About Tea

Tealeaves are withered on
benches with circulating air.

Leaves dry and become supple

About Tea | agriculture commodities - commodity prices - food sciences | It is widely believed that tea was discovered in China, though it is also native to India and other tropical countries. Tea leaves are known by many names in many countries including Cha, Tcha, Chai, Te, and Tay etc. The English name "Tea" was probably derived from "Te" as used in one of the Chinese dialects.

Along with coffee and cocoa, tea is among very few sources of natural caffeine. It is an evergreen plant of the Camellia family. Three of the widely recognized varieties are from China, Assam and Cambodia. Tea never gained the status of a national drink in USA mainly due to the Boston Tea Party. However, with specialty teas becoming increasingly popular, the market is expected to grow at a brisk pace. "The U.S. tea industry had sales of under 1 billion in the 1980s, topped 4 billion in the mid-1990s and is postured for a record decade" (quotes Fresh Cup magazine December 2002). Unlike coffee, where most producing countries export the majority of their production, many tea-producing countries consume tea extensively.

History of Tea

Fermented leaves go thru the process after oven drying 
to stop fermentation at a desired stage

Legend has it that a Chinese emperor, Shen Nung, accidentally discovered tea in 2737 BC when a leaf of tea dropped into his bowl of hot water while he was in the garden near the tea tree. The emperor sniffed the fragrant brew, tasted it, and liked what he drank. Thus tea was discovered. The first mention of tea, however, is found in the Erh Ya-an ancient Chinese dictionary published around 350 BC.

Lu Yu, a renowned author in the time of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), wrote a treatise on tea called Ch'a Ching. His book says that sometimes onions, ginger, jujuke, orange peel and peppermint were boiled along with tea. The book also mentions the medicinal properties of tea. Buddhist monks brought tea from China to Japan. Tea's stimulating properties helped the monks to stay awake during meditation, which helped its spread in Japanese culture. Commercial cultivation did not start in Japan until the 12th century. Japan, unlike China, drank its tea ceremoniously. In China small farmers traditionally grew tea, and large traders bought the tea and transported it to distant countries. Laborers carrying 300 lb. of tea on their backs walked mountain passes at 6 miles per day and used opium packs on the back of their ears to deaden the pain from the heavy loads.

Though tea was introduced to Russia as early as 1618 by a Chinese ambassador, regular trade did not develop until the end of the 17th century. In the early 20th century it flourished with the Trans-Siberian railway.

In Europe tea was sold as a medicinal drink in the 1650s. Tea drinking really took hold when Catherine of Bragaza, a Portuguese princess, married Charles II in 1662. She brought tea and served it to friends at court. The tea started being served at what was called tea gardens all over London. Many of the tea gardens closed as people migrated to the suburbs in the 19th century. About the same time Anna, the Dutchess of Bedford, started serving tea and snacks to her afternoon guests. This started the fashion of afternoon teatime in Britain. Tea was associated with social functions and was served with great ceremony including the best porcelain tea wares. In the 1950s tea bags appeared and changed the way Britain brewed tea. The tea gardens and tea functions disappeared and were changed to fast food restaurants where tea was also being served. Tea remained popular in homes. In the 1980s a new trend developed where specialty shops started selling a variety of fine teas. The media took hold of the event and tea once again came into fashion and has kept up the momentum.

In North America, European settlers brought tea to the New World. The Dutch had brought tea to New Amsterdam before the British took the colony from the Dutch and renamed it New York. When the British government imposed a tax on many items in America and the famous 1773 Boston Tea Party made tea drinking unpatriotic, coffee came into favor. These political disagreements are long forgotten and Americans have again started enjoying tea. Ice tea and many other variations along with specialty fine loose tea have helped the industry to experience tremendous growth, which is expected to continue.

