there are also White Tea and Pu’er Tea, which are quite common). There is also Yellow Tea, less common, which will be briefly mentioned at the end.

Below, to give readers a clearer picture of differences, we will analyze the characteristics, processing methods, and uses of these types of tea.