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Tea Glossary
Posted in Nourishment for the Body » Drink It on Saturday, March 29, 2014
Tea Glossary
From Tea Forte........
Green Tea Best known for its grassy vegetal notes and greenish liquor and leaves, is quickly steamed or pan-fired to denature the oxidizing enzymes and preserve the tea's characteristic freshness. While all tea is antioxidant-rich, some speculate that the minimal processing undergone by green tea allows more antioxidants to reach your final cup. Without oxidation, green teas must be steeped more carefully, as they can become bitter if steeped too long or at too hot of a temperature. Never steep green tea with boiling water; near boiling or even cooler will produce much better results.
White Teas The least processed teas are White Teas. White teas contain only the buds and very young leaves of the tea plant, as a result, they are rarer and often more expensive. Only recently have white teas become popular outside of China. The straightforward, yet delicate taste and health profile similar to green tea has helped white tea burst onto the Western tea scene in recent years. Black Teas Black tea is the most familiar tea type to North Americans and Europeans. This is the stuff the famous Earl Grey, English Breakfast and Orange Pekoe are made of. Black teas less familiar to the Western world also abound, including our smoky but seductive Lapsang Souchong. Herbal Teas Herbal Teas entail everything one can possibly steep or infuse in hot water that did not originate from the tea bush, Camellia Sinensis. Of course this means that Herbals are, by definition, not tea; rather the more precise word for herbals is "tisane." This is an interesting fact, but we try not to be too stuffy about it. Many people are simply more familiar with the term "herbal tea" than with "tisane," so herbal tea suits us just fine.
Ooooo...The Oolongs The oolongs are a first cousin once removed from the black teas. Oolong tea is partially oxidized to lie somewhere between black and green. While the look is more along the lines of black teas, the taste is closer to the green teas but with a touch more oomph and a rounded mouthfeel. Oolongs are commonly produced in the Fujian province of China and on the island of Taiwan, formerly called Formosa, from which one of the more famous oolong teas is named. Matcha Matcha, or green-tea powder, is whisked with just a few ounces of water to create a petite frothy drink. It’s the tea world’s espresso: more concentrated and higher in caffeine than regular green tea. While other types of tea are grown in full sun, matcha’s leaves are shaded for several weeks before harvesting, which makes them pump out extra chlorophyll and turn a vivid green. The leaves are then hand-picked, steamed, dried, and ground to be sold as matcha powder in tea shops or online. “It’s very smooth and full-bodied, almost with a touch of sweetness,” says Jessica Lloyd, cofounder and COO of the matcha green tea company Panatea. It’s also crazy good for you. With most teas, you don’t consume the whole leaf, just the liquid. So you get some - but not all – of the antioxidants in your cup, says Lloyd. But with matcha, you sip even more free-radical fighters.
MY FAVORITES...........
Teavana.com
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