Types of Tea

Types of Tea

There are four main types of tea. It is interesting to note that there is only one kind of tea plant (Camellia sinensis). From this one plant are derived all the types of tea and variations of tea.

There Are Four Main Types of Tea

They differ only in the way they are processed. The leaves from the tea plant could produce black tea if they are fermented and green tea if they are steamed to prevent and minimize fermentation.

White and Green teas receive the least drastic processing and therefore retain more of what is good in the tea leaf.

The Four Main Tea Types Are:

White Tea:

This tea is the rarest and also the least processed. It has very high levels of anti-oxidants. Its name comes from the silver threads found on the tea buds. White tea has a delicate sweet flavor. My favorite white tea is Silver Needle.

Green Tea:

This tea is low in caffeine and high in antioxidants. It has a multitude of health benefits because of the high level of anti-oxidants kept in its leaves after processing. My favorite green tea is Pin Head Gun Powder.

Oolong Tea:

Oolong tea leaves are only partially oxidized. This means that the tea leaves are bruised instead of crushed and broken. They are allowed to ferment to a desired level and are then steamed or pan heated to stop the fermentation. Oolongs are brown in color. Formosa is one example of an Oolong tea.

Black Tea:

This is the most popular tea. It has more caffeine and fewer antioxidants that all other teas. Black tea is fully oxidized so it has the least amount of anti-oxidants. Darjeeling is my favorite type of black tea.

Herbal Teas

Herbal teas are made from herbs and even though we often refer to them as teas they are not teas in the true sense of the word. Herbal teas are made from anything but the Camellia Sinensis plant. Bark, flowers, leaves (not from the tea plant), fruits, and spices make up the herbals.

Tea Named for Region

In the same way that wines are named for the regions in which they originate so it is with tea. Tea is often named for the region in which it is grown such as Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling, Lapsang, and, Suchong.

Some tea is flavored, for example Jasmine, and Earl Gray have flavor added.

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