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Tea is produced in over 20 Chinese provinces. Tie guan yin tea bushes (Camellia sinensis) are cultivated in the mountain areas of tropical and subtropical regions or wherever there is proper climate, sufficient humidity, adequate sunshine and fertile soil.

Chinese tea is classified in many ways, e.g., quality, method of preparation or place of production. The main processing methods include fermentation (oxidation), heating, drying and addition of other ingredients like flowers, herbs or fruits. These help to develop the special flavor of the raw tea leaves.

Chinese tea may be classified into five categories according to the different methods by which it is processed.

1) Green tea: Green tea is the variety which keeps the original colour of the tea leaves without fermentation during processing. This enables the leaves to keep their original green color and retain most natural substances like polyphenols and chlorophyll contained within the leaves. This kind of tea is produced all over China and is the most popular category of tea. This category consists mainly of Longjing tea of Zhejiang Province, Maofeng of Huangshan Mountain in Anhui Province and Biluochun produced in Jiangsu. 

2) Black tea: Black tea, known as “red tea” (hong cha) in China, is the category which is fermented before baking; it is a later variety developed on the basis of the dragon well tea. In comparison to other tea categories, its flavor is longer lasting and it has the highest concentration of caffeine. This is most popular form of tea in south Asia and Europe. The best brands of black tea are Qihong of Anhui , Dianhong of Yunnan, Suhong of Jiangsu, Chuanhong of Sichuan and Huhong of Hunan. 

3) Oolong tea: This represents a variety half way between the green and the black teas, being made after partial fermentation. Its taste is more similar to green tea than black tea, but has less a “grassy” flavor than green tea. It is a specialty from the provinces on China’s southeast coast: Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan. 

4) Compressed tea: This is the kind of tea which is compressed and hardened into a certain shape. It is good for transport and storage and is mainly supplied to the ethnic minorities living in the border areas of the country. As compressed tea is black in color in its commercial form, so it is also known in China as “black tea”. Most of the compressed tea is in the form of bricks; it is, therefore, generally called “brick tea”, though it is sometimes also in the form of cakes and bowls. It is mainly produced in Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. 

5) Scented tea: This kind of tea is made by mixing fragrant flowers in the tea leaves in the course of processing. Flowers used include jasmine, gardenia, magnolia, grapefruit flower, sweet-scented osmanthus and rose. There are strict rules about the proportion of flowers to tea. Jasmine tea is a well-known favorite with the northerners of China and with a growing number of foreigners. 

Various preparation methods mean different teas have different bioactive substances. For example, green tea only has limited processing so it retains a relatively high content of natural ingredients, meaning that green tea has stronger anti-aging, anti-cancer and anti-bacterial properties. Oolong tea, which is partially fermented, is quite potent in breaking down protein and fat, aiding weight loss. Red tea that has undergone the full fermentation process has lost 90% of its polyphenols but retains its high caffeine content