Occasionally when you see a tea listed in a catalog or on a tea menu the name will be followed by a group of letters.  I think many tea drinkers either ignore them altogether or they ascribe far more value to them than may be necessary.  Let’s look at what they actually mean.

The string of letters (SFTGFOP, or some portion thereof) are used to describe the “grade” of the leaf.  Grade, however, is not a designation of quality.  It is simply a way to compare the size of the leaf.  Let me repeat myself here: Grade does NOT indicate quality.  Some believe that if a producer is offering the larger, unbroken specimens then they may be taking more care in their processing.  Therefore, you may find a better tea, but there is no hard and fast rule here.

Let’s look at what the letters actually mean:

OP - Orange Pekoe (pronounced PEK-ho)

I suspect that many people see the term “Orange Pekoe” and presume that it is an orange-flavored tea.  It is not.  There is absolutely no orange here. The term likely refers to the House of Orange, the Dutch royalty in place when tea was first imported to Europe. Some believe that the word “pekoe” is an Anglicized version of a Chinese word that means white down, referring to the fine downy hairs on tea leaves and buds.

• FOP - Flowery Orange Pekoe - Has some tips (leaves that are in bud).
• GFOP - Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe - Some of the tips are golden yellow.
• TGFOP - Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe - Has more golden tips than GFOP.
• FTGFOP - Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe - Exceptionally well-made FOP with lots of golden tips.
• SFTGFOP - Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe - The best example of FOP with many golden tips.

There are grades smaller than Orange Pekoe, such as “Fannings” and “Dust” which are the smallest siftings after sorting.  There are also grades for “broken leaves.”  They look similar to the ones we described above, but they will have a “B” included in the list of letters.  Finally, you will sometimes see a “1” after the letters, which is an indication of a grade of tea that is even more special than the usual.

It can be challenging to keep the letters straight in your head.  I must confess that I still have to double check myself occasionally.  What is most important is that you just keep the big picture in mind - The letters mean size and, sometimes, a bit about quality, no more, no less.

---