I'm trying to figure out, in very general terms, what the variables in
tea production are (e.g., not varieties of tea leaf or tea growing
regions, and not brewing variables). For now, I am leaving Pu-er out
of the picture, because that seems to add a seperate layer of
complexity. From various sources, and especially Hou De's video on
the manufacture of Formosa Oolong (easily found on You Tube), I have
narrowed things down as follows:

1. Tea is picked -- this can be mechanical, or hand-done, and can be
done at several different times of year, or in different conditions,
or at different stages of tea leaf growth. This variable is huge and
there are a lot of parts to it.

2. Withering -- to me, this looks like some sort of abbreviated drying
process, where leaves are given lots of air and frequently "stirred".
It can be done indoors or outdoors, but no heat other than sun is
added. Tea still has significant moisture afterwards and the leaves
remain very pliable. I really don't understand what this step does. It
seems like this is almost a sub-step of the next variable.

3. Fermentation -- I'm not sure I fully understand how this differs
from withering, though it may be that the leaves are left in a pile
and stirred less frequently (or not at all?). This does not appear to
involve any particular heat sources. I would guess this step would be
skipped in green or white tea production, because my understanding is
that this step is what seperates oolongs and red/black tea from the
green and white tea. Afterwards, I imagine the leaves still have a lot
of moisture and are still very pliable. Degree of fermentation is a
huge variable, but there are no other real additives in this step so
this is a pretty easy variable to identify.

4. "Kill-green" -- this can involve pan-frying or oven roasting
(steaming seems unlikely given the overall goal of reducing moisture)
but seems to be the first time that a heat source other than the sun
is added to the mix. I would guess that the tea would have to reach a
certain temperature to stop the fermentation process. From the Hou De
video, it is apparent that the leaves can remain flexible after this
process, though I've seen some other video on long jing production
that seems to show a finished product after the kill-green step (maybe
because this step combines the next steps into one for this particular
tea?)

5. Shaping/Further Drying -- after the kill green, the tea may still
have moisture in it and the leaves may still be pliable. So I guess
this is when leaves are twisted or rolled, and I imagine that shaping
process is interspersed with various drying efforts that use some sort
of heat sources. The variables here that may affect flavor or aging
potential would be shape and perhaps the drying source (e.g.,
charcoal, electric heat?). I would guess the goal of all tea
production is to reduce moisture levels to similar levels, no matter
the tea, so extent of drying is probably not a variable here. Maybe
speed of drying process and temperature are variables.

6. Roasting? -- the Hou De video doesn't appear to show tea roasting,
but tea roasting is clearly a factor in some tea production. I'm not
sure what that process would do other than further reduce moisture and
perhaps change the flavor somehow (I imagine you are basically cooking
the tea, which would change the flavor of anything). The variables
here would be similar to the drying variables above -- charcoal or
electric heat, as well as temperature and time. Maybe the drying is a
type of roasting.

I hope this doesn't repeat too much anything that has previously been
posted. Seems like I never see this information in one place. If
anyone has comments on the above steps in the form of additions/
subtractions/clarifications, I would be appreciative.

-Charles