Tea Quiz – Printable Version
20 multiple-choice questions with an explained answer key, ready to print.
Print the sheet (or save it as a PDF from the print window), hand it out, then mark it together using the answer page: every answer is explained. Perfect for a party, a birthday, a classroom, a care home or a team activity.
Name: ………………………………Score: ……… / 20
- Do all varieties of tea (green, black, white, oolong) come from the same plant?
- A. Only green tea and black tea
- B. No, each tea has its own plant
- C. No, white tea comes from a different plant
- D. Yes, all come from Camellia sinensis
- Which country produces the most tea in the world?
- A. China
- B. India
- C. Kenya
- D. Sri Lanka
- Which bergamot-flavoured tea is one of the most famous in the world?
- A. Lapsang Souchong
- B. Gyokuro
- C. Darjeeling
- D. Earl Grey
- Which Indian tea is nicknamed 'the champagne of teas'?
- A. Nilgiri
- B. Assam
- C. Darjeeling
- D. Sikkim
- Which Japanese tea ceremony has been codified since the 16th century by master Sen no Rikyū?
- A. Gongfu cha
- B. Samovar ritual
- C. Yum cha
- D. Chado (or chanoyu)
- Which is the best-known Indian region for its strong, malty black tea, often used in English blends?
- A. Nilgiri
- B. Darjeeling
- C. Assam
- D. Munnar
- Which tea forms the basis of the British 'five o'clock tea' tradition?
- A. Long Jing green tea
- B. Darjeeling first flush
- C. Tie Guan Yin oolong tea
- D. A blend of black teas (Assam, Ceylon, Kenya) served with milk
- Which tea-based drink is traditionally consumed in Tibet, mixed with yak butter and salt?
- A. High-altitude masala chai
- B. Himalayan mint tea
- C. Po cha (butter tea)
- D. Tibetan kombucha tea
- Which tea is produced on the island of Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon?
- A. Assam tea
- B. Pu-erh tea
- C. Nilgiri tea
- D. Ceylon tea
- Which mineral, present in Yixing teapots, is said to enhance tea over time?
- A. Mica
- B. Iron and other minerals (zisha clay)
- C. Limestone
- D. Quartz
- Why should boiling water (100°C) not be used to brew all teas?
- A. It breaks the leaves
- B. High temperatures scorch the leaves and release excessive bitterness
- C. It destroys the caffeine
- D. It makes the water too heavy
- Which tea is renowned for its ability to aid digestion, particularly after a rich meal?
- A. White tea
- B. Pu-erh tea
- C. Sencha tea
- D. Earl Grey tea
- How was the tea bag supposedly born, around 1908, according to the most common story?
- A. A chemist invented it for the army
- B. A monk created it for travelling
- C. A coffee factory developed it
- D. Customers dunked the small silk sample bags sent by a merchant straight into water
- At which major event was iced tea popularised in the United States in 1904, when a hot tea seller found no takers in a heatwave?
- A. The Atlanta Olympics
- B. The unveiling of the Statue of Liberty
- C. The St. Louis World's Fair
- D. The first professional baseball game
- In what year was the Paris tea house Mariage Frères, famous for its black tins, founded?
- A. 1854
- B. 1954
- C. 1754
- D. 1904
- What is the art of predicting the future by reading the shapes left by tea leaves at the bottom of a cup called?
- A. Cartomancy
- B. Palmistry
- C. Astrology
- D. Tasseography
- Which country is the world's second-largest tea producer, behind China?
- A. Kenya
- B. Sri Lanka
- C. India
- D. Japan
- What is the metal filtering straw used to drink mate in Argentina or Uruguay called?
- A. The calabaza
- B. The bombilla
- C. The yerba
- D. The pava
- What does the Chinese name 'oolong', a family of semi-oxidised teas, mean?
- A. 'White flower'
- B. 'Green mountain'
- C. 'Clear water'
- D. 'Black dragon'
- In which region of the United States is 'sweet tea', very sugary iced tea, a real institution?
- A. New England
- B. California
- C. The South
- D. Alaska
Answer key — Tea Quiz
- D. Yes, all come from Camellia sinensisAll major tea families come from Camellia sinensis. It is the level of oxidation and post-harvest processing that differentiates green tea from black tea or oolong.
- A. ChinaChina is by far the world's leading tea producer, representing nearly 45% of global production, ahead of India and Kenya.
- D. Earl GreyEarl Grey is a black tea flavoured with essential oil of bergamot, a citrus fruit grown mainly in Calabria.
- C. DarjeelingDarjeeling, produced in the foothills of the Himalayas in West Bengal, is renowned for its unique muscatel notes.
- D. Chado (or chanoyu)Chado ('the way of tea') is a Japanese ritual art codified by Sen no Rikyū under the influence of Zen Buddhism.
- C. AssamAssam, in north-east India, produces a powerful black tea with notes of malt and honey.
- D. A blend of black teas (Assam, Ceylon, Kenya) served with milkBritish afternoon tea uses robust blends of Assam, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and Kenya, capable of 'holding up' with milk.
- C. Po cha (butter tea)Po cha is prepared by brewing pressed pu-erh tea at length, then churning it with yak butter and salt.
- D. Ceylon teaSri Lanka is one of the world's largest tea exporters. Its Ceylon black teas, produced at various altitudes (Nuwara Eliya, Uva, Dimbula), are renowned for their quality and aromatic diversity.
- B. Iron and other minerals (zisha clay)Zisha ('purple sand') clay is rich in iron and minerals. Its porosity allows the teapot to 'breathe' and soften the tea by absorbing tannins through repeated use.
- B. High temperatures scorch the leaves and release excessive bitternessDelicate teas (green, white) are sensitive. Water that is too hot rapidly degrades their fine aromas and brutally extracts too many tannins, making the drink astringent.
- B. Pu-erh teaIn traditional Chinese medicine, fermented pu-erh tea is prescribed to aid the digestion of fatty foods.
- D. Customers dunked the small silk sample bags sent by a merchant straight into waterThomas Sullivan, a New York merchant, sent his samples in small bags.
- C. The St. Louis World's FairThe merchant had the idea of pouring his tea over ice. Today, the vast majority of tea drunk in the US is served iced.
- A. 1854The Mariage family had traded tea since the 17th century. The house now offers hundreds of teas and helped make tea a way of life in France.
- D. TasseographyA bird means good news, a snake danger… Practised in Europe since the 17th century, it is now mostly a parlour game.
- C. IndiaIts Assam and Darjeeling regions are famous. Indians themselves drink much of it, especially as chai.
- B. The bombillaMate is drunk from a small gourd, often made from a calabash.
- D. 'Black dragon'The dark, twisted leaves are said to resemble a dragon. Oolongs from Taiwan and Fujian are among the most renowned.
- C. The SouthIt is served in big jugs with ice and lemon. In some Southern restaurants, you have to ask for 'unsweet' to get it without sugar.