The seven classes

A living index of Chinese leaf.

Filter by class, then open any leaf for its terroir, harvest and a brewing card you can actually follow.

Oolong tea · Alishan, Chiayi, Taiwan — 1,000–1,600 m

Alishan Oolong

ālǐshān wūlóng · 阿里山乌龙

Lilac and fresh cream, sweet sugarcane and a soft, lingering floral finish — light-bodied and luminous.

Dark tea · Anhua county, Yiyang, Hunan — 400–800 m

Anhua Heicha

ānhuà hēichá · 安化黑茶

Earth, aged wood and dried jujube, with a soft sweetness and, in fuzhuan styles, a mellow fungal richness — thick and round, never harsh.

Green tea · Anji county, Zhejiang

Anji Bai Cha

ānjí báichá · 安吉白茶

Remarkably sweet and umami, with fresh bamboo, sweet corn and almost no bitterness.

White tea · Fuding and Zhenghe, Fujian

Baihao Yinzhen

báiháo yínzhēn · 白毫银针

Soft honey, melon and hay — delicate, sweet, with a cool clean finish and no edge at all.

Oolong tea · Wuyi mountains, Fujian — 600–1,000 m

Bai Ji Guan

báijīguān · 白鸡冠

Sweet corn, herbs and a soft floral note over a light mineral body — gentler and brighter than most rock teas, with a clean finish.

White tea · Fuding and Zhenghe, Fujian — 600 m and up

Bai Mudan

báimǔdān · 白牡丹

Honey, hay and a soft floral note over a fuller body than silver needle — sweet, mellow and round, with a clean finish.

Green tea · Dongting hills, Lake Tai, Suzhou, Jiangsu

Biluochun

bìluóchūn · 碧螺春

Floral and fruity over a sweet, delicate body — apricot and orchid from the orchard, with a fine clean finish and no harshness.

Oolong tea · Wuyi mountains, Fujian

Da Hong Pao

dàhóngpáo · 大红袍

Roasted and mineral — dark caramel, stone fruit, cocoa and a long, warming finish with that wet-rock minerality.

Red tea · Yunnan — the "Dian" of its name

Dianhong

diānhóng · 滇红

Malt, honey, cocoa and a hint of stone fruit — rich and rounded, with a smooth sweetness and almost no bitterness.

Dark tea · Jingyang, Shaanxi (and Anhua, Hunan)

Fu Zhuan

fúzhuān · 茯砖

Mellow earth, dried date and a soft mushroom-and-grain sweetness from the golden flower — smooth, round and warming, with no bitterness.

Green tea · Huangshan (Yellow Mountain), Anhui — 600 m and up

Huangshan Maofeng

huángshān máofēng · 黄山毛峰

Sweet orchid and fresh chestnut over a clean, mellow body — soft and floral, with a smooth finish and little astringency.

Yellow tea · Huoshan county, Dabie mountains, Anhui

Huoshan Huangya

huòshān huángyá · 霍山黄芽

Toasted grain, chestnut and a touch of sweet hay over a smooth, rounded body — mellow and gently sweet.

Red tea · Tongmu, Wuyi, Fujian — 1,000–1,800 m

Jin Jun Mei

jīnjùnméi · 金骏眉

Honey, cocoa and ripe stone fruit over a smooth, full body — rich and sweet, with a velvety finish and no bitterness.

Yellow tea · Junshan island, Dongting Lake, Yueyang, Hunan

Junshan Yinzhen

jūnshān yínzhēn · 君山银针

Sweet corn and chestnut over a soft, mellow body — rounder and less grassy than a green, with a clean lingering finish.

Dark tea · Liubao town, Wuzhou, Guangxi — 800–1,400 m

Liubao

liùbǎo chá · 六堡茶

Damp wood, earth and dried longan, with the prized betel-nut note in good age — thick, smooth and round, never sharp.

Yellow tea · Mount Meng, Ya'an, Sichuan — 800–1,450 m

Mengding Huangya

méngdǐng huángyá · 蒙顶黄芽

Sweet chestnut and toasted grain over a smooth, mellow body — gently sweet, with none of the green's edge.

Oolong tea · Phoenix mountain, Chaozhou, Guangdong — 400 m and up

Milan Xiang Dancong

mìlánxiāng dāncōng · 蜜兰香单丛

Honey and orchid over ripe stone fruit — intensely aromatic, sweet and full, with a long fragrant finish and a soft mineral base.

Red tea · Qimen county, Huangshan, Anhui — 100–800 m

Qimen Hongcha

qímén hóngchá · 祁门红茶

Cocoa, dried rose and a malty sweetness, with the orchid-floral "Keemun aroma" — smooth and refined, with a clean, gentle finish.

Pu-erh tea · Yunnan — pressed and aged, 800 m and up

Sheng Pu-erh

shēng pǔ'ěr · 生普洱

Young — floral, bitter-sweet, with a brisk apricot brightness. Aged — honey, dried fruit, camphor and a deep, smooth mellowness.

Pu-erh tea · Yunnan — pressed and aged

Shou Pu-erh

shóu pǔ'ěr · 熟普洱

Damp earth, wet wood, dates and dark caramel — thick, smooth and round, with no bitterness and a soft sweet finish.

Green tea · Houkeng, Taiping, Huangshan, Anhui — 350–750 m

Taiping Houkui

tàipíng hóukuí · 太平猴魁

Fresh orchid and snow pea over a clean, mellow body — delicate and floral, with a long sweet finish and almost no bitterness.

Oolong tea · Anxi county, Fujian

Tieguanyin

tiěguānyīn · 铁观音

Orchid and lilac on the nose, a creamy, buttery body and a long, sweet, faintly floral finish.

Green tea · West Lake hills, Hangzhou, Zhejiang

West Lake Longjing

xīhú lóngjǐng · 西湖龙井

Toasted chestnut, sweet pea and a clean, almost buttery finish — gentle, never grassy-sharp.

White tea · Yunnan — Pu'er and Lincang

Yueguang Bai

yuèguāng bái · 月光白

Honey, ripe stone fruit and a soft floral sweetness over a fuller body — rich for a white, with a long, mellow finish.

Red tea · Tongmu, Wuyi, Fujian — 700–1,800 m

Zhengshan Xiaozhong

zhèngshān xiǎozhǒng · 正山小种

Dried longan, pine smoke and a malty sweetness — warm and resinous in the smoked style, honey-sweet and fruity in the unsmoked.