We drink a lot of tea. But do we know the different varieties of it?
It is the most popular tea in the world. Turkey is the leader in black tea consumption per person. Almost 100% of the tea that is consumed in Turkey is Turkish Black Tea. But black tea is also produced in various parts of the world: India, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam, Indonesia in Asia; Kenya, Rwanda, Malawi, Tanzania, Congo in Afrika; Argentina in South America; and Iran and Azerbaijan.
Generally, they are harvested by hand, with scissors or machines, plucking 2 leaves and 1 bud. In Turkey, scissors are widely preferred for plucking. First step is withering. Depending on the technology applied following the withering process, the tea leaves are cut into various sizes and shapes using the Orthodox (Rolling process) or CTC (cut, tear, curl) processing method and/or by using a rotorvane. Generally, the Orthodox method is used in Asia and the CTC method in Africa In Turkey the Orthodox + rotorvane combination is the most popular. So, what are these processes for?
The purpose of the withering process is to pull moisture out from the leaves, enhancing the content. Moreover, it helps make tea leaves easily rollable for the next step, thus minimizing the loss of moisture when the leaves are rolled or crushed.
In the rolling process, the tea leaves are rolled into wrinkled strips. The purpose is to create bruises on the leaf surface, through which some of the sap, essential oils, and juices ooze out and come into contact with oxygen. Thus, the oxidation process begins, forming the compounds that affect the taste, smell and brewed color of the tea. It is important to mention that the rolling process gives the tea its curly shape.
The CTC process, however, creates spherical shapes in varying sizes. This process is faster than the Orthodox method. Moreover, the teas produced with this method are mostly used in tea or teapot bag blends.
Rotorvane is used to make non-curled leaves smaller by crushing them.
Regardless of the method, the end result is rolled, curled or crushed fresh tea leaves. With the onset of oxidation, tea starts to bring out all of its flavors. Controlling the oxidation step with the help of a regulated, optimized system ensures a certain standard. Under certain humidity and temperature conditions, a uniform oxidation can be achieved for all the leaves. This is one of the most crucial steps in which the brewed color, strength, bitterness and aroma structure of the tea start taking shape.
The oxidation is followed by the kill-green step where tea goes through a firing process, causing the leaves to lose 3-5% of their moisture and turn black. This yields a dried tea product which can be used over an extended period of time. Then, the dried tea is separated from its stem and other impurities that may get mixed into the leaves. After the separation is completed, the tea leaves are sorted by quality and size.
It is a variety of tea produced in China. During its production process, the tea leaves are fermented. The tea leaves, either in loose form or after being pressed into a brick, sphere, square or disc shapes, are kept in places with controlled humidity and temperature conditions, where there is no sunlight (e.g. underground). This ageing process, which takes about 1-3-15 years, brings out the sweetness and earthy characteristics in the flavor profile of the tea. Brewed at 90-100 °C, the infusion time varies from 30 seconds to 1.5 minutes depending on the age of the Pu’ehr.
Oolong, which is generally produced in China and Taiwan, is a semi-oxidized type of tea with its distinctive fruity aroma and floral smell. The variety of flavors of the oolong teas is impressively complex. Depending on the production technique and the amount of oxidation, the flavor of oolong teas may vary from a black tea-like profile to a taste close to that of green tea’s, earthy to smoked, fruity to floral. The non-homogeneous, rounded shapes of Oolong teas produced in the Far East are what makes them stand out. There are also curled forms that look similar to black tea.
Around the world, green tea is produced by 2 different techniques.The Chinese method of pan-firing and the steaming technique used in Japan. The steaming technique enables the production of many valuable and premium green tea varieties.
The key aspect of green tea production is the avoidance of oxidation.In order to do so, the polyphenol oxidase enzyme, which catalyzes oxidation, should be eliminated in the tea leaves, minimizing its activity.
The natural method to prevent this enzyme from working is using heat. The methods for applying heat are pan-firing or steaming.
The process is then similar to the black tea production, without oxidation.In China, each variety of tea requires a unique production process.When hand picking, special choice of tea gardens and the use of different equipment are factored in, we can see hundreds of different applications.
Green tea contains more catechin derivatives than black tea. According to research, green tea is more powerful than black tea in terms of its antioxidant properties.
Widely produced in China and from the tea plant Camillia sinensis, white tea is the least processed variety of tea. The top buds of the plant are plucked, withered and dried. It is low in caffeine and a powerful antioxidant. White tea can give soft, sweet, light floral or fruity flavors. With special applications in production, distinct tastes can be achieved. The prices are high due to the fact that they are mostly hand-picked, that the buds are small in numbers and that white tea requires special tea gardens.
Drinking tea is like a journey across the world. We can take one sip and open our eyes in the Yunnan region of China while another sip might take us to the Shizuoka Prefecture of Japan. What is interesting is that hundreds of different flavors are obtained from the same plant. On the other hand, a myriad of herbs around the world offer various tea experiences and contents. Every year, we go after another taste, another color, another smell. Because we are driven by the diversity and beauty in this labor-intensive product which is meticulously created by nature and perfected in the hands of people. Popularity of teas varies according to their health benefits and people’s taste preferences. With scientific research, new herbs, which we have never heard of before, become an indispensable part of our lives.
