Tea, the second most consumed drink next to water in the world has a history as ancient as the Chinese culture. Throughout the ages it has sparked controversy on multiple continents, was thought to be the secret to longevity, been a source of inspiration for poetry and story telling, and for a few, tea brewing was and is, an art that is only mastered after many years.
1. Loose Leaf vs. Tea bags
I am often surprised by the number of people who say that they don’t like tea, especially green tea, because it’s “too bitter.” In response I ask what kind of green tea they drink, to which people answer, “I don’t know it was just green tea in a tea bag.”The difference in quality between loose tea and bagged tea is equivalent to the difference between hotdogs and filet mignon.
Drinking tea from tea bags will quench your thirst but falls short in taste and quality. (Of course there is loose leaf sold in fine quality tea bags, for the most part these are an exception.)
So why is there such a big difference? When tea farmers sell their tea, they usually sell the highest quality tea first. Tea leaves that are unbroken, have almost no stems mixed with them, but are full of white buds, are the priciest sellers. The more buds you see in the dry leaves the better, because buds give tea the most health benefits and add sweetness.
2. Brewing Loose Leaf Tea
So how do you brew tea to get the maximum benefits? There are five main kinds of tea which all come from the same plant, Camellia Sinensis. They are white, green, oolong, black, and púer.I typically like to use a little more tea and brew it for less time. This way you get a full flavor with more health benefits and you can enjoy the same leaves for a second or even third time. A good amount is about a tablespoon for 10 ounces of water. With most Oolong teas, you only need about a teaspoon since it is heavier in weight.
Brewing time and water temperature can very depending on the type of tea and the amount you use. If you don’t mind bitter tasting tea and would like to increase the health benefits, simply brew it longer than what is listed below.
However, if you are going to brew it more then once, then you will be getting the same benefits as if you brewed it longer for only one time.
3. Quality and Purchasing
I often hear people ask why loose leaf Dragon Well Green Tea is sold from $10 up to $50 per 50 grams (1.7 oz.).Fine tea is similar to fine wine; a bottle of cabernet sauvignon can be $10 but can also sell for hundreds of dollars depending on how good the year was.
Like wine, tea can be harvested, picked and processed in many ways and comes from different tea farms. You don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars on tea to get the benefits tea has to offer, but the more you spend the better the quality, taste and freshness of it.
Like wine grapes, altitude and climate can affect the flavor of tea. The Camellia Sinensis plant is typically grown in higher elevations and for the highest quality teas, the grower will assess the amount of dew and fog, sunshine or clouds, and even wind speed on the day of harvest because these factors affect final taste of the tea. The time of day the tea is picked also affects the flavor.
Small tea farms that process tea by hand in traditional ways are always more expensive because these typically grow in higher altitudes and are more difficult to harvest, but these are always superior in quality. Large commercial or government owned farms that process a lot of tea using machines are the cheaper and lower in quality because they grow in lower altitudes so they easier to harvest.
