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The four main types of tea

The average American citizen is oblivious to the fact that there is more than one type of tea. Actually, there are thousands of sub-genre teas and specialty teas available, if you know where to shop and what product to ask for. Most are available for order at reasonable prices online. The higher profile teas are a bit more difficult to find and cannot be bought at your local supermarket.

However, as an overview of teas, there are four main categories in all. These are white tea, green tea, oolong tea, and black tea. The brand that you find at your local grocery store is likely black tea, though not in the pure form.

Black tea in its purest form, untouched by additives and preservatives is a totally different concept than the tainted form that many Americans drink on a daily basis. In its’ purest form, black tea is the leaves of the plant that has simply been processed by completely oxidizing the leaves. They are dried out for a day, and then rolled to provide cracks for the process of oxidation. After they turn completely black, a final drying process is undertaken and the tea is ready for consumption. On a side note, of all the teas, black tea has the highest content of caffeine.

Next, we have the most rare and most cherished form of tea, white tea. This form of the drink has a drastically different flavor than the often drank black tea. The flavor is has a hint of freshness to it, a grassy taste if you will. The processing is different than most forms of tea, in that there is no oxidation necessary. The leaves are picked young and rolled up in a small bundle. Then they undergo a process of steaming. After that, they are ready to go to market. There is a bit of drying in the process, but not much. White tea is likely the most natural version available.

Moving on, we have a favorite of the Chinese tea drinkers, Oolong. A lot of work goes into the process of creating Oolong Tea, thus making it one of the more expensive types on the open market. The process begins with taking the leaves and allowing them to wither for one day, at the most. Then the withered leaves are placed into baskets and tossed about, bruising them along the edges, and allowing partial oxidation. After this, they are steamed to halt further oxidation. After the drying process, they are ready to be sold. Oolong comes in a wide variety of levels of intenseness, depending entirely upon the amount of oxidation utilized. This allows for several different types of Oolong.

Lastly, we have the tea type that is quickly growing in popularity across the globe, the Green Tea. Green Tea is similar in nature to white teas, as it has a more natural, original flavor. Like white tea, Green tea is not oxidized at all. Processing Green Tea begins by allowing them to dry for half a day. Then the leaves are pan fried or steamed. After that, they are rolled into tiny bundles and dried again. From there, it’s off to market. Green Tea’s newfound popularity is largely due to the health factors involved. It has far less caffeine than any other tea. On top of that, there are currently studies going on in various locations on the health potential for this product. It appears that Green tea may have a solid positive impact on fighting such illnesses as cancer and heart disease.

The four aforementioned tea types are overall groups. There are many sub-groups that are available to anyone and everyone. We suggest that you shop around and try them all before settling for one particular tea.

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