Selecting best tea always challenges tea drinkers. Customers usually buy jasmine tea according to its quality grades, which may come in as many as ten or more grades, with grade one being regarded as the best. Jasmine buds are intentionally put into the tea to produce an agreeable scent; but tea connoisseurs classify the tea by the shape of the leaf, the color of the liquid, and the aroma, taste and appearance of the infused leaf.

The following are some simple ways that may help tea drinkers select tea;

a. Tea leaves should always be kept dry. Customers can use their fingers to press tea leaves to see if they are dry. Slight finger press easily breaks dry tea leaves into small pieces.
b. Aroma is the most important factor. Good tea always smells good.
c. The color of the tea liquid and the shape of tea leaves vary with different types of tea. Generally, the tea liquid should remain clear and free of impurity, and the shape of good tea leaves in the liquid should be whole and even.

This article by Yang Tianqing and Daniel Kister.