Tea Garden Russian tea - black tea, 90g

Black tea, its history and processing

Black tea (sometimes also called red tea) - although these fully fermented teas are not very popular in China, their main varieties are masterpieces. Even cheaper varieties will pleasantly surprise us with their beautiful appearance, indicating perfectly executed tea harvesting and processing. Some teas from this group have been produced for only fifty years (e. g. Yunnan tea) while others have been known since the 17th century. However, it must be assumed that this type of tea has been known to the Chinese for at least as long as the multiple fermented teas of the Pu Erh type (i. e. from around the 7th century AD. l. ), but apparently they didn' t like it very much.
Black tea, as mentioned, is fermented, and oolong is semi-fermented. After harvesting, the leaves are left to " wither", that is, partially dry, either in the sun or in the shade, depending on the style. If the leaves are not partially dried, they cannot be rolled up. Enzymatic processes take place during this wilting. The best teas are therefore those in which wilting occurs within a few hours due to dry weather. " Rainy teas, " which wither more slowly, are not as popular.
Once rolled, the tea leaves are spread out in a damp and cool place for fermentation, i. e. further oxidation. The effects of the two oxidation phases differ significantly from each other. Apparently because after rolling, other components of the leaves, such as essential oils, are also exposed to oxidation. This is precisely why leaves intended for making black tea or oolong must not be " killed" before rolling, as is the case with leaves intended for green tea.