The criteria of Keemun grading

I often heard foreign tea drinkers said they easily got confused by Keemun's grading.Yes,this is a really complicated issue which profiteers tend to take advantage of to screw you.So if you are a Keemun lover, you'd better gain an insight into it.Keemun Black Tea is graded in an unique way instead of the way of FOP,OP etcs,which is commonly used.Unlike FOP,OP to grade tea mainly according to the size of leaves(whole leaves,broken leaves,fannings and dust),the criteria of keemun grading is so complicated that it divides Keemun into up to ten grades:hao ya A,hao ya B,special grade,and grade 1~7.The highest grade is hao ya A while the 7th grade is lowest.In fact, it is quality inspection criteria.I gave the above chart only covering special grade,grade 1 and grade 5 to allow you a comparison.

By learning it,you will find the grading work is a refined art which encompasses a large number of variables.In fact it is conducted by tea tasters who use their sharp sense of sight, smell, touch and taste while judging the quality of tea. And the criteria shown in the above chart is just for general guidance rather than a yardstick to standardise against.The truth is the work is essentially subjective,depending on tea tasters' ability to register minute differences in Keemun Black Tea which differs from invoice to invoice.Knowing that,you will understand why distinction exists even between teas sold on the same grades.Prior to the transformation of SOE system in China,Keemun Black Tea is only produced by a few SOEs so the unified grading criteria can be implemented.But as more and more non-public owned enterprises enter into Keemun Black Teas production,it became difficult to implement the unified criteria any more.As result the grade of tea isn't able to guarantee its quality in many cases.
We always like to share knowlege of keemun as well as the line with you.We appreciate your comments and wish to answer any questions from you.For more information Pls explore http://www.viconyteas.com/