5. Tea Leaf Processing
Air temperature is critical
Rolling the leaves
Sifting for size
Fermentation
Drying the tea leaves
Machine sorting
Hand sifting

After drying the tea must cool down before the sorting  and grading process.   If the sorting takes place while the tea is still warm it can lose its character and bloom.
The first step in the process is passing the bulk tea through machine sorters which do most of the size grading - whole leaf, broken leaf, fannings.  They are then hand graded to further fineness.  The tea all comes from the same plant but the grading separates the leaves by size.  Broken leaves and fannings work well in teabags   while whole leaves are reserved mostly for loose tea brewing.

  

Or return to:
Table of Contents
or
A World of Tea