Origins
123 teas from 30 countries and 94 growing regions, from the Himalayan foothills to the Cape fynbos. Hover a country to see what grows there.Tap a country to see what grows there.
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East Asia
China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea · 67 teas
China
Tea's homeland. China makes every type, green, white, yellow, oolong, black and dark, and still produces more tea than any other country.
TieguanyinAnxi · OolongHarvest: Spring (April to May) and autumn (September to October)
Longjing (Dragon Well)West Lake, Hangzhou · GreenHarvest: Late March to April
Da Hong PaoWuyi Mountains · OolongHarvest: Late April to May
Dian HongFengqing · BlackHarvest: March to April (spring), also summer and autumn
KeemunQimen · BlackHarvest: April to May (spring)
Bai Mu Dan (White Peony)Fuding · WhiteHarvest: Spring
Huangshan Mao FengHuangshan · GreenHarvest: Late March to April
Silver NeedleFuding · WhiteHarvest: March to early April
Lapsang SouchongTongmu, Wuyi · BlackHarvest: Late April to June
Gunpowder GreenZhejiang · GreenHarvest: Spring to summer
Sheng Pu-erhXishuangbanna · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring (March to April), also summer and autumn
Bi Luo ChunDongting Mountains, Suzhou · GreenHarvest: March to early April
Jasmine PearlFuzhou · GreenHarvest: Spring leaf, scented in summer
Shou (Ripe) Pu'erXishuangbanna · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring to autumn leaf, ripened for months
Golden MonkeyYunnan · BlackHarvest: Spring
Phoenix Dan CongPhoenix Mountain, Chaozhou · OolongHarvest: Spring
Rou GuiWuyi Mountains · OolongHarvest: Spring
Shou MeiFuding · WhiteHarvest: Late spring
Shui XianWuyi Mountains · OolongHarvest: Spring
Yunnan GoldFengqing · BlackHarvest: Spring
Lu An Gua PianLu'an · GreenHarvest: Spring
Tai Ping Hou KuiHuangshan · GreenHarvest: Spring (April to May)
Xinyang MaojianXinyang · GreenHarvest: Spring
Yunnan Moonlight WhiteSouthwest Yunnan · WhiteHarvest: Spring
Fu Zhuan BrickAnhua · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring to autumn
Jin Jun MeiTongmu, Wuyi · BlackHarvest: Early spring, April
Junshan YinzhenJunshan Island · YellowHarvest: Early spring
Liu BaoCangwu, Wuzhou · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring to autumn
Huoshan HuangyaHuoshan · YellowHarvest: Early April
Yingde BlackYingde, Qingyuan · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumn
Anhua Dark TeaAnhua · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring to autumn
Gong MeiVarious regions · WhiteHarvest: Spring
Lu Shan Yun WuMount Lu, Jiujiang · GreenHarvest: Spring
Meng Ding Huang YaMeng Shan, Ya'an · YellowHarvest: Early spring
Tanyang GongfuTanyang, Fu'an · BlackHarvest: Spring
Anji Bai ChaAnji · GreenHarvest: Early spring
Shui Jin GuiWuyi Mountains · OolongHarvest: Spring
Guizhou MatchaGuizhou · GreenHarvest: Spring
Liu An Basket TeaLu'an · Pu-erh & darkHarvest: Spring leaf, aged
Japan
Japanese tea is almost all green and mostly steamed, from everyday sencha to shaded gyokuro and the stone-ground matcha of the tea ceremony.
Uji MatchaUji · GreenHarvest: May (first flush)
SenchaShizuoka · GreenHarvest: Late April to May (first flush)
GyokuroYame · GreenHarvest: Late April to May
HojichaUji · GreenHarvest: Made from later-season leaf
Nishio MatchaNishio · GreenHarvest: May (first flush)
GenmaichaShizuoka · GreenHarvest: Blended all year
Shizuoka MatchaShizuoka · GreenHarvest: May (first flush)
Mugicha (Barley Tea)Kanto · HerbalHarvest: Barley, early summer
KabusechaMie · GreenHarvest: First flush, late April to May
Kukicha (Twig Tea)Shizuoka · GreenHarvest: Spring and summer, with sencha
ShinchaKagoshima · GreenHarvest: Early April to late May
Sobacha (Buckwheat Tea)Various regions · HerbalHarvest: Buckwheat harvest
Tamaryokucha (Guricha)Ureshino, Saga · GreenHarvest: Spring
BanchaShizuoka · GreenHarvest: Summer to autumn
KamairichaUreshino, Saga · GreenHarvest: Spring
Taiwan
A small island famous for oolong: rolled high-mountain teas, roasted Dong Ding and the bug-bitten Oriental Beauty.
