Lacking strength and depth of colour.Malty

Desirable character in some Assam teas. A full, bright tea with a malty taste.Mature

Not bitter or flat.Metallic

A sharp coppery taste.Muddy

A dull, opaque liquor.Muscatel

Desirable character in Darjeeling teas. A grapey taste.Musty

A suspicion of mould.Plain

A liquor that is clean but lacking in desirable characteristics.Point

A bright, acidic and penetrating characteristic.Pungent

Astringent with a good combination of briskness, brightness and strength.Quality

Refers to cup quality and denotes a combination of the most desirable liquoring qualities.Rasping

A very coarse and harsh liquor.Raw

A bitter, unpleasant taste.Soft

The opposite of briskness. Tea lacking any live characteristics and is caused by inefficient fermentation and/or drying.Stewed

A soft liquor with undesirable taste that lacks point. Caused by faulty firing, or drying, at low temperatures and often with insufficient airflow through the oven during tea manufacture or making.Strength

Substance in cupSweaty

Disagreeable taste. Poor tea.Taint

Characteristic or taste that is foreign to tea such as oil, garlic etc. Often due to the tea being stored next to other commodities with strong characteristics of their own.Thick

Liquor with good colour and strength.Thin

An insipid light liquor that lacks desirable characteristics.Weedy

A grass or hay taste associated with teas that have been under withered during manufacture and sometimes referred to as woody