Char Videos - Why Does One Tea Taste Different to Another?

Char Teas, premium loose leaf tea sellers and Jane Pettigrew, Tea Specialist, guide you through the taste differences between tea and why those differences are apparent. Manufacturing black tea is a 36 hour process. The buds and tea leaves are picked, taken to the factory and left to wither for up to 20 hours to lose any water. Then the leaves are rolled to provoke oxidation - the tea leaves go from green to black, becoming darker and richer. Tea cannot be stored and kept with water, so the leaves are put in a hot oven to remove any excess. The leftover particles, large and small, are then packed ready to go to the tea merchants for selling. Assam tea, from north east India, is grown in a wide river valley with hot humid conditions. The tea plants grow fast, giving a beautiful, smooth flavour. Darjeeling tea, which is from the next province on, grows at the top of high mountains. The tea leaves are more fragrant, lighter, subtle, and slightly astringent. Sri Lankan (Ceylon) tea grows in 3 different altitudes; sea level, mid grow and high grow. In China, Yunnan province, the young buds are picked meaning low oxidation and thus the tea keeps its character. The reasons that teas taste different are the same reasons that wines are different. Different weather, climate, and growing conditions all affect the tea plant. Regionality all makes a difference to how they taste. Check out our blog at www.charteas.com/blog more tea facts.