Rare tea guides · Lukaya Cafe

Learn the differences among rare and loose-leaf teas.

Read about black, green, white, oolong, pu-erh, rooibos, herbs and tea lattes.

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13 guides for your next cup.

Begin with a tea family, a favourite flavour or the question you have always wanted to ask.

Loose-leaf tea uses whole leaves or larger pieces that unfurl in water, releasing aroma and flavour through the steep.

Black tea is made from tea leaves allowed to oxidize fully before drying, creating deeper colour and flavour.

Green tea is heated soon after picking to limit oxidation and preserve fresher leaf flavours.

White tea is made from young leaves and buds that are gently withered and dried with little processing.

Oolong is partially oxidized tea, covering styles from light, floral and creamy to dark, roasted and mineral.

Pu-erh is tea from Yunnan that develops through microbial fermentation and, in many styles, continued aging.

Rooibos is a naturally caffeine-free infusion made from a South African plant rather than the tea plant.

Herbal and fruit teas steep plants, spices, flowers or fruit instead of leaves from the tea plant.

Yerba mate is a caffeinated infusion made from leaves of Ilex paraguariensis, a plant native to South America.

A chai latte combines spiced tea with steamed milk, with sweetness and spice adjusted by the recipe.

A London Fog combines Earl Grey tea, vanilla and steamed milk for a citrus-floral tea latte.

A rooibos latte combines brewed rooibos with steamed milk and, depending on the recipe, a little sweetness or spice.

Iced tea is any tea served cold; sun tea is tea steeped slowly with the warmth of sunlight.