International Tea Day:

Black Tea

Varieties From Around The World

Quick Summary

All black tea comes from the same plant called Camellia sinensis, but what makes one black tea plantation different from the other is how the leaves are oxidised, combined with differences in altitude, climate, soil, and leaf grade. All of these produce dramatically different black teas that taste different when brewed into a cuppa. Assam’s black tea is malty and full-bodied, while Keemun of China has a wine-like flavour. This International Tea Day, here are some varieties every tea drinker should try.

Deep Dive

Black tea is the most widely consumed form of tea worldwide, accounting for over 70% of global tea consumption. But did you know that the discovery and popularisation of tea in India were due to two brothers under the British Empire? Robert Bruce, with the help of an Assamese nobleman, Maniram Dewan, discovered the tea plants, which were consumed by the Singpho people. His brother, Charles Alexander Bruce, took over the establishment of the tea trade in India after his untimely death. 

With time, by the 1850s, the native Camellia sinensis var. Assamica was being grown with the imported Chinese Camellia sinensis var. sinensis in Assam, Darjeeling and Nilgiris. It was the Assam tea that produced prolific tea, which still dominates British tea time even today. The defining characteristic of black tea is the full oxidation of the picked tea leaves. After harvesting, the tea leaves are spread to wilt and roll. This concentrates the leaf's tannins, producing black tea's characteristic ‘strong’ taste.

The 10 Black Tea Varieties You Should Know

Before getting into the types, this International Tea Day, you ought to know the grades of black tea segregated based on flush, leaf size, and method of processing. They are:

• Orange Pekoe (OP) has full leaves with no buds or tips.

• Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP) features medium to small broken leaves.

• Fannings are broken leaf teas, a grade above the dusting, which are fine.

• Dustings are fine tea powder that is produced during tea processing.

Indian Black Tea

Indian tea, in particular, black tea, is most sought after, especially Assam tea. They tend to produce robust and malty flavours, with Darjeeling tea coming in more layered flavours. 

Assam Black Tea

Origin: Assam, northeastern India, grown at low altitude in the Brahmaputra valley

Flavour Profile: Malty, deep-bodied, mildly astringent, autumnal-earthy, caramel fruity

Assam is the world's largest single-region tea-growing area, and its black tea is the backbone of many commercial tea blends. Grown at near-sea-level altitude in India's northeastern state, Assam tea bushes thrive in high humidity and high heat. The leaves are large and broad.

The best Assam teas, particularly orthodox whole-leaf grades like TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe) and the prized ‘second flush’ harvest (June-July), are known for their malty warmth, a quality sometimes described as reminiscent of freshly baked bread or dark caramel. 

The second flush also produces leaves with golden tips (known as ‘tippy’ tea), which signal high quality. Assam is the natural choice for milk tea (goes into CTC chai), as its robust body is the perfect pairing to whole milk’s fat content, without disappearing.

Best for: Breakfast tea, masala chai, milk tea, Irish-style strong tea.

Brewing Guide: 95°C, 3-5 minutes, excellent with milk.

Darjeeling Black Tea

Origin: Darjeeling district, West Bengal, grown on the Himalayan foothills at 600-2,000 metres 

Flavour Profile: Delicate, muscatel, light to medium body, floral and fruity, sometimes with almond notes

Often referred to as the ‘champagne of teas’, Darjeeling black tea is among the most prized and expensive teas in the world. Grown on steep Himalayan slopes in West Bengal, some gardens share a border with Nepal and Sikkim. Darjeeling teas are grown at high altitude in cool, misty conditions that slow leaf growth and concentrate flavour compounds. Darjeeling is unique in that it produces three distinct seasonal harvests (flushes), each with a prominent character:

• First Flush (March-April): Light, green-tinged, fresh and astringent, almost tea-like in its floral, grassy and vegetal quality; rare and expensive.

• Second Flush (May-June): The most loved flush, with muscatel notes (a characteristic grape-and-floral), medium amber liquor, fuller body and well-rounded body.

• Autumn Flush (October-November): Honeyed, ripe fruity notes, toasted nuts, mellow, full-bodied and velvety.

Darjeeling is one of the few teas with Geographical Indication (GI) status, meaning only tea from the Darjeeling district can legally carry the name, similar to how Champagne is protected in wine. Look for the Darjeeling logo on certified packaging.

