{"id":3951,"date":"2022-11-28T19:57:33","date_gmt":"2022-11-28T11:57:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cnteaspirit.com\/?p=3951"},"modified":"2026-10-14T20:25:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T12:25:24","slug":"six-types-of-chinese-tea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cnteaspirit.com\/de\/six-types-of-chinese-tea\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Arten von chinesischem Tee"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The six main types of Chinese tea are green, white, yellow, oolong, black and dark tea<\/strong>. They are distinguished by how the leaves are processed, rather than simply by the colour of the finished drink.<\/p>\n

One naming detail makes a big difference: hong cha (\u7ea2\u8336) is black tea in English<\/strong>, although its Chinese name means \u201cred tea\u201d. Hei cha (\u9ed1\u8336) is dark tea<\/strong>, a different category associated with microbial fermentation. Keeping those two names separate makes Chinese tea much easier to explore.<\/p>\n

Six types of Chinese tea at a glance<\/h2>\n
\n \n
Tea type<\/th>Chinese name<\/th>Main processing difference<\/th>Examples<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>\n
Green tea<\/th>\u7eff\u8336 \u00b7 l\u00fc cha<\/td>Heated early to limit oxidation, then shaped and dried<\/td>Longjing, Huangshan Mao Feng, Taiping Hou Kui<\/td><\/tr>\n
White tea<\/th>\u767d\u8336 \u00b7 bai cha<\/td>Withered and dried with relatively little handling<\/td>Silver Needle, White Peony, Shou Mei<\/td><\/tr>\n
Yellow tea<\/th>\u9ec4\u8336 \u00b7 huang cha<\/td>Includes a covered yellowing step<\/td>Junshan Yin Zhen, Mengding Huang Ya, Huoshan Huang Ya<\/td><\/tr>\n
Oolong tea<\/th>\u4e4c\u9f99\u8336 \u00b7 wulong cha<\/td>Partially oxidised; style varies with processing and roasting<\/td>Tieguanyin, Wuyi rock tea, Phoenix Dancong<\/td><\/tr>\n
Black tea<\/th>\u7ea2\u8336 \u00b7 hong cha<\/td>Oxidised before final drying<\/td>Keemun, Dian Hong, Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong<\/td><\/tr>\n
Dark tea<\/th>\u9ed1\u8336 \u00b7 hei cha<\/td>Microbial fermentation is part of its processing or maturation<\/td>Liubao, Qimen An Cha, ripe Pu-erh<\/td><\/tr>\n <\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

Oxidation and microbial fermentation are different processes. Older descriptions often use \u201cfermentation\u201d for both, but the distinction helps explain why black tea and dark tea belong to different categories.<\/p>\n

Ready to taste the differences? Explore our Chinese teas<\/a>, or start with the Huang Shan tea sample pack<\/a>. Check its current options to see which teas are included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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Green Tea – \u7eff\u8336<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Green tea is heated early in processing to limit oxidation. It is then shaped and dried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This early heating helps preserve the leaves\u2019 green character. Pan-firing and steaming are two ways of applying that heat; the exact method depends on the tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Chinese<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Its production process goes through Sha Qing (kill green), kneading and drying. Sha Qing uses high temperature to passivate oxidizing enzymes to prevent the tea leaves from oxidizing and maintain the green colors. Kneading has a certain role in shaping, and another role is to make the tea leaf cells broken to meet the requirements of multiple infusions. Drying, in addition to facilitating the storage of tea leaves, also has the effect of enhancing the aroma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most common green teas are Anji white tea, Huangshan Mao Feng<\/a>, Taiping Hou Kui<\/a>, Xihu Dragon Well, Xinyang Mao Jian, Bi Luo Chun and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more articles about Chinese green tea.<\/p>\n\n\n

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