Oriental BeautyHsinchu · OolongHarvest: Early summer, June to July
Dong Ding OolongLugu, Nantou · OolongHarvest: Spring and winter
Alishan High MountainAlishan, Chiayi · OolongHarvest: Spring (mid-year) and winter (late October)
Jin Xuan (Milk Oolong)Alishan, Chiayi · OolongHarvest: Spring and winter
Taiwan Ruby 18Sun Moon Lake · BlackHarvest: Summer to autumn
Baozhong (Wenshan)Pinglin · OolongHarvest: Spring, from late March
Li Shan OolongLishan, Taichung · OolongHarvest: Spring (mid-year) and winter
Muzha TieguanyinMuzha, Taipei · OolongHarvest: Spring and winter
Taitung Red OolongLuye, Taitung · OolongHarvest: Summer and autumn
GABA OolongVarious regions · OolongHarvest: Spring and winter
South Korea
Korean green tea, nokcha, comes mainly from Boseong in the south-west, Hadong and the island of Jeju.
Korean SejakBoseong · GreenHarvest: Late April to early May
Jeju GreenJeju Island · GreenHarvest: Spring
Korean BalhyochaHadong · OolongHarvest: SpringSouth-East Asia
Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand · 4 teas
Vietnam
Vietnam is among the world's larger tea producers. Thai Nguyen province in the north is famous for its small, twisted green tea.
Thai Nguyen GreenThai Nguyen · GreenHarvest: Spring to autumn
Vietnamese Lotus TeaWest Lake, Hanoi · GreenHarvest: Lotus season, summer
Indonesia
Indonesia was the world's eighth-largest tea producer in 2023, mostly of black tea. About two-thirds of it comes from West Java, where trial plantings began in the 1820s.
Java BlackWest Java · BlackHarvest: All year
Thailand
Butterfly pea flower tea, blue and colour-changing, is a traditional drink in Thailand and across South-East Asia.
Butterfly Pea FlowerVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Year-roundSouth Asia
India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh · 23 teas
India
India grows about a fifth of the world's tea, from the malty lowland Assam valley to the misty Himalayan gardens of Darjeeling and the Nilgiri hills in the south.
Darjeeling First FlushDarjeeling · BlackHarvest: March to April
AssamAssam · BlackHarvest: March to November, second flush May to June
Darjeeling Second FlushDarjeeling · BlackHarvest: May to June
NilgiriNilgiris · BlackHarvest: All year, best December to March
Assam CTCAssam · BlackHarvest: March to November
Ginger TeaKerala · HerbalHarvest: Year-round
Darjeeling Autumn FlushDarjeeling · BlackHarvest: October to November
Tulsi (Holy Basil)Uttar Pradesh · HerbalHarvest: Year-round
LemongrassKerala · HerbalHarvest: Year-round
Darjeeling GreenDarjeeling · GreenHarvest: March to April (first flush)
Sikkim TemiTemi, Namchi · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumn flushes
Kangra BlackKangra · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumn
Moringa TeaTamil Nadu · HerbalHarvest: Leaves picked often, as often as every 2 weeks
Darjeeling OolongDarjeeling · OolongHarvest: March to November
Darjeeling WhiteDarjeeling · WhiteHarvest: Spring (first flush)
Sri Lanka
Sold as Ceylon tea. Gardens climb from the lowlands to over 2,000 m, and each district gives a different cup.
Ceylon UvaUva · BlackHarvest: All year, best July to September
Ceylon DimbulaDimbula · BlackHarvest: All year, best January to March
Ceylon Nuwara EliyaNuwara Eliya · BlackHarvest: All year, best January to March
Ceylon KandyKandy · BlackHarvest: All year
Ceylon Low-GrownGalle and Matara · BlackHarvest: All year
Nepal
Nepal's orthodox teas grow in the eastern hills next to Darjeeling, at similar heights and in similar weather.
Nepal IlamIlam · BlackHarvest: March to November, in flushes
Nepal First FlushIlam · BlackHarvest: Late March to April
Bangladesh
Bangladesh has 166 tea estates and was the world's 9th largest producer in 2019. The Surma valley around Sylhet is the centre of tea growing, and Sreemangal is called the country's tea capital.
Sylhet BlackSylhet · BlackHarvest: Mainly the rainy seasonBlack Sea & Caspian
Turkey, Georgia, Iran, Azerbaijan · 9 teas
Turkey
Turkey drinks more tea per person than almost any country. The tea grows along the rainy eastern Black Sea coast around Rize.
