How is tea produced?
All “true” teas come from the same plant. The many different classifications and varieties of tea are produced through differences in cultivation, harvesting and processing. Teas from different regions have different flavors, as do teas picked at different times of the year. What is the significance of the elevation at which tea is grown? The advantage of mountain-grown tea is that the coolness of higher elevations slows down the growth of the tea plant, causing the leaves to develop more slowly, and, thus to be more flavorful. This is why the first crop or “flush” of the season is so highly prized. How should tea be brewed? 1. Bring fresh, cold water to a rolling boil. 2. LOOSE TEA: Add tea leaves to a teapot, fill-your-own teabag, tea strainer. Use 1 to 2 teaspoons (adjust to taste) per cup (8 oz) of water. TEA BAG: Place tea bag in teapot or cup. Each tea bag brews 1 to 2 cups. 3. Pour boiling water over tea. 4. Infuse (steep) leaves for suggested time. Do Not over steep, may cause
Although all tea comes from the Camellia sinensis plant, the difference between the various teas is a process called oxidation. Tea is processed by breaking down the cell walls of the individual tea leaves through a process called withering and then exposing the tea to air that directly interacts with enzymes in the tea leaf. Much like a banana that turns brown when exposed to air for a period of time, tea leaves go from their natural state to various stages of oxidation and during the process, change color and develop the unique flavors associated with the individual types of tea.
The first step in tea production is the harvest. Most harvesting is still done by hand which is very labor-intensive. Some growers have had success using a machine that acts much like a vacuum cleaner, sucking the leaves off the branch. The latter method is used for the cheaper varieties of tea, as it is not capable of discriminating between the high-quality tip leaves and the coarser leaves toward the bottom of the branch. On an estate, each picker is credited with their own weights of tea for subsequent payment. A skilled picker can gather up to between 30-35 kilograms of plucked leaves in a day, sufficient to produce about 7.5 to 9 kg of processed black tea. As black tea has the major share of the tea market in terms of production, sales and amounts consumed, most tea factories produce black tea. On arrival at the factory, the plucked leaves are spread on vast trays or racks, normally placed at the top of the factory, and are left to wither in air at 80 – 90 degrees. The moisture in
The first step in tea production is to pick the leaves. Taiwan oolong can be harvested up to 6 times a year depending on the elevation and weather conditions. High mountain tea may only be harvested 3 times a year because the weather is much cooler and the tea grows more slowly. High mountain oolong is the most valued Taiwan oolong tea. The best quality oolong tea is hand-picked. Tea can also be machine cut, but this results in an excess of stems and damage to the leaves. All loose-leaf teas sold at Tea From Taiwan is hand-picked and hand-processed. The tea leaves are picked as they are budding. Two leaves along with the bud are plucked from the tea bush and placed in a large basket that the picker carries on her back. Most of the tea pickers are women. The fresh leaves are transported back to the facility for processing tea. They are spread on a flat surface and exposed to the sun for about an hour. Afterwards they are gathered and placed on drying racks in an air-conditioned drying h
