A tea’s grade indicates the size of its leaves. Since different leaf sizes infuse at different rates, the final step in quality tea production is grading, or sifting leaves into uniform sizes. One significant marker of quality is how thoroughly and consistently a tea has been graded—a well-graded tea results in an even, reliable infusion, while a poorly-graded tea will have a muddy, inconsistent flavor.
The most common industry grades and their acronyms are:
Whole Leaf
TGFOP
Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe: one of the highest qualities grades, consisting of whole leaves and golden leaf buds
TGFOP
Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe
GFOP
Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe: an open leaf with golden brown tips
GFOP
Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe
FOP
Flowery Orange Pekoe: long leaves that are loosely rolled.
FOP
Flowery Orange Pekoe:
OP
Flowery Orange Pekoe: long, thin, and wiry leaves, more tightly rolled that FOP leaves.
OP
Flowery Orange Pekoe:
Pekoe
Sort, small leaves, loosely rolled.
Souchong
Broad, flat leaves.
Broken Leaf
GFBOP
Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe: broken, uniform leaves with golden bud tips.
GFBOP
Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe
FBOP
Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe: slightly larger than standard BOP leaves, often containing golden or silver leaf buds.
FBOP
Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe
BOP
Broken Orange Pekoe: one of the smallest and most versatile leaf grades, with a good balance of color and strength. BOP teas are useful in blends.
BOP
Broken Orange Pekoe
BP
Broken Pekoe: short, even, curly leaves that produce a dark, heavy cup.
Tea Bag and Ready-to-Drink
BP
Broken Pekoe
Fannings
Much smaller than BOP leaves, fannings should be uniform and consistent in color and size
Dust
The smallest leaf grade, very quick-brewing
Post time: Jul-19-2022