Tea leaf

Also called 阿波晩茶, Awa bancha.

light, sour, low-caffeine tea

1. Harvest early-late summer, boil
2. Knead on tea roller
3. Anaerobic lactic fermentation in barrel under stonesabout 2 weeks
4. Sun-dry

• Horie and Iwahashi 2023, Fermentation 9:876
• Nishioka et al., Awa-bancha LAB and components

Also called バタバタ茶.

mould-fermented tea, whisked with a double whisk and salt

1. Steam
2. Stack in a chamber for aerobic fermentation; turn (kirikaeshi)20–30 days; mixed 10–15 times every 2–3 days
3. Sun-dry

• Horie and Iwahashi 2023, Fermentation 9:876

Also called 发酵 (fājiào, trade usage), tea fermentation.

black or oolong tea

1. Wither and roll
2. Oxidationblack tea about 45–90 min up to 3 h
3. Fire or dry

• Wikipedia, Tea processing (citing Roberts 1958, Graham 1992, Wen et al. 2010). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_processing

Also called 돈차, 전차 (錢茶), 청태전 (靑苔錢), 떡차 (병차, 餠茶), coin tea, cheongtaejeon.

coins of about 7–9 g, each brewing 500–600 ml at 85–95 °C for 5–10 min, three or four times

1. Let leaves rest after pickingabout 12 h
2. Steam in a siru steamer or cauldron (Korean tea is usually pan-fired; doncha is steamed)
3. Pound in a mortar or grind in a millstone; shape into round cakes with a central hole
4. Sun-dry
5. Post-fermentation in storageat least 6 months; aged 20 years or more for richer taste
6. Toast both sides on low heat before brewing (sterilises and adds aroma)

• Korean Wikipedia, 돈차, read 2026-10-16
• Slow Food Foundation, Ark of Taste, Don Tea

Also called 茯砖茶, 金花, Fuzhuan, golden flower tea, jin hua.

brick tea studded with yellow Eurotium spores

1. Wither, steam, roll fresh leaves
2. Pile fermentation (raw dark tea)28 °C
3. Dry raw dark tea
4. Blend, steam, short pile, compress into loose-pressed bricks
5. Golden flower blooming (fa hua)about 21 days
6. Dry and age

• Xiang et al. 2022, Microbial succession and interactions during manufacture of Fu brick tea, Frontiers in Microbiology 13:892437
• Frontiers in Microbiology 2023, 1287802 (lab inoculation)
• Li Q. et al. 2018, primary dark tea pile fermentation at the Ba Jiao factory, Yiyang, Hunan, Frontiers in Microbiology 9:1509, PMC6048958

Also called 石鎚黒茶.

dried, sour post-fermented tea

1. Steamabout 1 h
2. Primary aerobic fermentation in wooden boxseveral days
3. Knead (unlike goishi-cha)
4. Secondary anaerobic fermentation in buckets under stonesone to several weeks
5. Sun-dry

• Horie and Iwahashi 2023, Fermentation 9:876

Also called Копорский чай, копорка, иван-чай, Іван-чай, Ivan chai, Ivan tea.

dark, black-tea-like leaves brewed as a caffeine-free tea

1. Pick leaves at full flower, noon on dry days
2. Wilt (home practice) and crush, roll or cut the leaves to break cells
3. Solid-phase fermentation in closed (anaerobic) or air-permeable (aerobic) containers24, 48 or 72 h (study); home guides 6–36 h
4. Dry10 h

• Lasinskas M. et al. 2023, The impact of solid-phase fermentation on flavonoids, phenolic acids, tannins and antioxidant activity in fireweed leaves, Plants 12(2):277, PMC9863328
• Lasinskas M. et al. 2020, Effect of different durations of solid-phase fermentation for fireweed leaves, Molecules 25(4):1011, PMC7070727
• Galambosi B. et al. 2016, Optimization of the fermentation of fireweed shoot, Luke Natural Resources and Bioeconomy Studies 72/2016 (not read)
• Russian Wikipedia, Копорский чай, read 2026-10-16

Also called 六堡茶, Liupao, Liu Pao.

dark tea with woody, betel-nut and earthy notes

1. Make maocha (sha qing, roll, dry) (typical)
2. Wet pileseveral weeks (vendor source)
3. Steam and pack into large bamboo baskets
4. Age in cool, humid cellars or cavesmonths to years (typical)

• Yunnan Sourcing product notes (vendor, low reliability)
• Wikipedia, Fermented tea

Also called 酸茶, Blang sour tea, yancha.

sour tea eaten or chewed

1. Cook or steam leaves (typical)
2. Pack into bamboo tubes, seal
3. Bury in groundmonths (typical)

• Wikipedia, Fermented tea

Also called เมี่ยง, miang faat, miang prieo, chewing tea, bai-ming (FAO spelling, probable).

fermented tea leaf chewed with salt, ginger, peanuts, coconut

1. Pick leavesfour flushes: Apr–May, Jun–Jul, Aug–Oct, Nov–Dec
2. Bundle (about 300 g) and steam2–3 h
3. Cool and retie bundles3 h in open air (lab)
4. Pack and press
5. Ferment7 days – 12 months
6. Pack in banana-leaf-lined bamboo baskets for sale30 days

• Unban et al. 2020, Frontiers in Microbiology 11:1515, doi 10.3389/fmicb.2020.01515
• JIRCAS Database of Fermented Foods of Thailand, Miang card, read 2026-10-16
• Frontiers in Microbiology 2024, 1450158 (LAB in Miang types)
• Okada et al. 1986, J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol. 32(1):57 (L. plantarum only isolates)

Also called 黑茶, heicha.

various compressed dark teas

1. Pile fermentation then pressing (common pattern)12 h · 28 °C

• Wikipedia, Fermented tea
• Li Q. et al. 2018, primary dark tea pile fermentation, Frontiers in Microbiology 9:1509, PMC6048958

a fermented drinking tea made from lahpet seconds

1. Re-pack low-grade lahpet into bags, tanks or pits under pressureabout 6-7 months
2. Sun-dry

• Thar S.P. 2016, An exploratory value chain analysis for Burmese pickled tea (LAPHET), MAgriCommerce thesis, Massey University, pp. 71-72, https://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/10732

Also called 生普洱, 生茶, sheng puer, raw puer.

aged compressed tea that darkens and mellows over years

1. Pick and wilt
2. Sha qing (pan-fire)
3. Roll
4. Sun-dry to maocha
5. Steam and press into cakes; air-dry on shelvesweeks to months
6. Ageyears to decades

• Wikipedia, Pu'er tea

Also called 藏茶, ཇ་སྦག (ja sbag), 南路边茶, 康砖, 金尖, 茶砖.

compressed dark tea boiled for Tibetan butter tea; aged tea tastes mellow, sweet, slightly medicinal

1. Kill-green and roll (wet route) or sun-dry or bake green leaf (dry route)
2. Pile fermentation (wo dui)
3. Steam and press into bricks (Kang zhuan) or baskets (Jin jian)
4. Ageyears; older tea is valued more

• Chen S. et al. 2025, Multi-omics of Tibetan teas produced by wet- and dry-piling fermentation, Food Research International, doi 10.1016/j.foodres.2025.115690
• Zhu H. et al. 2024, Bacillus licheniformis-based intensive fermentation of Tibetan tea, Frontiers in Microbiology, PMC11199413
• Chinese Wikipedia, 藏茶, read 2026-10-16