Camellia sinensis is an evergreen plant that grows mainly in tropical and sub-tropical climates. Nevertheless, some varieties can also tolerate marine climates and are cultivated as far north as Cornwall on the UK mainland and Seattle in the United States.
Historically, tea has been served as a part of various ceremonies and has been used to stay alert during long meditations. A legend in India describes the story of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, who tore off his eyelids in frustration at his inability to stay awake during meditation while journeying through China.
A tea plant is said to have sprouted from the spot where his eyelids fell, providing him with the ability to stay awake, meditate, and reach enlightenment. Turkish traders reportedly introduced tea to Western cultures in the 6th century. By the 18th Century, tea was commonly consumed in England, where it became customary to drink tea at 5 p.m.
Tea plants require at least 50 inches of rainfall a year and prefer acidic soils. Many high-quality tea plants are cultivated at elevations of up to 1500 meters (5,000 ft). At these heights, the plants grow more slowly and acquire a better flavour. The four types of tea most commonly found on the market are black tea, oolong tea, green tea and white tea, all of which can be made from the same bushes, processed differently, and in the case of fine white tea grown differently. Pu-erh tea, a double-fermented black tea, is also often classified as amongst the most popular types of tea.
There is also herbal tea. However, contrary to what most people believe, herbal tea is a herbal infusion made from anything other than the leaves of the camellia sinensis plant. In effect, the term "herbal tea" usually refers to an infusion or tisane of leaves, flowers, fruit, herbs or other plant material that contains no Camellia sinensis.
There is also red tea. The term "red tea" either refers to an infusion made from the South African rooibos plant, also containing no Camellia sinensis, or, in Chinese, Korean, Japanese and other East Asian languages, refers to black tea. During harvest, only the top 1-2 inches of the mature plant are picked. These buds and leaves are called flushes. A plant will grow a new flush every seven to ten days during the growing season.
A tea plant will grow into a tree if left undisturbed, but cultivated plants are pruned to waist height for ease of plucking. A tea's type is determined by the processing which it undergoes. Leaves of Camellia sinensis soon begin to wilt and oxidize if not dried quickly after picking. The leaves turn progressively darker as their chlorophyll breaks down and tannins are released. This process, enzymatic oxidation, is called fermentation in the tea industry, although it is not a true fermentation: it is not caused by micro-organisms, and is not an anaerobic process.
The next step in processing is to stop the oxidation process at a predetermined stage by heating, which deactivates the enzymes responsible. With black tea this is done simultaneously with drying. Without careful moisture and temperature control during manufacture and packaging, the tea will grow fungi. The fungus causes real fermentation that will contaminate the tea with toxic and sometimes carcinogenic substances, as well as off-flavors, rendering the tea unfit for consumption.
Tea leaf processing methods (Simplified)Tea is traditionally classified based on the techniques with which it is produced and processed. White tea: Unwilted and unoxidized Yellow tea: Unwilted and unoxidized but allowed to yellow Green tea: Wilted and unoxidized Oolong: Wilted, bruised, and partially oxidized Black tea: Wilted, sometimes crushed, and fully oxidized Post-fermented tea: Green Tea that has been allowed to ferment/compost Black tea is a variety of tea that is more oxidized than the oolong, green, and white tea varieties. Black tea is generally stronger in flavor and contains more caffeine than the less oxidized teas. Two principal varieties of the species are used, the small-leaved Chinese variety plant (C. sinensis sinensis), also used for green and white teas, and the large-leaved Assamese plant (C. sinensis assamica), which was traditionally only used for black tea, although in recent years some green has been produced.
The tea plant is native to Southeast Asia and can grow up to a height of 40 feet, but is usually maintained at a height of two to three feet by regular pruning. The first spring leaf buds, called the first flush , are considered the highest-quality leaves. When the first flush leaf bud is picked, another one grows, which is called the second flush , and this continues until an autumn flush . The older leaves picked farther down the stems are considered to be of poorer quality.
In Chinese and Chinese influenced languages, black tea is known as "crimson tea", perhaps a more accurate description of the colour of the liquid. The name black tea, however, could alternatively refer to the colour of the oxidized leaves. In Chinese, "black tea" is a commonly used classification for post-fermented teas, such as Pu-erh tea. However, in the Western world, "red tea" more commonly refers to rooibos, a South African tisane.Black tea is a primary source of caffeine, a methylxanthine that stimulates the central nervous system, relaxes smooth muscle in the airways to the lungs (bronchioles), stimulates the heart, and acts on the kidney as a diuretic (increasing urine).
