Glossary of Tea Terms

An Indian worker gathering tea in Assam

Here are some of the most often used tea terms. Knowing what's what can help when you’re shopping for loose tea, a tea maker or other accessories.

Assam – A region in Northeast India and the full-bodied robust tea cultivated there.

Bancha – A low quality Japanese tea made from the lower and larger leaves of the tea plant. Most Bancha tea is consumed domestically and not exported. See Sencha.

Chai – An Indian style of tea brewing in which black tea is mixed with spices and heated milk.

Darjeeling – A variety of very high quality tea grown in the Himalayan regions of India. For some aficionados "tea" means "Darjeeling."

Fermentation – The process through which the freshly cultivated green tea leaves are rolled (broken) and exposed to the oxygen in the air. Oxidation exposes the enzymes within the tea leaves and allows the fermenting of the special taste and aroma that makes tea so appealing. The more the tea leaves are fermented (oxidized) the darker their color turns. That's why black tea is 100% fermentized tea. Oolong and green teas have less fermentation. White tea is not rolled at all; it's fired right away. Also see Oxidation.

Kettle – a container used only for boiling water. The word "kettle" is derived from the Latin catillus, meaning “a deep dish or pan for cooking,” You never boil loose tea leaves or bagged tea in a kettle. Kettles are usually made up of metal or flame-resistant glass since they are specifically designed to sit on open flame. However, there are electric kettles as well. See Infuser.

Infuser – a container for holding the tea leaves. It is where you steep tea leaves with hot water. An infuser, which sometimes look like a strainer but sometimes it also looks like a small tea pot, has no contact with open flames or stove top. Water which is boiled separately in a kettle (see Kettle) is poured over the tea leaves placed in an infuser. Sometimes infusers look like small tea pots and they are placed directly on top of the open-top of the kettle (that is, a tea kettle with no lid). That way the infuser is warmed by the steam rising from the water boiling in the kettle.

Pekoe – Describes a tea production method in which the largest leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant are used to produce whole leaf teas. Pekoe teas commonly-available general-use products.

Oxidation – See Fermentation.

Rolling – The process of breaking the tea leaves to expose their enzymes and juices to the oxygen in the air. Highest quality teas, like the rare white tea, are rolled not by machines but by hand.

Sencha – The most commonly available variety of Japanese tea making about 75% of Japan's total production. See Bancha.

Tea Ball – A tea ball is a mesh sphere to hold loose tea leaves inside a pot of hot water for steeping. Tea balls usually have a hinge on one side, a chain and a hook to attach them to the edge of the pot.

Tea Cozy – A tea cozy is a protective cover that slips over a tea pot to keep it warm. Especially if you are living in a cold climate, a tea cozy is a must to enjoy a pot of warm tea over a lengthy period of time.

Tea Pot – A tea pot is very much like a kettle but it never sits on open flame to boil water. Even though some tea pots have built-in electric heaters to keep the brewed tea warm, it is never designed to boil water. Tea pot is where tea leaves (usually loose) are steeped with separately-warmed hot water. Since they are not designed for direct contact with stove top, tea pots are made from a wide variety of materials including metal, porcelain, stone, glass, and even wood. Some heavy iron-cast tea pots are used in countries like Japan to both boil water and to steep tea.