Letter descriptions on teas - what do they mean?

How are teas professionally labeled?

Good quality tea available on the market is most often classified by its origin, but not only that. On packaging, you can also encounter a string of letters that specify the characteristics of its harvest. These are:

• B (Broken): tea from broken leaves
• F (Flowery): flower, which consists of a bud and the first leaves
• G (Golden): dried golden buds with a distinctive golden color.
• M (Mixed): tea from mixed ingredients (blend).
• P (Pekoe): tea obtained from two short and straight leaves, tender, growing close to the top.
• O (Orange): tea made of long and pointed leaves similar in appearance to the leaves on orange trees.
• S (Seuchong): dried from the elongated and thickest leaves, curling inward, growing on the middle part of the branch. The leaves are subjected to smoking, so that the brew can have a distinctive smoky smell.
• T (Tip): tea extracted from the undeveloped buds found at the very top of the shrubs.

Whole leaf teas - what are the designations?

Generally available in stores and the most popular are teas in the form of tea dust. This is the cheapest type of tea, which is characterized by a shallower flavor and a faint aroma. Teas made from leaves that undergo a mechanical breaking process are also popular. Infusions made from this type of dried tea are often purchased by many people, but they certainly won't meet the expectations of the biggest connoisseurs. Tea lovers most often rely on whole leaf teas for a reason. They are held in the highest esteem due to their high quality, unique taste and aroma, as well as the intense infusion created by brewing.

Indications of whole leaf teas - letters on packaging:

• S (Souchong): dried tea made from fairly large, longitudinally curled leaves
• P (Pekoe): tea made from shorter and less tender leaves
• PS (Pekoe Souchong): dried extracted from harder and shorter leaves
• FP (Flower Pekoe): leaves rolled into balls with a characteristic floral aftertaste
• OP (Orange Pekoe): leaves long, pointed shape
• FOP (Flowery Orange Pekoe): dried from the first leaf of the shoot and flower buds, which give it flavor. It contains young and soft leaves
• GFOP (Gloden Flowery Orange Pekoe): dried from pointed leaves extracted from the upper part and golden buds, giving a characteristic golden hue
• TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): drought with quite a few golden buds
• FTGFOP (Finest Tippy Gloden Flowery Orange Pekoe): high quality tea, mainly dried Darjeeling, with even more golden buds
• SFTGFOP (Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): a mixture of selected leaves and buds.

Indications for broken leaf teas

The tea industry is mainly based on the production of dried tea with broken leaves (98% world production). Such leaves are processed mechanically so that their cutting enables them to be almost uniform in size. The markings of broken-leaf teas are quite similar to those of whole-leaf teas. However, the letter B (broken) is added to the letter notations. Accordingly:

• BP (Broken Pekoe): dried from short and simple leaves growing close to the top.
• BPS (Broken Pekoe Souchong).: leaves obtained from the upper part of the branch or the middle part. Dried with broken leaves thicker and hard along with rolled leaves of irregular sizes and shapes.
• BOP (Broken Orange Pekoe): tea with broken and thick leaves, developed in the upper part near the top.
• FBOP (Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe).: leaves elongated and developed in the upper part of the branches, the dried also contains the youngest flower shoots that give the infusions a delicate aroma.
• GFBOP (Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe).: tea with pointed leaves and golden buds that give the infusion its distinctive hue.
• TGFBOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Broker Orange Pekoe): dried from broken, long and thick leaves and with lots of young golden buds.

Letters indicating the tea harvest

It is also worth noting the inscriptions on the packages that characterize the harvesting period of the dried product. These are:

• FF (First Flush): in the months of March-April, which is the first, spring harvest. Teas from such harvests have a delicate flavor and a slightly floral aroma.
• SF (Seconf Flush): harvest in the months of May-June.
• Autumnal: A tea from the autumn harvest, it has a rather intense and tart flavor.
• Monsoon: dried harvested during the summer monsoon when there is heavy rainfall. It is not classified as a high quality tea.
• HG (Highgrown): tea grown in mountainous areas in humid climates. We most often encounter this designation for Ceylon teas.

It is worth checking the labels on the teas carefully to know as much as possible about them and to enjoy them as much as possible.