Varieties and cultivars: the basis of every tea aroma

The terms variety, cultivar, and varietal are often confused with one another:

A variety is a naturally occurring plant population with specific characteristics, for example Camellia sinensis var. sinensis or var. assamica.

A cultivar is a plant that growers have selectively bred and propagated through cloning, so that certain characteristics remain consistent across generations. Yabukita is a well-known cultivar.

Varietal is an adjective for a product that comes from a specific variety or cultivar. Tieguanyin, for example, is a varietal tea made from the Tieguanyin cultivar.

The two main varieties: sinensis and assamica

Tea belongs to the species Camellia sinensis, an evergreen shrub from the subtropical highlands of Asia. Its natural range runs from northeastern India across the Indo-Burmese border and southern Tibet to the mountain regions of Yunnan and Sichuan in China, as well as northern Burma, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Within Camellia sinensis, two varieties are central.

Sinensis (Camellia sinensis var. sinensis) is the small-leaved variety, originating from the cooler highlands of southern China. It thrives at altitude and produces primarily green and white tea.

Assamica (Camellia sinensis var. assamica) is the large-leaved variety, originating from the warmer lowlands of northeastern India, Yunnan, and parts of Southeast Asia. It favours a tropical climate and produces primarily black tea and pu'erh.

Several lesser-known varieties also exist, such as pubilimba, dehungensis, and waldenae. These are found mainly in specific Chinese provinces.

Camellia sinensis var. cambodiensis is sometimes cited as a third main variety. Recent genetic research suggests, however, that it is probably a hybrid between sinensis and assamica. It plays virtually no commercial role.

What is a cultivar?

A cultivar is a plant variety that growers selectively breed in order to retain or enhance certain characteristics, such as flavour, climate resistance, and vigour. The genetic material derives identically from a single mother plant.

You will recognise the principle from other crops: grape varieties for wine (Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir), coffee lines (Blue Mountain, Bourbon, Geisha), and apple varieties (Fuji, Granny Smith) are all cultivars.

In tea, a cultivar determines the flavour profile and texture of the finished infusion. More than a thousand tea cultivars exist worldwide, tailored to climate, processing method, and desired flavour.

What cultivars determine

Producers select cultivars for various reasons:

• Climate and environment: Some cultivars withstand frost, drought, or heavy rain. This matters in regions with variable climates or varying altitudes. Others offer resistance to pests and diseases.
• Flavour and aroma: The genetic composition of a cultivar has a significant influence on the flavour, aroma, and texture of the tea plant. Some produce umami-rich teas such as gyokuro and matcha. Others give more bitter or, conversely, more floral infusions.
• Harvest timing: Cultivars differ in when they come into flush. A producer with several cultivars can spread the harvest across multiple weeks.
• Yield: Some cultivars produce more tea per plant, which is economically important for tea farmers.
• Association with tea type: Many cultivars are closely linked to a particular type of tea. Yabukita, for example, is used primarily for sencha, the most popular green tea in Japan. Technically, any tea type can be made from any cultivar.

Clones and seedlings

Tea plants are predominantly cross-pollinating and rarely self-fertilise. To keep flavour and quality consistent, growers use cuttings from a strong mother plant. These cuttings have exactly the same characteristics as their parent.

Plants grown from seed are far less predictable. Even when all seeds come from the same bush, the resulting plants often vary considerably: some taller, others smaller, with different leaves or a different flavour. This makes uniform tea production more difficult, but also creates greater variety.

Seedlings also tend to have deeper root systems, drawing extra nutrients and water from the soil. This gives them a more robust character and a deeper aroma. Cloned plants generally have a shallower root system.

Wild, semi-wild, and native tea

Not all tea comes from cultivated gardens. There are also bushes and trees that grow without human intervention.

Wild tea grows from tea trees that have grown naturally in forests, for example in Yunnan, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, and Myanmar. They can reach up to twenty metres in height, and the oldest examples have been growing for more than a thousand years. Tea from such old trees, known as gushu, is particularly sought after.

Semi-wild tea comes from plants that were once planted by humans but subsequently left to themselves. They develop characteristics of wild trees, but still carry traces of their original cultivation.

Zairai is a Japanese term for bushes raised from seed rather than cloned. These plants often produce tea with a pronounced, regional character. Some examples are centuries old.

The versatility of Camellia sinensis

Cultivars, seedlings, and wild tea plants together illustrate how rich the world of Camellia sinensis is. Two varieties, thousands of cultivars, and alongside them generations of seedlings and wild trees, each with their own character. That is also why two teas from the same type of plant can taste completely different.