Best for: Afternoon tea, served plain or with a small amount of milk, tasting straight like a fine wine 

Brewing Guide: 85-90°C, 3-4 minutes, preferably without milk to appreciate the muscatel

Nilgiri Black Tea

Origin: Nilgiri Hills (or Blue Mountains), Tamil Nadu, southern India, grown at 1,000-2,500 metres 

Flavour Profile: Balanced, smooth, light fruity notes, hints of orchid and citrus, clear amber liquor

Less famous than Assam and Darjeeling, Nilgiri produces some of India's most enjoyed black teas. The Nilgiri Hills' frost-free climate allows year-round harvesting, and the cooler high-altitude conditions produce a tea that is a cross between Assam's robust black tea and Darjeeling's milder black tea.

Nilgiri teas brew an exceptionally clear, bright amber liquor, a quality that makes them particularly prized for iced tea, as they don't cloud or turn murky when chilled (a phenomenon called ‘creaming down’ that affects some teas). The flavour profile typically carries light floral and fruity notes, reminiscent of orchid, sometimes citrus, with a balanced finish.

Best for: Iced tea, afternoon tea, blending, and accessible everyday brewing 

Brewing Guide: 90°C, 3-4 minutes; ideal cold-brewed overnight in the refrigerator

China Black Tea

Chinese black tea is mostly grown for export, and locally it is called red tea because of the colour of the brewed tea. The country is the largest producer of tea in the world.

Keemun Black Tea

Origin: Qimen County, Anhui Province, eastern China 

Flavour Profile: Wine-like, smooth, slightly cocoa with a hint of dried fruit and roses; sometimes called the ‘burgundy of teas’

Keemun was the original ‘English Breakfast Tea’, which is a deep, rich black tea that underpinned London's morning cup before Assam tea became widely available. Originating from Anhui province's wet and cooler mountainous Qimen county, keemun is made using an orthodox process that produces tightly rolled, small black leaves, along with select buds, that are reddish brown and brew into a rich, dark liquor.

What sets Keemun apart from Indian black teas is its remarkable smoothness. While Assam tea has a strong tannin presence with a malty undertone, keemun offers a wine-like, rounded flavour with notes of red fruit, honey, and cocoa, with a subtle smokiness to it. Premium-grade keemun (keemun hao ya) is served without milk, like a fine red wine. It also has significantly lower caffeine content than most black teas.

Best for: An alternative to coffee in the morning; served plain or in a tea blend like Earl Grey, iced tea

Brewing Guide: 90-95°C, 3-4 minutes; fine without milk; avoid over-steeping

Lapsang Souchong

Origin: Wuyi Mountains, Fujian province, China 

Flavour Profile: Intensely smoky, pine-forward, campfire-like with underlying sweetness; the most distinctive black tea in the world

Lapsang souchong holds the title of being the world's first black tea, developed in Fujian's Wuyi Mountains. It originally hails from southeast China’s Fujian, a mountainous region that is hard to access, with humid and hot summers and mild winters. 

This region’s speciality is a smoky black tea, which is made from harvested tea leaves from the lowest parts of the plant. The leaves are dried and smoked over burning pinewood or bamboo, which infuses them with an intensely smoky, resinous aroma that can, to the uninitiated, smell more like a whisky distillery than a teacup.

Best for: Whisky pairings; cold smoking and cooking; dark chocolate desserts 

Brewing Guide: 90°C, 3-4 minutes; serve without milk; start with a short steep and adjust

Yunnan Black Tea (Dianhong)

Origin: Yunnan province, southwestern China; some gardens are hundreds of years old

Flavour Profile: Smooth, earthy, sweet; notes of cocoa, honey, and spice; distinctive golden tips

Yunnan black tea, known in Chinese as Dianhong, is one of China's premium export teas. The province, which is also the historic origin point of the Camellia sinensis plant itself, produces teas from ancient tea trees, some several hundred years old, whose deep root systems access mineral-rich soil layers inaccessible to younger plants.

High-grade versions are covered in golden or reddish-gold tips (the buds of the plant), which brew into a honey-smooth, golden liquor. The flavour is earthy and sweet without the astringency typical of Indian black teas. You can taste notes of cocoa, malt, dried fruit, and sometimes a hint of peppercorn.

