What is the CTC tea production?

CTC is a newer production process for black teas. Compared to the traditional method (also called orthodox method), the infusion is more intense – with the same amount of tea. The production of the tea is also accelerated. This process also saves production costs. However, production using the CTC process comes at the expense of taste.

Especially with teas from Africa and India (except Darjeeling) this production method is often used.

The first two steps, harvesting and subsequent withering, are still identical to the orthodox method. During wilting, the leaf loses about 60% of its moisture. This allows the leaves to be better processed in the next step.

Now follows the CTC, i.e. crushing, tearing & curling. The leaf structure is broken up during crushing and the cell juices escape. These react with the air, so they oxidize. By the way, this colors the leaf black and provides the special taste.

Subsequently, the leaves are torn and then tightly rolled into balls. The oxidation is completed and the tea is dried. This stops oxidation and makes the tea durable. Finally, the tea is sorted into leaf sizes. All teas from this method are broken teas- but there are still many size differences here. The final sorting ensures more homogeneous goods.

The result is intensely flavored Broken, Fannings and Dust teas that enter the world market at lower prices. These are mainly used in tea bags.

The orthodox method is significantly more expensive than CTC production due to the greater time required and the use of manual labor. In return, the result is of higher quality. Here you get a leaf tea, to which special attention was paid in the production. The flavor is less intense, but more nuanced.