Where Did Tea Come From

Black Tea versus green tea? – Black tea is THE tea as far as many are concerned.  Sure there is much mention of green tea these days, but the fact is that black tea offers the same health benefits and tastes much better, at least to this author’s pallette.

Black tea, as indeed does all REAL tea has as its source the Camellia Sinensis bush (or tree).  The differences between the main types of tea, such as white, green, and black teas is how long each tea leaf is allowed to age in the air (sometimes called fermenting) before it is processed into its final form.  Also there are differences in other preparation processes such as whether the leaves are smoked, how they are dried, etc.

For example, white tea is processed immediately after picking, with no aging. Green tea is only allowed to age for one or two days. And black teas (yumm) are aged until they completely oxidize, which usually takes between two to four weeks.  The leaves then turn very dark, but not actually black, despite the name.  when infused, black tea produces a reddish-brown liquid, sometimes called the liquor.

The so-called black tea also has had economic and cultural significance around the world for hundreds of years. Because it is

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already fully aged, black tea will not degrade during storage.  While the other teas may only last a few days or weeks before spoiling, black tea can remain good and fresh for months or even years. Some cultures have even used bricks of black tea leaves as currency in the past.

Other benefits of the long aging process involved in creating black tea include a stronger flavor, and higher caffeine content than other teas. It would seem more likely that the aging process would leach both flavor and caffeine from the leaves, but the opposite is actually the case. The long aging period in the production of black tea actually strengthen both flavor and caffeine concentration.

As mentioned earlier, black colored tea is not actually black at all.  In fact it is sometimes called red tea, mostly because it produces a dark reddish color when thea leaves are brewed. This can be a tad confusing because in many Western cultures, the term red tea frequently refers to drinks that are not actually teas at all, but rather tisanes made from the South African rooibos plant.  Recall that all real tea comes from the Camellia Sinensis bush. A tisane or herbal tea not a true tea at all.  So technially, there is no such thing as “herbal tea.”

Depending on your taste, black tea may be drunk with the addition of milk and/or some sort of sweetener.  In England and in the US, it is very common to drink hot black tea with milk and sugar.  Iced tea, which is almost always made from black tea, is also frequently served at restaurants already sweet.  IN the south you actually have to ask for “unsweet tea” if you don’t like it sweet.

So to recap, “black” is the name given to tea whose leaves are allowed to age for the longest period of time. The process results in a tea with a stronger flavor, and more caffeine, and longer shelf life, than other types of tea.

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