What Does FTGFOP Mean? The Ultimate Guide to Tea Grades

The most critical concept to internalize is this: There is no single, standardized global system for grading tea.¹

The metrics used to determine "quality" are fundamentally different, reflecting disparate philosophies, cultures, and commercial needs. The most critical distinction an expert must grasp is the divide between Western commercial grading and Eastern agricultural grading.³

Western (Commercial) Systems: Developed by Dutch and British traders for auctions, this system grades black tea post-processing.⁴ Its primary axis is leaf size and wholeness (e.g., Whole Leaf, Broken, Dust).⁵ It is a physical, visual classification for trade, not a direct guarantee of flavor.⁴
Eastern (Agricultural) Systems: Used in China, Japan, and Taiwan, these systems grade tea based on origin, harvest time, and craftsmanship.³ Quality is determined by factors before and during processing (e.g., harvest date, plucking standard, cultivation method).⁷

To understand tea grading is to understand that these systems are not interchangeable. One is a language of logistics; the other is a language of terroir.

2.0 The Western Commercial System: Deconstructing Black Tea Grades

This system, most common for black teas from India, Sri Lanka (Ceylon), and Africa, is a lexicon of acronyms based on the physical sorting of the finished leaf.⁵

2.1 Decoding the Terminology

Orange Pekoe (OP): This is the benchmark grade, and its name is the source of much confusion.

"Orange" does not refer to the fruit or flavor. It is a reference to the Dutch Royal House of Orange-Nassau, a marketing term used by the Dutch East India Company to imply a "royal" quality.⁴
"Pekoe" is a romanization of the Chinese Pak-ho (白毫), meaning "white down" or "fine hair.".⁹ It refers to the young, unopened terminal leaf buds, which are covered in a fine, silvery down.⁶

2.2 The Four Foundational Size Grades

After processing, tea is sorted by machine sieves into four main physical categories. This size directly impacts infusion speed and strength.⁶

Whole Leaf: The highest-status grades, consisting of intact, unbroken leaves.² They have the best visual appeal and demand a higher price.⁵ They infuse more slowly, often revealing more complex, nuanced flavors.
Broken Leaf: Leaves that are torn or cut into smaller pieces during processing.⁵ They infuse faster, producing a darker, stronger, and more robust brew.¹
Fannings: Very small shreds or particles of tea.⁵ This is the grade most commonly used in commercial tea bags, as the small particle size allows for rapid, strong infusion.⁵
Dust: The finest tea powder remaining after sorting.⁵ Dust is also used in tea bags and provides the quickest infusion, though it can sometimes result in a bitter taste.¹¹

2.3 The Whole Leaf Matrix (The "OP" Hierarchy)

This is a classification of quality and fineness within the Whole Leaf category, primarily indicating the "tippiness" (the quantity of buds).⁹

OP (Orange Pekoe): The base grade. Consists of long, wiry whole leaves but does not contain tips (buds).⁹ This indicates a later, fine pluck where the bud has already opened into a leaf.⁹
FOP (Flowery Orange Pekoe): A significant step up. This is an OP-grade tea that includes the young, tender terminal buds (the "flowers").⁹
GFOP (Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): An FOP with a high proportion of "golden tips.".⁴ These are buds that turn a golden color during oxidation, and their presence is a marker of careful processing and a fine pluck.⁹
TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): An FOP containing an even greater quantity of golden tips.⁴
FTGFOP (Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): A TGFOP of exceptional, superior quality.⁴
SFTGFOP (Special Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe): The absolute apex of the system, reserved for the very finest lots, often from the best springtime Darjeeling harvests.⁴ A "1" is often added at the end (e.g., SFTGFOP1) to denote the single best lot of this grade.⁴

2.4 The Broken Leaf Matrix (The "BOP" Hierarchy)

This system mirrors the whole leaf hierarchy but applies to broken-grade teas.⁴

BOP (Broken Orange Pekoe): The main broken grade, prevalent in Assam, Ceylon, and China.¹² It provides a strong, full-bodied cup.¹⁰
FBOP (Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe): A coarser, broken leaf that includes some tips.⁹
GBOP (Golden Broken Orange Pekoe): A broken-leaf tea with some golden tips.⁴
TGBOP (Tippy Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe): A high-quality broken tea with a large proportion of tips.⁹

While this system is detailed, it remains a guideline for size and appearance, not a definitive map of flavor.¹

3.0 Eastern Systems: Grading by Terroir, Season, and Craft

The grading philosophy in China and Japan is entirely different. Quality is not determined by sifting leaves after they are made; it is determined by the inherent quality of the raw material and the skill of the tea master.³

