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Thesis
Section 8 is not really about “或以光黑平正言嘉者斯鉴之下也以皱黄坳垤言佳者”; it is about how Lu Yu turns tea from a local product into an object of argument.
Text
“Some praise tea that is glossy, black, and even — that is the lowest judgment. Some praise what is wrinkled, yellow, and uneven — that is a middling judgment. But to call everything good or everything bad is the highest judgment.”
Context
光黑：光亮乌黑。平正：平整。坳垤（ào dié）：凹陷与凸起。鉴：鉴别、品评。
Evidence
- Collation: 各本一致。此句论鉴茶之法，文字精炼，为后世茶书反复引用。
- Existing readings: 吴觉农评此句"哲理深邃"：陆羽反对以单一外形论优劣，主张"整体观茶"——非执一偏之见，正是鉴茶的上乘心法。
Analysis
Formally, the section gives a judgment, adds material detail, then returns to human practice. 光黑：光亮乌黑。平正：平整。坳垤（ào dié）：凹陷与凸起。鉴：鉴别、品评。 That is why the Classic of Tea reads as an argued book rather than a miscellany.
Conclusion
The section does not give a universal rule. It demonstrates a method: read the text, the annotation and the Tang context together before making a modern claim.
Source: The Classic of Tea, Chapter III · The Making, section 8; the original is in the public domain.
Get the character right before the taste.