Types of Tea

While professional tea-drinkers no doubt already know all the different varieties of tea, many newer tea drinkers are surprised to find there's more out there than green and black teas. All teas come from the same plant, but they can differ from one another tremendously due to how they're processed.

Most are familiar with black tea, which is the most processed of the types of tea. Leaves are typically picked, fried, and then oxidized. No one's really sure why people began oxidizing their tea, but it probably had to do with preservation, as black teas keep a lot longer than less processed teas.

Oolong teas are not quite as processed as black teas, but are moreso than green tea. Actually, oolong teas are very diverse--some taste almost like black tea, some almost like green tea. Oolong teas undergo the oxidation process like black teas, but the process is stopped somewhere in between.

Green teas are picked, steamed to remove enzymes that promote oxidation, dried, and then rolled. They tend to have a grassy flavor, and also tout some of the best health benefits of all teas.

White teas undergo the least processing. White tea comes from the buds of the tea plant before they develop large amounts of chlorophyll, and undergo immediate steaming to break down those oxidizing enzymes. White teas often have a faint sweetness to them, with none of the grassiness of green tea.



Of course this is all very basic. Even within tea types there can be major differences. A cup of Assam is very different from a Golden Yunnan, White Peony is very different from Silver Needle white tea, and there are marked differences between Japanese and Chinese green teas.

As a general guideline, the more processed a tea is, the higher temperature water you use and the longer you steep it, although with high quality, expensive teas this doesn't necessarily apply. Brewing the wrong way can result in a weak, tasteless cup of tea or a brew that is too astringent and bitter to stomach.