Dark Tea
Wikipedia: Fermented_teaLast Updated: Nov. 27, 2018
↑About Dark Tea
Dark tea, also called post-fermented tea, is tea that has undergone microbial fermentation. In Chinese, dark tea is referred to as hēichá (黑茶), literally meaning "black tea", which is distinct from what is referred to as black tea in English, which is called hongcha or "red tea" in Chinese.Although there are many types of Dark tea originating in China, the most well-known type, Pu-erh, makes up the overwhelming majority of the production. Dark teas other than Pu-erh remain esoteric and not widely available in the West.
Outside of Pu-erh, which is produced in Yunnan province, dark tea is produced in Hunan and Guangxi provinces. You can use our search and browse features to locate and list Hunan dark teas or Guangxi dark teas in our database.
In Japan, bancha, a green tea, can be processed using a fermentation step, producing Batabatacha. We classify atabancha as a dark tea as well.
Dark tea and health
Dark teas are sometimes touted for probiotic effects, because they contain active bacterial and mold cultures. Extensive research has been carried out on Pu-erh tea specifically. There is little research studying dark tea as a broader category and seeing whether or not the research on Pu-erh generalizes to other dark teas or whether there are any differences in their health effects.↑Recent Dark Tea Reviews — RSS 

Pu Erh 15 Års Lagret (Nr. 914) from Carstensens Tehandel
Style: Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh – Region: ChinaMar. 1st, 2020
Half-litre pot at home, brewed from a tuocha, i.e. a pill of compressed fermented leaves. Pours nearly clear fudge brown with negligible brownish sediment. Clear aroma of tea leaves, with mild notes of fermentation. Bitter, but not aggressive, flavour of black tea, with leafy notes and barely discernible touches of fer...
Read Full Review2012 Yong De Blue Label Ripe (Shou) Pu-erh from Yunnan Sourcing
Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: Yongde, Yunnan, ChinaSep. 20th, 2019
Prepared tea from 8 g, coarsely ground, of a 357 g cake. Used 18 oz boiled water and brewed for 6 min; added 4 oz ice. Final = 2.9 g/8 oz. The tea had a strong earthy flavor, not acidic or astringent, and no mushroom flavor like some Pu-erhs. Very full bodied, and great taste! The tea liquor is black, which is why ...
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Xiaguan Te Ji Raw Pu-Erh Tuo from Xiaguan Tea Factory
Style: Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh – Region: Yunnan, ChinaJul. 14th, 2019
SECOND UPDATE: I'm pretty sure now that this tuo is counterfeit and not really from the Xiaguan factory. I'd been drinking leaves from the surface, which were good, but just broke through to a second layer of chopped up leaves and twigs. I'm rather surprised at the amount of effort that went into counterfeiting a tea t...
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10-Year Aged Raw Pu-erh Brick Tea (2005) from TeaVivre
Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: Fengqing, Yunnan, ChinaDec. 2nd, 2018
I'm not sure how others determine their point ratings for tea, but for me, an 85 is an above-average everyday tea. At first, when I tried this, I didn't like it. Something about the notes just didn't appeal to me. It took getting more used to rougher, young raw pu-erh for me to really start to appreciate this one. It ...
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Fengqing Ancient Tree Spring Chun Jian Raw Pu-erh Cake Tea 2012 from TeaVivre
Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: Fengqing, Yunnan, ChinaDec. 2nd, 2018
When the holidays came around (and the holiday sales) and I was treating myself to one of the more expensive cakes, I picked this one out of all of those available on TeaVivre. The reason that I picked this one was that it's drinkable now, it tastes like it has potential for the future (not all currently drinkable cake...
Read Full ReviewRead More Reviews of Dark Tea (106) ...
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Review 6 teas to get on this list!
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↑Most-Rated Dark Tea

Emperor's Puerh - Black Tea
Brand: | Numi Organic Tea |
Style: | Pu-erh Tea |
Region: | Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Teabag |

Xi Gui Ancient Tree Raw Pu-erh Cake 2013
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Loose |

Fengqing Zhuan Cha Raw Puerh Brick Tea 2005
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Fengqing, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |

2006 Fengqing Raw Pu-erh Tea Tuocha
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Fengqing, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |

2005 Jing Mai Autumnal
Brand: | The Tao of Tea |
Style: | Ripened (Shou) Pu-erh |
Region: | Lancang, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |
↑Top-Rated Dark Tea

2006 Fengqing Raw Pu-erh Tea Tuocha
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Fengqing, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |

Xi Gui Ancient Tree Raw Pu-erh Cake 2013
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Loose |

Emperor's Puerh - Black Tea
Brand: | Numi Organic Tea |
Style: | Pu-erh Tea |
Region: | Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Teabag |

Fengqing Zhuan Cha Raw Puerh Brick Tea 2005
Brand: | TeaVivre |
Style: | Raw (Sheng) Pu-erh |
Region: | Fengqing, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |

2005 Jing Mai Autumnal
Brand: | The Tao of Tea |
Style: | Ripened (Shou) Pu-erh |
Region: | Lancang, Yunnan, China |
Caffeine: | Caffeinated |
Leaf: | Compressed |