January is National Hot Tea Month.
The most popular types of tea are white, green, oolong, and black. All of these teas are leaves from the same plant, the Camellia sinensis, but are processed in different ways.
When tea leaves are picked, they are left to wither. White teas are dried immediately after withering and then stored. After the wither; green teas are steamed or pan-fried, rolled, dried, and stored.
Some teas are left to oxidize after withering. Oxidation occurs when teas are left in a closed room and the chlorophyll in the leaves breaks down and releases tannins. The leaves become darker the more oxidized they become. Oolong teas are allowed to partially oxidize and black teas are fully oxidized.
Herbal teas are blends of dried herbs and flowers, and don’t contain any camellia sinensis. You brew herbal tea te same way as other teas.
There are two different teas you can brew: tea bags or loose leaf. If you want a quick cup of tea, you could just pop a tea bag into your favorite cup, cover with boiling water, and wait a few minutes. This is fine if you are in a hurry and NEED a cup of tea right now, but you won’t find the same quality in a tea bag as you would with loose leaf tea.
If you want to really enjoy a cup of tea, you should think about brewing with loose leaf tea. Loose leaf tea can be found in tea shops and online stores. You can boil the water in a tea kettle and brew your tea in a tea pot for a more traditional cup of tea. A French press can also be used to brew tea. If all you want is a single cup of tea, you can buy cotton tea filters. The filters are reusable and, unlike tea balls, allow the tea leaves to bloom.