4.0 Chinese Green Tea: The Ming Qian Imperative

For high-end Chinese green teas, the single most important factor is harvest time.³ The earliest spring harvest yields the most prized, tender, and flavorful leaves.⁸

She Qian (Pre-She Ri): The earliest, rarest, and most expensive grade. These teas are harvested before the She Ri festival (the Spring Equinox, around March 21st), half a month before Ming Qian.¹⁸
Ming Qian (Pre-Qingming): The most famous high-grade designation, meaning "Before Clear and Bright.".³ These teas are harvested before the Qingming festival (Tomb Sweeping Day, around April 5th).³ After a long winter's dormancy, these first buds are nutrient-dense, with higher concentrations of amino acids (like L-theanine, which creates a mellow, umami taste) and lower concentrations of bitter polyphenols (catechins).¹⁷
Yu Qian (Pre-Rains): "Before the Rains." This tea is plucked after Qingming but before the Guyu ("Grain Rains") festival, around April 20th.³ The weather is warmer, and the leaves grow faster. This tea is still considered high quality but has a stronger, more robust flavor and is less delicate than Ming Qian tea.¹⁷

Beyond harvest time, Chinese green teas are also graded by:

Plucking Standard: The physical part of the plant harvested. The highest grades are buds-only or a bud and one new leaf.¹⁹
Origin (Terroir): For a tea like Longjing (Dragon Well), the growing region is a grade. Tea from the core Xihu (West Lake) production area is considered the highest, authentic grade.
Sensory & Physical Grades: Teas are also given numerical grades (e.g., Grade 1 to 5) based on sensory analysis of the dry leaf's appearance (flatness, uniformity), aroma, and the taste of the liquor.¹⁹

5.0 Japanese Green Tea: Grading by Cultivation Method

The Japanese system is unique, classifying its green teas primarily by their cultivation and processing method, not just harvest time or leaf size.⁵

Gyokuro (Jade Dew): The highest grade of Japanese leaf tea.⁵ Gyokuro is shade-grown—the tea bushes are covered by screens to block 90% of sunlight for approximately 20-30 days before harvest.²¹ This deliberate stress starves the plant, forcing it to produce massive amounts of chlorophyll and L-theanine (amino acids). This results in a vibrant, dark green leaf and an intense, sweet, savory umami flavor.²¹
Sencha: The most common and popular tea in Japan.²¹ Sencha is full sun-grown.²¹ The sunlight exposure promotes catechin (antioxidant) production, giving it a brighter, "grassy," and more astringent flavor profile compared to Gyokuro.²⁵
Bancha: A lower grade of tea, made from the larger, more mature leaves plucked from later harvests (e.g., the third or fourth flush).⁵
Matcha: A powdered tea. It is made from shade-grown leaves (called Tencha) that are steamed, dried, de-stemmed, and then stone-ground into a fine powder.²¹

5.1 The "Ceremonial Grade" Matcha Myth

A point of critical clarification is the distinction between "Ceremonial" and "Culinary" matcha.

This is a Western marketing construct.²⁸
This classification is not used in Japan.²⁸
In Japan, matcha quality is assessed on a complex continuum based on harvest time (first harvest is best), color (vibrant green), texture (fineness of the powder), and flavor (sweetness vs. bitterness).³⁰
"Ceremonial Grade" generally refers to matcha made from the first harvest leaves. It is designed to be consumed on its own (with water) and has a more subtle, nuanced, and sweet flavor.³⁰
"Culinary Grade" is typically made from later harvest leaves, which have a stronger, bolder, and more bitter flavor designed to stand up to other ingredients in lattes, smoothies, and baked goods.³⁰

6.0 White Tea: Grading by Plucking Standard

The white tea grading system is perhaps the most simple and visually intuitive. The grade is defined almost entirely by the plucking standard—which part of the tea bush is harvested.³⁴

Bai Hao Yin Zhen (Silver Needle): The top grade and most prized white tea. It consists only of the unopened terminal leaf buds.³⁴ These buds are plump, uniform, and covered in the silvery-white down (Bai Hao) that gives the tea its name.³⁵
Bai Mu Dan (White Peony): The second grade. The plucking standard is one bud and the first one or two young leaves.³⁴ The inclusion of leaves gives the brew more body, color, and a fuller flavor than Silver Needle.³⁷
Gong Mei (Tribute Eyebrow) & Shou Mei (Longevity Eyebrow): These are lower grades made from larger, more mature leaves with few or no buds.³⁴ Shou Mei is typically from the latest harvest and consists of the largest leaves.³⁴ These teas are bolder, darker, and are often preferred by connoisseurs for long-term aging.³⁴

7.0 The Artisanal Anomalies: Oolong and Pu-erh

Two of the most complex tea categories, Oolong and Pu-erh, defy any simple, linear grading system. Their "grade" is a qualitative assessment of craft and origin.

