The Tea Family

From a Bitter Plant "Tu" to “Cha" (Tea)
The custom of drinking tea originated from the time of Prince Zhou of the state of Lu. Commonly believed to have been first used as a medicine, it later evolved into a drink. Originally known as “lu,” after the bitter edible plant, it was also called “ming.” The name “cha” first replaced “tu" during the mid-Tang Dynasty and is commonly used today.
Teas are usually named after their place of origin. Examples include Qimen Black Tea, West Lake Long Jing, Huangshan Maofeng, etc. They are also named after their shapes, such as Queshe (sparrow tongue). The ones named after the tea trees they are harvested from are Dahongpao, Tieguanyin. etc. The ones named after the season they are harvested in are Yuqian Cha (harvested before rain), Mingqian Cha (harvested before the Qingming festival), Qiu Cha (Autumn Tea) or Dongpian (Winter Tea). Named after fermentation, there is the “fully fermented tea,” the “half-fermented tea" and the "non-fermented tea." "Border sales tea," "exported tea," "domestic sales tea," "foreign sales tea," etc., derive their names from their area of sale.

Tea Leaves Classifications
Chinese tea leaves can be classified into two major types. (1) Basic tea leaves are freshly picked and processed before being made into green tea, black tea, Oolong tea, yellow tea, white tea and dark tea. (2) Reprocessed tea leaves are treated and reprocessed basic tea leaves made into flower tea, compressed tea, tea extracts, fruit tea, herbal tea, tea bags or tea flavored drinks, etc.

Green tea
Green tea is a type of unfermented tea, easily recognized by its green leaves and tea liquid. There are two types of green tea— quality green tea and mainstream green tea . Quality green tea is usually hand produced in limited quantity. Examples include West Lake Long Jing, Dongting Bi Luo Chun, etc. When brewed in a glass teacup, one can admire the leaves unfurl in a “dance of tea leaves." The shape of the tea leaves can be differentiated into twisted, flat-shaped, spiral-shaped and various other shapes. Mainstream green tea is usually mass-produced by machines. The quality is of mid to low standard, usually made for export. A certain amount is used to fumigate flower teas. Sun-dried green tea is mostly used to produce compressed tea.

Black tea
Black tea is a type of fully fermented tea. Its black tea leaves and liquid is easily recognizable. It can be further classified as Gongfu Black Tea, Broken Black Tea and Small Species Black Tea. Gongfu Black Tea is the traditional Chinese black tea. Known varieties include Yunnan's Dianhong Gongfu, Anhui’s Keemun Gongfu, etc. Broken Black Tea requires simultaneous kneading and cutting, thus the final product are grainlike tea leaves, usually sold internationally. Small Species Black Tea is the earliest form of black tea. The Zhengshan Small Species Black Tea is of the best quality.

Oolong tea
Oolong tea can be classified according to its place of production—Southern Min Oolong, Northern Min Oolong, Guangdong Oolong and Taiwan Oolong. Northern Min Oolong's degree of fermentation is stronger; it is straight and coarse. Sometimes, the end is twisted. The leaves are edged black. Thirty percent of the leaf is black and seventy percent is green. Examples include Wuyi Narcissus, Wuyi Cassia, etc.