Tea comes from flowering evergreen shrubs called Camellia sinensis, growing in tropical and subtropical regions. Pruning keeps the plant at a reasonable height for picking (about three feet) and stimulates the growth of young leaves.

It is this new growth, consisting of two leaves and a bud that are picked, from which tea is made. The tender new growth on a plant is referred to as the "flush", and is the most desirable leafage for making tea.

There are four distinct types of tea; white tea, green tea, oolong tea, and black tea. All come from the same plant and it is the method of processing that produces the characteristics of each tea. Black tea, which accounts for 98% of all exported tea, is fully fermented during manufacturing. Oolong tea, made in China and Taiwan, is partially fermented. Green tea, primarily produced in China and Japan skips the fermenting stage altogether, making green tea very nearly caffeine free. White tea is comprised of only the buds of an extremely rare tea plant during a short three day "first flush" of the year and is also unfermented. This tea is very pale in color and delicately aromatic. In addition to numerous varietal flavor choices within each category of tea, the leaves may be smoked, pressed, rolled, scented, or flavored to produce an endless array of choices for the tea connoisseur.