Black Tea and is Types

The most common household tea is the black tea and is used world-wide for its beautiful flavor and mesmerizing smell. But the black tea which we drink is of many types with each constituting a distinct flavor, depending of the growing region.

Black tea is prepared by the extreme oxidation of the leaves of the tea plant – higher oxidization process is what gives this tea its color and flavor. The tea is known to possess the highest caffeine content among all the four types and is also known for its longer duration of flavor retaining capacity. It accounts for majority of the sales worldwide and has been popular for ages. In recent times, the tea is consumed with or without milk depending on the individual’s taste and needs.

Types of Black Tea

Black tea is classified based on the region where it is grown and processed. The flavor and characteristics of the tea change greatly based on the region’s soil, climatic conditions and natural surroundings. Black Tea is produced mainly in three countries mainly namely India, China and Sri Lanka. The other popular but comparatively less consumed types of black tea includes the Kenyan tea, Turkish Tea, Vietnamese Black Tea and Nepalese Black tea and Russian.

Chinese Black Tea

This country can be called the ‘Mother of Tea’ as it is said that tea was first discovered here. The history of tea in China traces back to the story that a Chinese Emperor by mistake drank the water in which few tea leaves fell and he made it popular after taking a liking towards it.

In China, tea is grown majorly in six provinces, Fuji, Anhui, Yunnan, Zhejiang, Sichuan and Guangdong. Of these six provinces, Fuji is known to produce many different varieties of black tea. On an overall statistic, China alone produces 11 types of the total 17 varieties of black tea. The different varieties that are produced here are all different in flavour and each has its own distinct characteristic with each containing a sweet, malty, fruity or smoky aroma.

Indian Black Tea

India is one another country in Asia known for its commercial growth of black tea both for internal and overseas purposes. The lush mountains and fertile plains of India offer a perfect place for the growth of these leaves and black tea is produced in five different regions of India. It is grown in the states of Darjeeling, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh. Each possess a distinct scent be it the malty tea of Assam or the floral ones from West Bengal or the strong aromatic black beverage of Tamil Nadu.

Sri Lanka

This Asian country is the third largest producer of black tea and is said to produce tea that has crisp tones of citrus mixed in its flavor. The tea estates are placed at different elevations which is responsible for the different tastes associated with the tea of this area.