Things You Should Read About Tea While It’s Still Steeping

From America to the Europe, Australia to Asia, tea is among the most widely consumed drinks on the planet (second only to water). It is considered to be one of the healthiest drinks on the planet. You will also be surprised to learn there’s a lot more to preparing tea than just leaves and hot water.

What is tea?

Tea seems simple but is far more complex than its cousins i.e. coffee and wine. Both the terroir and the cultivar will have a major impact on the taste. All the kinds of tea are made by steeping leaves, twigs, or buds of Camellia sinensis. This plant is universal for all the types of tea whether it is green tea, black tea or oolong tea.

Tea originated in China some 5,000 years ago and it was discovered in 2737 BC by Chinese Emperor Shen-Nun, who was considered a divine healer, when some tea leaves accidentally blew into a pot of boiling water. Although, tea was discovered pretty early but it took nearly more than 100 years for tea to reach other parts of the globe. In the west, tea was first introduced by the Dutch traders in the early 1600s.

More than three thousand varieties of tea are available around the world. The famous varieties of tea i.e. White, Green, Oolong, Yellow, Black and Pu-erh teas all come from the camellia sinensis plant and the type of tea is determined by the processing methods used on the plucked leaves.The fermentation of a tea determines its colour. White tea is the least fermented form while Black tea is the most fermented form.

Have you ever given thought about how does a tea leaf go from its natural state to your tea cup? Well, it happens after a series of complicated processes in which the tea leaves first undergo fermentation, and are then heated and dried. During this process, flavor enhancers such as herbs, spices, fruits and flowers can also be added and finally tea is produced. One important thing to note is that tea doesn’t have a uniform taste throughout and it tends to change every season. Just like wine, tea evolves over time.

Facts about Tea Types

The most popular variety of tea is the black tea which tends to offer a hearty flavour and extensive dark reddish colour. This tea undergoes extensive fermentation process that includes exposing crushed tea leaves to the air for a set amount of time until they are fully oxidized and dried.

Another variety of tea which is gaining popularity is the Green tea. It makes up about 10% of world-tea production and is a milder brew with a mild, appealing taste and understandably green appearance. It undergoes no oxidation during the process of preparation and this is the only reason green tea has tonnes of antioxidants loaded in it. The green tea leaves are simply withered and then roasted or dried.

Oolong tea is a legend when it comes to tea. It is a cross between black and green tea which can be detected in both taste and colour. It is known for its distinctive fruity flavour. This tea undergoes moderate fermentation where it is withered, partially fermented and then dried.

White tea is the rarest type of tea which comes from young tea leaves that are picked before the buds have fully opened. This has a distinct soft taste and light coloration. These tea leaves are simply steamed and dried, which keeps them closer to their natural state.

Three must try varieties of tea!!!

1. Puer Tea

This tea is processed from the oldest variety of trees present on earth. Puer tea is famous in Puer region of Yunnan, China, and the complexities you can get from a tree that is hundreds of years old are mind blowing.

2. Korean balhyocha tea

This tea is often known as the chocolate tea due to the chocolate flavour. It actually tastes sweet, with hints of raisins and wood. The best thing about this tea is that, no matter how hard you try, you can’t destroy the tea when you’re preparing it.

3. Matcha Tea

This tea is from Japan and is one of the most culturally loaded teas you can find. It has a delicious flavour and offers health benefits. This tea is actually grown in shade and hence it contains more chlorophyll and antioxidants.

How to make that perfect cup of tea?

There is no right or wrong way to prepare tea. The so-called rules don’t apply; it’s what your palate dictates. Every country in the world has its own way to prepare tea. There are guidelines though, but these matter at the start only. You should choose how you want to drink your tea. The key thing is to take the time to enjoy your tea in a mug. Put your nose in there and really smell the tea!!!

Tea Processing

Processing of tea includes various steps which are almost common to all the varieties except some teas like green tea and white tea doesn’t undergo oxidation to a higher extent, leading to the elimination of a step or two.

1. Withering is freshly harvested tea leaves spread out onto tables or trays, which are then left to dry. Moisture is removed and the leaf becomes soft and prepared for rolling.
2. Rolling is the process whereby machines break the cells in the leaves. This releases the tea leaf juices and enzymes and exposes them to the air to enhance oxidation.
3. Oxidation, also known as fermentation, begins during the rolling process. The rolled leaves are spread out in a temperature and humidity controlled room where the leaf colour deepens from green to reddish-brown… and then to black. The type of fermentation process tea leaves undergo determines the level and impact of the chemicals found in various tea types.

