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The different grades of Darjeeling black teas

Publish on 09.20.2024 by Gaia Gardens

SFTGFOP 1, TGFOP, OP, BOP1... you've probably noticed on our packages of Darjeeling black teas a series of letters and numbers just after the name of the tea... For many, this designation remains a mystery, which we propose to unravel here. Essentially, it's a way of classifying the type of leaves contained in the pack according to their degree of fineness. These grades have more to do with the condition of the leaves, which may be whole, broken or crushed, than with the taste quality per se, although the two are linked. Alongside these grades, and as we shall see, taking seasonality into account is also very important when looking for a Darjeeling black tea to suit your taste.

How did the current classification of black teas and the famous term Orange Pekoe (OP) come about?

The origins of today's classification system for Darjeeling black teas - the most complete and accurate on the market - lie in the desire to have an objective reference for the condition of the leaves to facilitate the tea trade in the West.

This classification is said to have begun with the Dutch when they began producing tea on the island of Java and grading the quality of the harvest using terms derived from the names of traditional Chinese teas. The Dutch relied not on solid knowledge, which they didn't have, but on the appearance of their production compared to that of Chinese teas.

When the first teas from Java arrived in Amsterdam in 1835 on the frigate Algiers, the Chinese terms Pekoe, derived from the Cantonese word "Pak-ho", meaning "down" or "hair" of the terminal bud, and Souchong (lower leaves) were more or less clumsily used to assign grades.

The term Orange Pekoe is said to designate a "royal" quality, in reference to the name of the Dutch Orange Nassau dynasty. But according to earlier sources, the color may simply refer to the orange tips of young buds when they have wilted*. The term was first used by the Dutchman Jacobus Isidorus Lonevijk Levien Jacobson, who introduced tea to Java, and which he used to describe the teas produced on the island.

Later, in 1840, the Dutch grading system was adopted by the British in India, in Assam and then in Darjeeling from 1871, in the highly detailed form we know today.

Highly detailed grading for an accurate description of harvest quality

To provide the best possible description of tea leaves, the English have separated the description of whole leaves from that of broken leaves.

For whole leaves, the grading is as follows:

F.O.P. (Flowery Orange Pekoe) grades, which designate fine plucking + 2 leaves, in ascending order of quality:

O.P. (Orange Pekoe) grade for fine picking, but later, when the bud is unfurled.

P. (Pekoe) grade, for tea without buds.

Souchong grade: tea made from the oldest and therefore least fine leaves.

GFOP (Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): fine plucking containing many golden buds;
TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): fine plucking containing only golden buds;
TGFOP 1 (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe One): superior quality TGFOP;
FTGFOP (Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): Very high quality TGFOP;
FTGFOP1 (Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe One): even finer selection of FTGFOP;
SFTGFOP (Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): FTGFOP of exceptional quality;
SFTGFOP 1 (Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe One): even finer picking than SFTGFOP.

For Broken Tea (BT), the gradation is as follows:

BPS (Broken Pekoe Souchong): coarse picking of inferior quality;
BP (Broken Pekoe): lower leaves (2-3rd) without buds;
BOP (Broken Orange Pekoe): fine picking, but broken leaves;
BOP 1 (Broken Orange Pekoe): High-quality BOP;
FBOP (Flowery BOP): even finer picking, but broken leaves;
GBOP (Golden BOP): harvest with many golden buds, but broken leaves
GFBOP (Golden Flowery BOP): even finer picking, with many golden but broken buds ;*
TGBOP (Tippy Golden BOP): Picking made up entirely of broken golden buds.

Please note that at Jardins de Gaïa we only offer whole leaves, with the exception of some BOPs and TGBOPs.

Do tea grades influence the taste you get in your cup?

The answer is yes! Intact leaves will generally produce a more aromatic and complex infusion, whereas broken leaves will produce a simpler, darker, fuller-bodied tea. In the latter case, the infusion should be shorter to avoid an over-strong tea.

The higher the grade, whether for whole-leaf or broken-leaf teas, the more complex and finer the liquor will be, as it will contain more buds.

But grades aside, in Darjeeling it's above all the seasonality of the harvest that has an effect on the final flavors of the tea. Between the spring First Flush (FF), summer Second Flush (SF) and autumn Third Flush (TF) harvests, which are distinguished by the letters following the tea grade (e.g.: Tara's Offering SFTGFOP1 FF), the differences in organoleptic profile are considerable. A First Flush is said to be fresher and livelier, a Second Flush fruitier, often with characteristic muscat grape notes, while a Third Flush charms with its roundness, ripeness and lovely woody, fruity notes. Taking this seasonality into account is just as important as taking the grade itself into account, so you can enjoy the full diversity of Darjeeling teas.

*Georges van Driem, The Tale of tea P664-P667

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