7.1 Oolong: The Anomaly of Craft

There is no formal, universal grading system for oolong tea.³⁹ It is the "tea master's" category, and its quality is judged on a multi-dimensional matrix:

Provenance (Terroir): The origin is the first mark of quality. A Wuyi "Rock Tea" (Yancha) is fundamentally different from a Taiwanese High Mountain (Gao Shan) oolong.⁴⁰
Cultivar: The specific plant varietal (e.g., Tie Guan Yin, Da Hong Pao, Jin Xuan) dictates the tea's inherent flavor potential.⁴⁰
Craftsmanship: The tea master's skill in the partial-oxidation (Yaoqing) and roasting (Hongbei) processes is paramount.⁴⁰

Quality is not denoted by an acronym but is assessed through sensory analysis: the uniformity and vivid color of the dry leaf, the brightness of the liquor, and the complexity, persistence, and Hui Gan (returning sweetness) of the flavor.⁴⁹

7.2 Pu-erh: Grading by Process, Age, and Origin

Pu-erh is a "dark tea" (hei cha) from Yunnan, China, defined by its post-production microbial fermentation.⁵⁶ Its quality is determined by three main factors:

Process (Sheng vs. Shou):
- Sheng (Raw): The traditional method. The tea is pan-fired, sun-dried, compressed, and aged naturally for years or decades.⁵⁶ Young Sheng is vegetal and astringent; aged Sheng becomes smooth, complex, and earthy.⁵⁶
- Shou (Ripe): A modern (1970s) accelerated process. The tea undergoes a "wet piling" (wo dui) to induce a rapid, intense microbial fermentation.⁵⁶ This creates a dark, smooth, earthy tea that is ready to drink immediately.⁵⁸
Age: For Sheng Pu-erh, age is a primary determinant of value. A well-aged Sheng (10+ years) is highly prized.⁵⁶
Origin (Material): The highest "grade" of material comes from Gushu (ancient tea trees), which are often 100+ years old. These trees produce leaves with more flavor complexity and "substance" than common taidi (plantation) bushes.⁵⁹ Specific regions (e.g., Menghai, Lincang) also impart distinct flavor profiles.⁵⁹

8.0 Comparative Analysis: Global Tea Grading Philosophies

Ultimately, a tea's "grade" is its story. For a Western-system black tea, it's a story of logistics and sorting. For an Eastern-system tea, it's a story of agriculture, season, and artistry. An expert taster learns to read all of these languages to make an informed assessment.

Tea Category	Primary Grading Basis	Key Terminology (Examples)	Example of High Grade	Example of Lower Grade
Black Tea (Western)	Leaf Size / Wholeness ⁵	OP (Orange Pekoe), BOP (Broken), FOP (Flowery) ⁹	SFTGFOP (Special Finest...) ⁴	Dust ⁵
Chinese Green Tea	Harvest Time / Plucking Standard ^{3, 7, 16}	Ming Qian (Pre-Qingming), Yu Qian (Pre-Rains) ³	She Qian / Ming Qian ¹⁸	Grade 5 Longjing ^{19, 20}
Japanese Green Tea	Cultivation Method & Process ^{5, 21, 22}	Gyokuro (Shaded), Sencha (Sun-grown) ²¹	Gyokuro / Top-Grade Matcha ^{25, 31}	Bancha (Late harvest) ^{23, 26}
White Tea	Plucking Standard ³⁴	Yin Zhen (Silver Needle), Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) ^{34, 35}	Bai Hao Yin Zhen (Silver Needle) ^{34, 35}	Shou Mei (Mature leaf) ^{34, 35}
Oolong Tea	Provenance, Cultivar, Craftsmanship ^{40, 39, 44}	Yancha (Rock Tea), Gao Shan (High Mtn.), Dancong ⁴⁰	(Varies by style, e.g., Core Terroir Gao Shan or Yancha)	(Varies by style)
Pu-erh Tea	Process, Age, Origin (Material) ⁵⁶	Sheng (Raw), Shou (Ripe), Gushu (Ancient Tree) ^{56, 58, 60}	Aged Sheng from Gushu ^{56, 59}	Young Shou from taidi (Plantation)

TeaTrade

A Technical Deconstruction of Global Tea Grading Systems

Key Takeaways