Best for: A smooth, sweet black tea without added milk; chocolate pairing; afternoon tea 

Brewing Guide: 90-95°C, 3-4 minutes; works beautifully without any additions

Pu-erh Tea

Origin: Yunnan province, China; made from large-leaf ancient tea trees 

Flavour Profile: Earthy, forest-floor, deeply complex; aged varieties carry notes of mushroom, leather, dried fruit, and dark chocolate

Pu-erh occupies a category of its own, as it is a post-fermented tea. It undergoes microbial fermentation after initial processing, sometimes for decades. Aged pu-erh cakes are traded like fine wine and whisky, with some vintage productions from the 1980s and 1990s sold at extraordinary prices.

There are two types: 

• Sheng (raw) pu-erh, which is compressed and aged naturally over years or decades.

• Shou (ripe) pu-erh, which undergoes an accelerated fermentation process. Shou pu-erh is great for beginners, for its flavour is earthy, smooth, and dark, with none of the astringency younger teas carry.

In the kitchen, pu-erh is one of the most sought-after cooking teas in China. It deepens the colour and body of dishes with gravies and slow-cooked meats, adding umami to stocks, and complements smoked meats in a way that no other tea can match.

Best for: Adventurous tea drinkers, heavy meat braises, as a digestif

Brewing Guide: 95°C, 3-5 minutes; rinse the first brew and discard, then steep properly

Ceylon Black Tea: Sri Lanka

Origin: Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon): Nuwara Eliya (high grown at 1,200m - 2,200m), Kandy (mid grown at 600m - 1,200m), Ruhuna (low at sea level 600m) 

Flavour Profile: Rich, floral, full-bodied, malty, chocolate, spice

The British were behind the introduction of tea to Sri Lanka in 1824, with the first tea plants sprouting from the Chinese sinensis variety. Once Assam tea cultivation was a success, Assam tea saplings were imported to the island nation around the 1840s. Under Ceylon tea, there are black and white teas as well, although black tea is the most sought-after. The country's tea industry is built across dramatically different elevations:

• High-grown Nuwara Eliya teas (above 1200 metres) produce the most delicate blend, a light-bodied, floral, and refreshing, close to Darjeeling

• Mid-grown Kandy teas offer a balanced cup, with medium body, strong colour, and light flavour

• Low-grown Ruhuna teas are robust, dark, and full-bodied, best suited to strong milk tea

Ceylon black tea comes in different strengths, just like Darjeeling tea, but with stronger flavours. It is widely used as a base for flavoured teas (including Earl Grey), iced tea brands, and ready-to-drink bottled teas.

Best for: Iced tea, afternoon tea, milk tea, lemon tea 

Brewing Guide: 90-95°C, 3-5 minutes; adapts well to both milk and lemon

Nepali Black Tea (Ilam and Himalayan Varieties)

Origin: Nepal: Ilam, Panchthar, Dhankuta, and Taplejung (high-altitude Himalayan regions, around 7500 feet above sea level)

Flavour Profile: Floral, muscatel, fruity, honeyed, malty, citrusy, brisk

Nepal’s black tea comes from the country’s eastern highlands that share a border with Darjeeling, hence the teas grown in this region have similarities to Darjeeling tea. Nepali tea is known for its complexity as they absorb the region’s rainfall, mist and mountain sunshine. 

So Nepali black teas usually develop a fuller body, more sweetness, and more pronounced fruity complexity. Orthodox processing methods dominate production, from premium Camellia sinensis plants, preserving nuanced aromas and layered flavours. Nepal’s tea regions are known for:

• Ilam teas: Floral, elegant, muscatel-driven, closest to the Darjeeling style

• Panchthar teas: Fruity, brisk, and aromatic with balanced body

• Dhankuta teas: Richer, honeyed, mildly spicy character

• Taplejung teas: High-grown, delicate, citrusy, and intensely aromatic

Nepal black tea changes dramatically by harvest season: spring flushes are light and floral, summer teas become fruity and full-bodied, while autumn harvests produce deeper malt and spice notes.

Unlike many commercial black teas, Nepali teas are usually hand-plucked and processed in small batches, resulting in exceptional freshness and terroir expression.

Best for: Straight sipping, afternoon tea, light milk tea, gongfu brewing

Brewing Guide: 90-95°C, 3-4 minutes; best enjoyed without heavy milk or sugar

International Tea Day: Black Teas at a Glance

Tea started its journey in China, where it has been a way of life for centuries, until colonisation brought it to India, Sri Lanka and other parts of the world. Today, black tea’s most sought-after variety hails from Assam, with China, Sri Lanka and Nepal following suit. Black teas are stronger and can be brewed into a liquor tea, iced tea to beat the heat or drunk with milk or lemon.