A Brief Education In Tea

What is tea?

What is tea? Most of us have tasted it, many of us even enjoy it, yet do we know where this wonderful beverage comes from? The tea plant is known as Camellia sinensis, an evergreen plant in the Camellia family. When the plant is harvested for use the top two leaves and bud produce the most flavorful brew. The flavor of tea may be affected by many factors, including soil conditions, climate, elevation, the methods used for processing the harvested plant, and even the blending of different teas from different regions. And you thought it was a simple cuppa’ tea, didn’t you?

Tea plants require heat and moisture to produce a good harvest, and the harvesting of this product is very labor-intensive. Most of the world’s tea is produced in India, Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Indonesia, Taiwan, China, Japan and Kenya.

Tea is the chameleon of the herb world. The beverage tea comes in many colors: black, green and white. Yet, these are all derived from the same plant: Camellia sinensis. Surprised? What determines how the tea will taste is how the leaf is processed after it is picked.

Tea Types

Black Teas

Once the leaves are picked, they are left in a hot room to wither; then the leaves are rolled, causing them to release their juices. As these juices react with the air around them, oxidation (also referred to as fermentation) occurs, and this is the cause of the strong color and flavor of the black tea. The leaves are then dried in large ovens to stop the oxidation process. Black teas have a higher caffeine content than other teas, about 50–60% of the caffeine content in coffee.

Some varieties of Black tea are English Breakfast, Assam, Darjeeling and Ceylon (the term Orange Pekoe derives from this type of tea and actually refers to the size of the leaf rather than the taste of the tea).

Green Teas

The leaves are picked and simply allowed to wither. The withering process is stopped quickly by firing (rapid heating). Green tea produces a more subtle flavor and has less caffeine than black teas (10–30% of coffee). Green tea varieties include Gunpowder and Sencha.

Oolong Teas

The leaves are allowed to only partially oxidize, which places this type of tea in the middle of black and green teas. The flavor is not as strong as a black tea, nor as subtle as that of a green tea, but has an interesting flavor comparative to fresh flowers or fruit. The caffeine levels for Oolong tea are also between that of black and green tea. An example of an Oolong tea variety is Formosa.

White Teas

This style of tea is considered the most delicate of all teas, with a sweet aftertaste. The name is derived from the white down that covers the unopened leaf, giving it a silvery color. Once this tea is hand-picked it is simply dried with no additional processing. White teas have very little caffeine content. White tea varieties include Silver Needles and White Peony.

Flavored or Scented Teas

This category of teas might have a base of black, green, oolong or white tea mixed with either a flavoring or a scent. Scents may be artificial or natural. One method of infusing the tea with a natural scent is to allow the tea leaves to dry in the same room with the natural scent. Jasmine tea, for example, is made by layering green tea leaves with jasmine flowers and allowing them to dry together. This process may be repeated many times, depending on the grade of tea. The higher quality jasmine teas will have all of the jasmine flowers removed from the finished product. Flavored and scented tea varieties include Earl Grey, Jasmine, Lapsang Souchong and Constant Comment.

Tisanes or Infusions

This category is not really tea—it is not made from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. Tisanes or infusions are produced by either infusing (steeping) or decocting (boiling) herbs, spices, flowers and fruits in water. Herb teas have become very popular because the public is more health conscious, and tisanes and infusions are caffeine-free.

Leaves (fresh or dried) include anise hyssop, hops, horehound, lemon balm, lemon grass, lemon verbena, monarda, mints, sages, scented geraniums, sweet cicely, sweet woodruff, thymes, basil, borage, catnip, marjoram, oregano, parsley, rosemary, and savory.
Flowers include chamomile, lavender, linden, hibiscus, and rose.
Seeds (crush before using) include caraway, fennel, dill, coriander, nutmeg and star anise.
Roots and fruits include dandelion root, ginger root, rose hips and raspberries.

Where Did Tea Come From?

According to Chinese legend, tea was discovered in 2737 B.C. by the Chinese emperor, Shen Nung. While he was boiling water to drink, the wind blew a leaf from a tea bush into his cup, and the emperor poured the boiling water over it. The aroma was so pleasing to the emperor that he tasted it, and so began the long history of tea.

The history of tea reads like an exciting, adventure novel. There is a chapter about the race to trade, on the high seas, with the Orient; or a chapter about the British East India Company and the building of an Empire. Another, more familiar chapter tells about unfair taxation and the Boston Tea Party. Or, a darker chapter in the history of tea tells how the opium trade was tied to tea. There are many books available that focus on telling the story of tea, and we encourage you to read them.

How to Brew a Great Pot of Tea