ABSTRACT
Tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze) is an important cash crop. The plant is commercially exploited from as far north as 49° N in Outer Carpathians to 33° S in Natal, South Africa1. It grows at altitudes ranging from sea level in Japan and Sri Lanka2 to around to 2700 m above mean sea level (amsl) in Kenya and Rwanda3. Tea from C. sinensis is the most widely consumed beverage in the world, after water4. Consequently, tea is the most important crop species in the genus Camellia, which has been reported to contain over 200 species so far5. The plant is an important economic cash crop in many countries, being a source of gainful employment opportunities and generating foreign exchange revenues for the producing countries. As any commercial cash crop, tea production should give economic and/or profitable returns to farmers. The profitability in tea production depends on whether the type of tea produced has the right quality that is acceptable to consumers. The definition of quality by stakeholders, however, depends on one’s position in the world’s tea market. Producers perceive good-quality tea as that which provides highest profit at minimum cost of production, while for consumers, good-quality tea produces beverages with desirable taste attributes at the right price. However, middlemen (blenders, packers, auctioneers and traders) require tea from which they make maximum profits. Sensory evaluation is considered the most practical and a fast method for evaluating quality in tea trade. Usually, the black teas are valued for appearance, liquor colour, strength, briskness, aroma, flavour6-8 and ‘cuppage’.
