by Anne StClair

Created on: July 30, 2009   Last Updated: January 16, 2012

Black tea is made from leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, as are the other types of tea: green, white, and Oolong. Black tea is made from mature leaves and is more oxidised than the other types. The heavy oxidation turns the leaves black, and this is the reason for the name, rather than the colour of the brew.

Mature leaves and full oxidation make black tea strong and full-bodied. Since it is made from the mature leaves, black tea also contains the most caffeine of all the teas. Being more highly oxidised means it keeps its flavour for the longest - up to several years - which has historically made it the most traded of all the teas. Black teas still account for around 90% of all teas consumed.

Black teas are made by either the Crush, Tear, Curl (CTC) method used for lower quality teas destined for tea bags, or by the orthodox method for higher quality loose leaf teas. The highest quality loose leaf teas are still processed by hand. The leaves are picked, withered by having air blown on them, and then oxidised under strictly controlled conditions. The latter process is often called fermentation, but no actual fermentation takes place. Finally, the oxidised leaves are dried to preserve them.

There are two varieties of the Camellia sinensis plant used to make black tea: the Assam and the Chinese. The Assam variety (Camellia sinensis assamica) is broad leaved and was traditionally used only to produce black tea, but has recently also been used to make green tea. The Chinese variety (Camellia sinensis sinensis) is small leaved, and is also used for green and white teas.

There are many types of black tea, and most are named after the region in which they are grown. Different flavours are produced by differing methods of drying the tea plants.

China teas
There are many types of black tea produced in China. The best known of the Chinese black teas in the west is probably Lapsang Souchong from Fujian province. This is a black tea with a strong smoky taste, which is developed through the process of drying the tea leaves over burning pine.

Yunnan tea is another Chinese tea well-known in the west. It comes from the Yunnan Province in southwest China, which is an area with the abundant rainfall needed for growing good black tea. There are actually many varieties of Yunnan tea, with varying flavours and properties. Many of them are used for medicinal purposes such as regulating cholesterol.

India and Sri Lanka
Without doubt, the best known of the Indian black teas is

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>