Mainly, there are two types of tea in the world: the Orthodox Blend Loose Tea and the CTC Blend Loose Tea. If we talk in the layman language, orthodox tea is mainly the loose-leaf tea which is prepared by deploying traditional methods of tea cultivation. It involves procedures like plucking, withering, rolling, oxidation/fermentation and drying.

On the other hand, CTC stands for Crush, Tear and Curl. It is a method to produce black tea. The tea leaves are passed through many cylindrical rollers which contain the serrated blades. These rollers crush, tea and curl the leaves into the shape of pellets. CTC was developed during the second world war. It was created to increase the weight of the tea. It is also used to prepare tea bags. And hence, it gained popularity ever since then. It also brews more cups of tea as compared to the orthodox tea. It produces a reddish-brown colour on steeping.

The CTC tea is prepared by boiling it in water for 3-4 minutes. Milk and other condiments are added for flavor. You can buy CTC tea online easily. There are many websites which offer the facility to buy CTC tea online like Halmari Tea Online store.

The three-main difference between orthodox tea and CTC tea are:

1. The Purpose of Production

The procedure for the production of orthodox tea targets on preserving the natural flavors of tea. While the CTC tea method of production is done to ensure the faster production of homogenized and a constant tasting tea.

2. Tools Used and Method of Production

In orthodox tea, it uses the traditional methods of tea production. The process of making orthodox tea is complex and time-taking. It also requires a lot of labor. On the other hand, CTC tea is the commercial and faster method to produce tea. The CTC is consistent tasting tea. In the process of making CTC tea, the leaves are fed into the CTC machine which is designed specifically for crushing, tearing and curling the tea leaves. The whole process is winded up in a couple of hours. The resultant tea is even and looks like brown colored pellets.

Whereas, during the production of orthodox tea, the batch of freshly plucked tea leaves are treated with considerable amount of withering, rolling and oxidization. The oxidation process is completely guided by the trained tea professionals so that the authentic flavor of tea is retained. The leaves are rolled and handled with utmost care as they are highly fragile and susceptible to damage.

3. Flavour of Orthodox Tea and CTC tea

There’s no doubt about the fact that orthodox tea offers more genuine and lifelike taste of tea. Be it black, green or white, the orthodox tea is known for its intricate flavours and delicate structure. This is the reason why orthodox tea is highly priced in market.

There are much more to the orthodox tea than just the taste. It is very beneficial for health. It affects your mind and body in many positive ways as compared to the CTC tea. The CTC tea is more generic and produces dark liquor with a strong taste. The taste is distinctively on the astringent flavour notes. When you prepare the CTC tea, you are required to add milk and lemon for flavour. Some people also add sweetener to add flavour to their tea.

The tea which we usually consume at our home is CTC tea. There is a set method to prepare CTC tea at home.