Black tea is also made from Camelia sinensis, like green, oolong, and white tea. The black tea is however more oxidized than these other three teas. The longer oxidation of black tea causes it to have a stronger flavor and has more caffeine.

There are basically two varieties of this tea, which include the small-leaved Chinese plant, and the large-leaved Assamese plant. The later is originally used in making black tea only; however, this has also been used lately in making green tea.

In Chinese, black tea is better known as crimson tea, which is an appropriate description of the color of the tea leaves after these are being oxidized. In the real sense of the word strong tea, unlike green tea which loses its flavor within a year, the black tea retains its flavor for several years. This is probably the reasons why the black tea is also used as a cloth dye in the early nineteenth century.

The best way of enjoying black tea is blending it with another tea as well. Some of the most popular tea blends include earl grey, which is the combination of black tea and bergamot oil. Another blend which is perfect for breakfast is the English breakfast. This is a mixture of tea, milk, and sugar. In India, the famous Masala Chai, is a blend of black tea, spices, milk, and sweetener like sugar or honey.

There are four scales of black tea grading which include whole leaf, broken leaves, fannings, and dust. The whole leaf teas have the highest quality among the four scales, especially if it includes leaf tips in the packaging. The broken leaves are considered as medium grade, while fannings and dusts are the left over particles which have darker colors, and are produced as tea bags.