Rize ÇayRize · BlackHarvest: May to October
Rose Hip TeaCentral Anatolia · HerbalHarvest: Autumn
Linden FlowerVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Early summer
Sage Tea (Ada Çayı)Mediterranean coast · HerbalHarvest: Spring to summer
Georgia
Georgia was a major tea producer in Soviet times. Today small farms are reviving orthodox black and green teas in the west of the country.
Georgian BlackGuria · BlackHarvest: May to September
Georgian GreenAdjara (Chakvi) · GreenHarvest: Spring to summer
Iran
Tea growing in Iran began in 1899, when Kashef as-Saltaneh planted tea he had brought from India in Lahijan, in Gilan near the Caspian Sea. Iran's tea is an orthodox black tea with a reddish colour, and Iran is also a home of lemon balm.
Lemon Balm TeaVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Summer
Lahijan BlackLahijan · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumn
Azerbaijan
Tea was first grown on Azerbaijan's Caspian coast in the 1880s, and around 90% of the country's tea now comes from Lankaran, near the border with Iran. It is often drunk from a pear-shaped armudu glass.
Lankaran BlackLankaran · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumnEurope
United Kingdom, Portugal · 5 teas
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom is known for drinking tea rather than growing it. The first locally grown tea was harvested in Cornwall in 2005.
Nettle TeaVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Spring and summer
Elderflower TeaVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Late May to July
Cornish TeaCornwall · BlackHarvest: Spring to autumn
Portugal
Tea came to São Miguel in the Azores after blight wiped out the island's orange groves in the 19th century. It has the oldest surviving tea plantation in Europe.
Azores TeaSão Miguel · BlackHarvest: April to September
Lavender TeaVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Summer floweringAfrica
Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda · 11 teas
Kenya
One of the world's largest tea exporters. Most Kenyan tea is CTC black tea grown on the high slopes either side of the Rift Valley, a key part of British breakfast blends.
Kenya BlackKericho · BlackHarvest: All year
Kenyan Purple TeaKericho · GreenHarvest: All year
South Africa
Home of rooibos and honeybush, two caffeine-free tisanes from the fynbos of the southern Cape.
RooibosCederberg · HerbalHarvest: January to April (summer to autumn)
HoneybushEastern Cape · HerbalHarvest: Summer and autumn
Egypt
In Egypt, karkadé, a hibiscus drink, is popular and often served warm. Chamomile is grown in the Nile valley.
ChamomileNile farmland · HerbalHarvest: Late winter and spring flowering
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, with Yemen, is the original home of drinks made from the dried skins of the coffee fruit, known there as hashara and qishr. Today the same infusion is sold worldwide as cascara.
Cascara (Coffee Cherry Tea)Various regions · HerbalHarvest: Coffee harvest
Malawi
Tea was first planted commercially in Malawi's Shire Highlands in 1905. Until the mid-1960s the country had the largest area of tea in Africa, and the town of Mulanje is still the centre of the industry.
Malawi Black (Mulanje)Mulanje · BlackHarvest: Mainly rainy season
Rwanda
High altitudes, steep slopes and volcanic soils suit tea in Rwanda. By 2002 tea had become the country's largest export.
Rwanda BlackWestern highlands · BlackHarvest: All year
Sudan
The roselle hibiscus used for karkadé was domesticated in Africa, especially western Sudan.
Hibiscus (Karkadé)Western Sudan · HerbalHarvest: Autumn to winter
Tanzania
In north-east Tanzania, German colonists brought tea to the Usambara Mountains in the late 19th century, and local tea estates still manage part of the forest of the Amani Nature Reserve.
Usambara BlackEast Usambara · BlackHarvest: Mainly rainy seasons
Uganda
Uganda's climate and soils suit tea. Production almost stopped in the 1970s, then recovered in the 1980s, and about 90% of the crop is exported.
Uganda BlackVarious regions · BlackHarvest: Mainly rainy seasonsAmericas
Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, United States · 4 teas
Argentina
Yerba mate grows in north-east Argentina, where Jesuits set up the first plantations in Misiones in the 17th century.
Yerba MateMisiones · HerbalHarvest: Autumn to winter
Ecuador
Guayusa, a caffeinated holly, is grown mainly in Ecuador's Amazon provinces of Napo and Pastaza.
GuayusaNapo · HerbalHarvest: Year-round
Peru
Lemon verbena, a lemon-scented shrub, is native to South America.
Lemon VerbenaVarious regions · HerbalHarvest: Summer
United States
Oregon and Washington grow most of America's peppermint, mostly processed for its oil.
PeppermintPacific Northwest · HerbalHarvest: Summer