One cup of tea contains about 50 milligrams of caffeine, depending on the strength and size of cup (as compared to coffee, which contains 65 to 175 milligrams of caffeine per cup). While green tea usually loses its flavor within a year, black tea actually retains its strong flavour for several years. However, only in the 19th century did black tea surpass green in popularity. Although green tea has recently seen a revival due to its purported health benefits, the fact remains that black tea still accounts for over ninety percent of all tea sold in the West. Black tea gained notoriety in the United States in 1773 when colonists tossed black tea into Boston Harbor during the Boston Tea Party. This symbolic gesture was an early event in the U.S. War of Independence against England.
Green tea is a hugely popular type of tea made solely with the leaves of Camellia sinensis, that has undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures in Asia from Japan to the Middle East. Recently, it has become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally consumed. Many varieties of green tea have been created in countries where it is grown. These varieties can differ substantially due to variable growing conditions, processing and harvesting time. Over the last few decades green tea has been subjected to many scientific and medical studies to determine the extent of its long-purported health benefits, with some evidence suggesting regular green tea drinkers may have lower chances of heart disease and developing certain types of cancer. Green tea has also been claimed useful for weight loss management.
Oolong is a traditional Chinese tea (Camellia sinensis) somewhere between green and black in oxidation. It ranges from 10% to 70% oxidation. It is among the most popular types of teas served in typical Chinese restaurants. White tea is a specialty of the Chinese province Fujian. Like green, oolong and black tea, white tea comes from the Camellia sinensis plant.
However, while Oolong and black teas are oxidized before curing, white tea is the uncured and unoxidized tea leaf. White tea often contains buds and young tea leaves, which have been found to contain higher levels of caffeine than older leaves, suggesting that the caffeine content of some white teas may be slightly higher than that of green teas. What makes white tea so special is the fact that it is the least processed form of tea, made of beautiful silver buds and select leaves which have been steamed and dried. Because of its minimal processing, white tea contains more nutrients than its black or green cousins, making it the mightiest of the teas, the ultimate Health Tea. I
n Chinese tea culture, semi-oxidized oolong teas are collectively grouped as qingchá (Chinese: literally "clear tea").Oolong has a taste more akin to green tea than to black tea: it lacks the rosy, sweet aroma of black tea but it likewise does not have the stridently grassy vegetal notes that typify green tea. It is commonly brewed to be strong, with the bitterness leaving a sweet aftertaste. Several subvarieties of oolong, including those produced in the Wuyi Mountains of northern Fujian and in the central mountains of Taiwan, are among the most famous Chinese teas.
Oolong tea leaves are processed in two different ways. Some teas are rolled into long curly leaves, while some are pressed into a ball-like form similar to gunpowder tea. The former method of processing is the older of the two. The name oolong tea comes into the English language from the Chinese name, which is pronounced as O·-liông tê in the Min Nan spoken variant. The Chinese name means "black dragon tea". There are three widely accepted explanations on how this Chinese name came about.
According to the "tribute tea" theory, oolong tea was a direct descendant of Dragon-Phoenix Tea Cake tribute tea. Oolong tea replaced it when loose tea came into fashion. Since it was dark, long and curly, it was called the Black Dragon tea. According to the "Wuyi" theory, oolong tea first existed in Wuyi Mountain. This is evidenced by Qing dynasty poems such as Wuyi Tea Song (Wuyi Chage) and Tea Tale (Chashuo). It was said that oolong tea was named after the part of Wuyi mountain where it was originally produced. According to the "Anxi" theory, oolong tea had its origin in the Anxi oolong tea plant.
A man named Sulong, Wulong or Wuliang discovered it. Another tale tells of a man named Wu Liang (later corrupted to Wu Long, or Oolong) who discovered oolong tea by accident when he was distracted by a deer after a hard day's tea-picking, and by the time he remembered about the tea it had already started to oxidize. From the mist-shrouded mountains of China comes a new and exciting tea - white tea. The Chinese have enjoyed white tea for over a thousand years, but only recently has the rest of the world become aware of this secret brew.
