Despite what some consumers think, tea leaves found in retail stores do not get there straight after getting plucked from the parent plant.
They actually go through a sometimes very hectic production process on it’s journey to the consumers’ teapots and teacups.
There are basically two mains methods of production:
- Cut Tear Curl (CTC)
- Orthodox
The CTC method involved the use of industrial heavy machinery like what we would envision a manufacturer’s factory.
The orthodox method of production produces tea that are wholly, or a huge part, handmade. This preserves the as much of the whole natural leaf as much as possible.
Yet it must be noted that not all types of teas will go through the same production stages.
Some have more stages while some have less. Some skip particular stages while some spend more time in a particular stage.
Here are all the stages of the tea making process.
1) Growing and harvesting
From a seedling, the tea plant takes about 30 months to grow to maturity and about 6 years before it is ready for plucking.
The terrain in which it is planted plays a major role in the healthy growth of each variety.
Some critical elements to terrain include:
- Slopes
- Latitude
- Altitude
- Climate
- etc
Once the farmer determines that the plant is ready, the laborious task of plucking commence, usually in early spring.
It is then moved to the facility for CTC or orthodox processing.
2) Withering
As tea leaves that are freshly plucked contains a lot of moisture, a lot of that moisture has to be removed to get the leaves ready for the next stages of the production process.
Here, tea leaves are either laid out outdoors in the sun or in a temperature-controlled environment between 68°F to 75°F.
This withering process takes approximately 20 hour depending on the type of tea.
The longer a leaf is withered, the darker shade of green it becomes, and the more concentrated it is.
This also means that for a lively shade of green, it should not be withered for too long a period.
The balance will have to be judged and determined by the tea master overseeing the whole process.
3) Fixing
For green and yellow tea, instead of withering, they go through a fixing process of moisture removal where they are air dried.
Sometimes known as “kill-green”, intense heat is used to get them fixed quickly so as to prevent oxidation while preserving the aroma and natural oils contained in the tea leaves.
The heat can be generated from:
- Steam
- Firing
- Baking
- etc
The method of fixing can affect the taste of the tea.
4) Rolling and bruising
Once enough moisture is removed, they are ready for the next phase of production.
During this stage, leaves start to get rolled, crushed, and twisted.
This hardhitting process is actually delicate in that the cell walls of leaves need to be broken down while the leaves need to be left intact.
The reason for bruising is to set them up for optimal oxidization next.
5) Fermentation
For pu’er, the next step of it’s journey is fermentation.
This is where it is steamed and shaped in the form of cakes for fermentation.
For raw leaves, it is left to ferment naturally that can last several years.
For ripe leaves, they are fermented in high-tech storage facilities that replicate ideal conditions for fermentation.
6) Heaping
For yellow tea, it goes through heaping after rolling.
Wrapped into damp cloth, it is left to rest for a period of time before the tea master decides it is ready to be collected and sorted for distribution.
This is why the tea leaves come with a yellow shade.
7) Oxidation
Oxidation is an important stage for the manufacture of black tea and oolong tea.
Natural oxidation starts the moment the leaves are plucked. So this stage is more about controlled-oxidation rather than forced oxidation.
They are spread out within the compounds of a humid environment for hours so that enzymes are transformed to provide desired taste and color.
Browning occurs which intensifies it’s flavor and aroma.
It must be noted that white tea traditionally does not go through oxidation, and instead jumps straight to the drying phase.
8) Drying and firing
With the exception of yellow tea which goes directly to sorting after heaping, all teas eventually reach the state of drying.
There are various technique for drying which has to ultimate goal of retaining only 2% (or less) of the leaves’ moisture.
They are usually roasted or fired in industrial ovens.
9) Sorting and distribution
Once the tea leaves are ready, they are either machine-sorted or hand-sorted according to grade.
They are then sent for packaging.
Finally, do note that these processes are not set in stone.
Sometimes in an effort to innovate and create new flavors, businesses try to mix up the production processes with various types of tea.