For example, black tea, which undergoes complex fermentation, evokes a strong scent and has the heaviest concentration of caffeine.
On the other hand, white tea, with its limited processing is best known for healing and protective properties that remain in the leaves from polyphenols.
Green and oolong are known to feature moderated levels of caffeine, aroma and antioxidant properties, which ties to their partially fermented processing.

4. Firing is a process whereby the tea leaves are fired (or dried) by slowly heating them in a drying chamber. This stops the oxidation process and the leaves are prepared for storage.

Chemical composition of Tea

Tea absolutely contains little or no calories and is considered to be a rich source of phytochemicals as well as a specific group of chemicals called methylxanthines. These chemicals are responsible for the anti-oxidant property of the tea. Tea contains a chemical compound called as L-theanine (amino acid) that promotes mental acuity. This L-theanine in combination with caffeine creates a sense of “mindful-awareness” among the tea consumers. Tea also has essential oils which are responsible for providing aroma in the tea.

The health benefits of tea

Tea offers a host of health benefits, many of the beneficial effects of tea are due to the flavonoids it contains. Tea has less caffeine content as compared to coffee and is less jittery in nature as compared to coffee. Some important health benefits are as follows. Green tea is considered to be highly effective in weight loss and many medical professionals are recommending it to the patients for the purpose of weight loss.

• Weight loss
• Cardiovascular health
• Cold & Flu
• Inflammation
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Detox

Tea Blending

Blending of tea is actually an art which takes years and years of practice to gain perfection. Tea blending tea demands more imagination than intention. You need to know the exact quantity and type of ingredient to be added to the tea for making that perfect blend. There are no set recipes and no conventions, per se.  The activity is entirely mood-driven and that’s what makes it so exciting – you never know what you may end up creating. Element of surprise, check!

Next time when you stand in front of your kitchen shelf and start to feel adventurous, then think of experimenting with your tea. Try to add some ingredients which will add some natural flavor to the tea or will enhance the aroma of the tea. There are tones of natural substances available for blending. One thing which is important is the more the kinds of flavors you know, the more easily you will take to creating blends.

You can easily indulge in a tea blends session by using ingredients from your pantry – few spices, sprigs of herbs, and maybe even flowers from the backyard. The key is in learning to balance flavors. It’s important to be fearless. Don’t hold back from throwing strawberries, lemongrass and hibiscus into a tea – flavor can work in mysterious ways!

Other important thing to remember is that when you are blending spices, it is better to crush them first and then mix with the choice of tea. This is important in order to bring out the aroma in the tea. In case of flowers, we can use full petals or small buds. When it comes to dried fruits, they best show their effects when chopped to same size.

It’s always good to start with 1 or 2 ingredients, as the process shouldn’t be more complex at start. You can later on blend with 4-5 ingredients or more when you gain the expertise.

Try it out!!!

Some Common Tea Myths

MYTH #1: BLACK TEA HAS MORE CAFFEINE THAN GREEN

All the variety of tea has caffeine whether it be black tea or green tea or any other variety but has less caffeine than coffee. Caffeine concentration in tea mainly depends on the area where it is grown and how it’s grown, the size of the finished leaves, and the exact processing style.

A green tea may have as much caffeine as a black tea, and two black teas from the same region might have totally different caffeine levels. Hence, the caffeine content in different or same varieties of tea cannot be well defined.

MYTH #2: BOILING WATER ‘BURNS’ DELICATE TEAS

Black teas and darker oolongs do benefit from very hot water to extract the full range of their flavours with just the right dose of tannins, while many green teas will taste sweeter and less bitter with cooler water. The rule is as follows

“The hotter you brew, the darker and more robust your tea will be; the cooler your water, the sweeter and more mild it’ll taste”

MYTH #3: ORGANIC TEA IS HIGHER QUALITY

This is very important for everyone around who is turning to organic tea. With any produce of tea, organic certification is just a label, and lots of large plantations are cashing in with this new term called organic. In reality, organic tea doesn’t necessarily taste any better than conventionally grown tea and neither it has some additional benefits than the normal tea.

MYTH #4: GREEN TEA IS ‘BETTER’ FOR YOU THAN OTHER TEAS

The most common claims in favour of drinking green tea are its low caffeine content and high antioxidant value. Some green teas have just as much caffeine as other varieties. As for antioxidants, well, yes, thanks to its low oxidation, green tea possesses more antioxidants than black and oolongs.

MYTH #5: TEA CAN HELP FIGHT CANCER

Tea can help reduce your risk of heart disease. Catechins, a type of flavonoid, are what make tea healthy. Flavonoids are plant compounds known as phytochemicals. Tea is one of the most highly concentrated food sources of catechins.

Drinking tea is actually a learning which we get with each cup of tea. Tea is a complex subject all together but it gives you the best experience as compared to any other drink on the planet.