ISO 18449:2021

FINAL
INTERNATIONAL ISO/FDIS
DRAFT
STANDARD 18449
ISO/TC 34/SC 8
Green tea — Vocabulary
Secretariat: BSI
Voting begins on: Thé vert — Vocabulaire
2021­02­16
Voting terminates on:
2021­04­13
RECIPIENTS OF THIS DRAFT ARE INVITED TO
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OF ANY RELEVANT PATENT RIGHTS OF WHICH
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DOCUMENTATION.
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Reference number
BEING ACCEPTABLE FOR INDUSTRIAL, TECHNO­
ISO/FDIS 18449:2021(E)
LOGICAL, COMMERCIAL AND USER PURPOSES,
DRAFT INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS MAY ON
OCCASION HAVE TO BE CONSIDERED IN THE
LIGHT OF THEIR POTENTIAL TO BECOME STAN­
DARDS TO WHICH REFERENCE MAY BE MADE IN
NATIONAL REGULATIONS. ISO 2021
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ISO/FDIS 18449:2021(E)
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Foreword ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................iv

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................v

1 Scope ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1

2 Normative references ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

3 Terms and definitions ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

3.1 Classification of green tea .............................................................................................................................................................. 1

3.2 Dry leaf ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 2

3.2.1 Appearance ........................................................................................................................................................................... 2

3.2.2 Colour ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 5

3.3 Quality of liquor ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 6

3.3.1 Taste ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 6

3.3.2 Colour of liquor ................................................................................................................................................................. 8

3.4 Infused leaf ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 9

3.4.1 Appearance ........................................................................................................................................................................... 9

3.4.2 Aroma .....................................................................................................................................................................................10

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different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the

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This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 34, Food products, Subcommittee SC 8, Tea.

Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A

Tea is grown and manufactured in numerous countries around the world and is blended or drunk in

many more. Green tea is produced using fresh tea leaves, which can be from more than one garden

or region. There are many factors that impact the flavour of green tea, including the water used for

The two International Standards for black tea, which provide a vocabulary and requirements (ISO 6078

and ISO 3720, respectively), were first published in the 1980s and are still used today, with the latter

having been revised several times. They have played an important role in improving the global black

Currently, an increasing number of consumers enjoy drinking green tea not only for its impact on health,

but also for its special appearance and flavour. ISO 11287 provides the requirements for green tea, and

this document provides the accompanying vocabulary. It has been developed primarily for use by the

tea trade, to enable clear and open communication, and also to ensure that consumers are not misled.

The quality of green tea is usually assessed by professional tea tasters, whose judgement is based

on their experience of tea evaluation, the conditions of the producing area and the preferences of

the consuming country. Five factors are considered when evaluating the quality of green tea: the

appearance of the dry tea leaf (such as shape, colour, cleanliness and evenness), the appearance and the

odour of the infused leaf, and the colour and the taste of the tea liquor. Usually, a chemical analysis of

tea is undertaken only when it is specifically requested or abnormal characteristics are exhibited.

This document comprises a selection of terms used in the tea trade all over the world, covering not only

the processing of green tea but also the essential aspects of assessing green tea for commerce.

Many of the terms in current use for green tea are synonymous or very similar in meaning, and

Accordingly, this document aims to establish recognized definitions for the terms, and thus eliminate

differences in usage, and also to encourage a reduction in the number of terms used overall.

This document defines terms for classifying and assessing green tea for commerce.

ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:

tea derived solely and exclusively, and produced, from the leaves, buds and tender stems of the species

Camellia sinensis (Linnaeus) O. Kuntze, known to be suitable for making tea for consumption as a

Note 1 to entry: The processing of green tea consists of two parts: first, manufacturing and then refining. In

the first, tea is manufactured through withering, fixation, shaping (rolling or others) and drying. In the refining

process, the products are made by mixing, sifting, stalk extraction and fanning, etc.

green tea whose drying process after rolling is through a hot machine to achieve further shaping and

green tea manufactured with a special process for rolling up the leaf tightly and making green tea

long-shaped fired green tea with a long strip appearance manufactured with a special process of

roasted green tea manufactured with a special process for flattening leaf and making green tea flat

swelling on the surface of dry leaf caused by too rapid removal of moisture during manufacturing

consisting of leaf with the same grade and comprising pieces of approximately equal size