Understand what's in your cup

Tea Education

Tea types, origins, flavor vocabulary, storage and freshness — the background knowledge that makes every other decision easier.

White, green, yellow, oolong, black and dark tea all come from one plant. Oxidation explains the rest.

China, Japan, India, Taiwan and Sri Lanka each produce a recognizable style. Knowing which helps you shop with confidence.

Words like brisk, malty, umami and astringent are useful, not pretentious. Here is what each actually describes.

The five things that degrade tea, and a simple storage routine that keeps leaf tasting close to new for months.

Realistic shelf lives by tea type, how to tell if leaf has gone flat, and what to do with tea past its best.

The most varied category in tea, spanning floral green rolls to dark roasted rock teas.

Fermented, pressed and aged. A plain-English introduction to the most misunderstood tea category.

Six tea types, one plant. The processing steps are what separate them — here is each one in order.