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Tea
Tea is a caffeine-containing beverage, made by steeping the dried leaves or buds of the tea bush Camellia sinensis in hot water for a few minutes. Other herbs, spices, or fruit are sometimes added for flavour. The English word tea derives ultimately from Min Nan, a Chinese language/dialect.
The expression herbal tea is often used to refer to infusions of fruit or herbs containing no actual tea, such as rosehip tea or chamomile tea. Alternative names lacking the word tea, such as tisane and herbal infusion, are sometimes used to describe these preparations, highlighting the fact that they contain no tea. This article is concerned exclusively with preparations and uses of the tea plant, Camellia sinensis.
Approximately 3 million tonnes of tea are produced on a global scale annually.
Cultivation and classification
Tea is grown primarily in China, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Japan, Indonesia, Nepal, Australia, Argentina, and Kenya. (Note that in the tea trade, Sri Lanka and Taiwan are still referred to by their former names of Ceylon and Formosa, respectively.)
Divisions of tea by processing technique
The main types of tea are distinguished by their processing. Camellia sinensis is an evergreen shrub whose leaves, if not quickly dried after picking, soon begin to wilt and oxidize. This process resembles the malting of barley, in that starch is converted into sugars; the leaves turn progressively darker, as chlorophyll breaks down and tannins are released. The next step in processing is to stop the oxidation process at a predetermined stage by removing the water from the leaves via heating.
The term fermentation was used (probably by wine fanciers) to describe this process, and has stuck, even though no true fermentation happens (i.e. the process is not driven by microbes and produces no ethanol). Without careful moisture and temperature control, fungi will grow on tea. The fungi will cause fermentation which will contaminate the tea with toxic and carcinogenic substances. In fact, when real fermentation happens, the tea must be discarded.
Tea is traditionally classified based on the degree or period of fermentation (oxidation) the leaves have undergone:
- The oxidation process is stopped after a minimal amount of oxidation by application of heat; either with steam, a traditional Japanese method; or by dry cooking in hot pans, the traditional Chinese method. Tea leaves may be left to dry as separate leaves or rolled into small pellets to make gun-powder tea. The latter process is time consuming and is typically done only with pekoes of higher quality. The tea is processed within one to two days of harvesting.
- Oxidation is stopped somewhere between the standards for green tea and black tea. The oxidation process will take two to three days.
- The tea leaves are allowed to completely oxidize. Black tea is the most common form of tea in the western countries. The literal translation of the Chinese word is red tea, which may be used by some tea-lovers. However, red tea may also refer to rooibos, an increasingly popular South African tisane. The oxidation process will take around two weeks and up to one month. Black tea is further classified as either orthodox or CTC (Crush, Tear, Curl, a production method developed about 1932). Unblended black teas are also identified by the estate they come from, their year and the flush (first, second or autumn). Orthodox and CTC teas are further graded according to the post-production leaf quality by the Orange Pekoe system.
Blends and additives
Almost all teas in tea-bags and most other teas are blends. Though recently with improvements in the dry freeze technique and the improved infusion method, tea powder and condensed tea essence that only needs hot or cold water to make a cup of tea are sold. Blending may occur at the level of tea-planting area (e.g., Assam), or teas from many areas may be blended. The aim of blending is a stable taste over different years, and a better price. More expensive, more tasty tea may cover the inferior taste of cheaper tea.
There are various teas which have additives and/or different processing than "pure" varieties. Tea is able to easily receive any aroma, which may cause problems in processing, transportation or storage of tea, but can be also advantageously used to prepare scented teas.
Variants include:
Breakfast tea
- Generally a blend of different black teas that are robust and full-bodied, and go well with milk. Some flavours are English, Irish and Scottish. Afternoon blends are lighter. Both blends are popular in the British Isles.
Jasmine tea
- Spread with jasmine flowers while oxidizing, and occasionally some are left in the tea as a decoration. Many other flowers, including roses and other fragrant blooms, are used as flavouring in tea in China.
- Usually a mix of black teas, with essence of the citrus fruit bergamot added.
Spiced teas
- Include the Indian chai, flavoured with sweet spices such as ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, clove, Indian bay leaf and sometimes nutmeg are common in southern Asia and the Middle East.
Touareg Tea
- Strong green tea with Nana mint, prepared in desert areas of North Africa and the Middle East.
- originally from Mount Wuyi in the Fujian province of China. Lapsang souchong is a black tea which is dried over burning pine, thereby developing a strong smoky flavour.
Browse our site and take a look at the various tools used in preparing teas, as well as the various styles and flavors of tea that are available on the market.
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