The diagram illustrates how to produce five types of tea: white, green, oolong, large leaf black and small leaf black tea.
Overall, this process involves seven main stages, beginning with leaf growth and ending with oven drying. While all teas experience some same stages, the differences in the middle stage result in five different types of tea.
The process starts with the growth of tea leaves, which are then plucked and withered to make them softer. These steps are similar for all types of tea. At the end, all teas are dried by ovens to finalize their production.
In the intermediate stages, the methods vary. After withering, green tea is steamed and rolled but not fermented. In contrast, white teas skip these steps entirely. Whereas oolong and large leaf black teas are rolled and fermented, slightly for oolong and full for large leaf black teas, small leaf black teas different as they are crushed instead of rolled before being fully fermented.
