I’m a Malaysian who occasionally drinks tea. We have our own tea fields in Cameron Highlands which in my opinion is pretty mediocre and nothing to write home about.

We have our own national tea, the the tarik (literally means pulled tea, made with condensed milk and tea). I also drink Chinese oolong tea when we visit Chinese restaurants and masala chai at home due to my mom’s love for Indian masala chai.

Recently we visited Sri Lanka for the first time and visited a tea plantation. I learnt a lot about the process involved in the making of tea and the orange pekoe grading system. I had a single sip of BOP tea and I was transported straight to heaven at first taste. No other tea I’ve had before could compare to this.

My mom went on a tea splurge and purchased a variety of tea for us to bring back.

1. Golden tips white tea
2. Flowery fannings (FF1)
3. Orange Pekoe (OP)
4. Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP)
5. Broken Orange Pekoe Fannings (BOPF)
6. Masala chai mix

Since I’ve discovered this newfound appreciation for Ceylon tea, I’m very eager to try each and every one of these teas but I need your expert opinions on which I should start with and what are the ways I should drink it best.

What I’ve known so far is that BOPF is made for milk infused tea and BOP is best drunk without milk. What about the OP, FF1 and Pekoe? What’s the difference between the OP and Pekoe? Is there any other things I should learn about Ceylon’s tea that would help? Thanks in advance ????☕️????