Tea production is very complex. Tea must go through several stages before it becomes a small tea bag that the consumer drops into a cup of hot water, or a tea bag that is placed in a filter with a teaspoon. And if the consumer can't choose a specific tea, they can simply select an assortment to taste different types. The production process will follow this short message from someone with a lot on their mind.
Logic: I've never understood why we have to follow alphabetical order. Today, let's be crazy! Let's just take a trip down memory lane instead of rushing through it.
Before discussing how tea is made, it's important to know that there is only one tea root, but two species: Thea sinensis (China) and Thea assamica (India). The difference in taste lies either in the production method, the addition of different flavorings or aromas to make flavored tea (such as cinnamon or vanilla), or both.
This type of plantation is probably one of the last agricultural products harvested by hand, using the old-school method. The quality of the tea is linked to the quality of the leaves, which are lovingly hand-picked. This can also be done by machines, but this can diminish the quality.
Now, here are the production steps. Just imagine you are a cup of tea and you are going back to the first second of your processing.
V: Before you buy your tea, it goes through a cooking (or drying) process. It must have a moisture content of less than 3%. Your tea isn't cooked like coffee; it's heated.
IV: The tea will undergo a process of oxidation. This stage will be longer for darker teas (black teas) and much shorter for lighter teas (oolong). Oxidation makes the leaves darker because the chlorophyll (which makes the leaf green) is destroyed. It's like when you leave an apple on the table; it turns brown, and some flies come and stay for three weeks, just because you forgot to throw a piece of apple away...
III: The third step is rolling (not deeply here, unless you want to sing a song about the tea processing!). The leaves are rolled and compacted to expel their water.
II: The leaves will begin to wilt and wither (not withered and withered, obviously...) outside in the sun.
I: It all begins with a picker who will choose, at the beginning of summer or the end of spring, the best leaves to harvest. He will take each leaf with his thumb and forefinger.
Step IV shows us why we can find aged teas (mainly black teas) that will undergo fermentation (a process that comes alongside oxidation).
And then you can buy your tea and enjoy your tea in a peaceful setting, thinking about how difficult it is to make tea.
IV: The tea will undergo a process of oxidation. This stage will be longer for darker teas (black teas) and much shorter for lighter teas (oolong). Oxidation makes the leaves darker because the chlorophyll (which makes the leaf green) is destroyed. It's like when you leave an apple on the table; it turns brown, and some flies come and stay for three weeks, just because you forgot to throw a piece of apple away...
III: The third step is rolling (not deeply here, unless you want to sing a song about the tea processing!). The leaves are rolled and compacted to expel their water.
II: The leaves will begin to wilt and wither (not withered and withered, obviously...) outside in the sun.
I: It all begins with a picker who will choose, at the beginning of summer or the end of spring, the best leaves to harvest. He will take each leaf with his thumb and forefinger.
Step IV shows us why we can find aged teas (mainly black teas) that will undergo fermentation (a process that comes alongside oxidation).
And then you can buy your tea and enjoy your tea in a peaceful setting, thinking about how difficult it is to make tea.
