CTC Black tea

The CTC, or 'Cut, Tear and Curl' method was invented during WW2 to increase the weight of the tea that can be packed into a sack or chest.

The CTC process follows that of orthodox Black Tea manufacture up to the rolling stage. Instead of rolling the leaves, the CTC technique passes the leaves through a series of cylindrical rollers with hundreds of small sharp "teeth" that Cut, Tear, and Curl. This creates a smaller granular type leaf, ideal for teabags.

The leaves are then oxidised and dried, as described earlier in this section.