A good, all-around tea for mornings is Chinese black tea. Rich in flavor and caffeine, this type of healthy tea is enjoyed by everyone although it has been popular in China for centuries. When shopping, you will find loose black tea also listed as “red tea” in some stores.
While the official name is Chinese black tea, this particular type of exotic tea is also known as red tea. Regardless, the Chinese people have enjoyed the flavor and medicinal properties for hundreds of years and today, it has joined ranks with other popular types of tea to include green tea and oolong tea.
Learning the Basics of Chinese Black Tea
Obviously, this type of tea comes from China, and for the people it has been a mainstay beverage along with green tea, passed down from one generation to another. When brewed, this type of loose black tea actually changes color to a more reddish hue, which is why it is also called “red tea”. When fresh, Chinese black tea is deep in flavor but over time, it begins to mellow although the flavor becomes richer. In fact, this particular type of Chinese tea is so unique that many tea connoisseurs compare it to a fine wine that gets better with age.
It is important to keep Chinese black tea properly stored, which simply involves keeping it in an air-tight container placed in a room with good ventilation and consistent cool temperature. This helps preserve flavor and black tea benefits. Another fascinating fact about this kind of tea is that it comes in different forms to include loose black tea leaves or compressed cakes, which can be in any number of sizes and shapes such as tubes or squares.
Varieties of Chinese Black Tea
The actual Chinese black tea you get will depend largely on the method of processing. Even so, this type of tea is broken down into three primary options to include:
Souchong Black Tea – This exotic tea comes from the Fujian province of China where it grows in Wuyi Mountain City. The leaves are actually heated and smoked over pine, which produces a unique flavor and aroma not found with any other type of Chinese tea. Experts suggest that Lapsang Souchong is the best although Smoking Souchong uses a lower quality congou tea using processing methods that imitate the original method. For this particular variety, four classifications exist:
a. Lapsang Souchong – Produced in Jianyang, Guangzhe, and Chong’an
b. Smoking Souchong – This is the original flavor grown in Wuyi Mountain City
c. Tongmuguan Souchong – Produced in the county of Tongmuguan
d. XingChung Souchong – Produced in the county of Chong’An, specifically near Xingcun town
Congou Black Tea – This is another type of Chinese black tea from the Souchong variety, as shown above. This too has several varieties, the favorites that include:
a. Chuanhong of Sichuan
b. Huhong of Hunan
c. Qihong of Anhui
d. Dianhong of Yunnan
e. Suchong of Jiangsu
Broken Black Tea – Known as graded black tea, this type of Chinese black tea must meet international grading standards for quality and uniformity. In this case, the tea is made into a number of shapes that include:
a. Short strip
b. Broken leaf
c. Small grain
d. Fannings black
e. Small slice
f. Powered
g. Whole leaf
h. Dust black
While all types and varieties of Chinese black tea are delicious and healthy, the actual growing place of origin is Chong’An in the Fujian Province. In fact, Souchong black teat was made throughout the 18th century in the Wuyi Mountain City, which led to it becoming so popular. From that time on, manufacturing improved and word quickly spread, taking Chinese black tea further in China to Jiangsi and Keemun Provinces.