Korea

Korean post-fermented teas are distinct from both the oxidized balhyocha and hongcha that sit under black, and they are not Chinese-tradition hei cha. Tteokcha is a genuinely fermented pressed tea shaped like a rice cake; Hadong Heukcha comes from wild-harvested leaf in Hadong, Korea's oldest tea region, with a fermented, earthy character that has no close Chinese analogue. These are small-production styles outside the mainstream Korean green tea tradition, interesting to collectors who want to see what post-fermentation looks like without the Chinese process framework.