In India tea was a native plant and was grown and used by locals living in remote areas. It was in the late 18th century that East India Company started experimenting with growing tea in India. Until then all the tea for Europe came from China. The commercial production of tea was slow in developing because the use of Chinese plants, which were good for a colder climate, did not do as well in the low lands. The British were slow to recognize the indigenous plants and their commercial importance. However, when it looked like the Chinese might not renew their treaty with Britain in 1833, the British really became committed to growing tea in India. They then recognized the indigenous plants and commercial tea production took off in the Assam area. Private investors from Britain came to India to start tea plantations. Many forests were cut down and tea was planted. Tea cultivation came at great expense to the entrepreneurs, the environment and the labor they brought in from nearby Nepal. The weather and diseases like Malaria took their toll. A large number of Chinese laborers were brought in and later deported because they were "turbulent", "obstinate" and "rapacious". People from nearby districts in India were brought in and paid very low wages. Working conditions were harsh and inhumane. They worked long hours and their ranks were disseminated by disease. Any laborer that left the garden could be sent to prison. Absenteeism was punished by flogging. The laborers were underfed and lived in swampy, mosquito infested grounds and worked in the monsoon rains. About one third of the employees died on site. Women and children were subject to the same treatment. In 1869 when the Suez Canal opened and the advancement of railways came about, tea export increased tremendously. This encouraged tea production in many areas of India. Darjeeling in the foothills of the Himalayas produced one of the best and prized teas from Chinese varieties. Other places in the northeast of India as well as the hills of Nilgiri in south India produced tea, again at great expense to the environment and the people. India in a short time became the largest exporter of tea. The consumption of tea by local people also increased tremendously. The best teas are grown at elevations of 5000 to 6000 feet in Darjeeling in the north and in the Nilgiri hills in southern India.

Ceylon (Sri Lanka), the island south of India, has perfect growing conditions for fine teas with mountains as high as 6000 feet with ample rain and soil suited for tea. It is now the second largest tea exporter in the world. Tea was introduced to Ceylon much earlier but it was not until the coffee blight in 1869, which totally ruined the coffee economy, that people started planting tea. In a very short time tea production took over other crops and now accounts for one third of the total export of the country.

Tea is also grown and consumed in Africa, South America and other places, and the production is growing.

Processing of Tea Growing

Much work is being done in organic and biodynamic farming.
Large tea estates have been doing biodynamic farming for
some years now. There are Fair Trade certified estates
like Makaibary and Ambootia where workers have organized
for their community welfare and are paid directly by the
Fair Trade organization from the fees received from importers

Tea or Carmellia Sinesis, is a hardy, flowering evergreen tree that grows well in tropical and subtropical regions with plenty of rainfall. Young tea leaves, generally the top two leaves with a bud, are picked for processing into tea. If left alone, a tree can grow to 30-40 feet, but cultivated trees are usually pruned to stay at about 3 feet tall, for ease of picking. Shade trees are grown within the rows to provide a shade canopy. Tea trees can live and produce for as long as 100 years. It takes about 3 years for a seedling to mature, then the leaves can be plucked. Women with nimble fingers do most of the plucking. A skilled plucker can, in eight hours, harvest 50,000 stems, which weighs about 75 pounds and produces about 20 lbs. of manufactured tea. Each plant is plucked about every 5 to 7 days depending on the season. The quality of the final product greatly depends on the origin of the plant, soil conditions, altitude, pruning, weeding, fertilizing and rainfall. Tea trees are generally dormant in the wintertime, especially in the cooler, higher altitudes. Spring plucking produces gray-green, glazed appearing leaves and the final processed tea produces light, bright liquor. Summer's plucking gives purplish bloom and silver tipped leaves and the liquor has a rounded, mellow, and mature taste with more pronounced flavor and color. Monsoon season gives liquor with more color and stronger flavor, often used for breakfast blends. Autumn plucking gives liquor that is lighter with copper/brownish tinge and a delicate, sparkling taste.

White, Green, Oolong and Black Teas

Beautifully trimmed tea plantations look like the entire 
hill sides are carpeted. Tea plantations are called
tea gardens and you can see why

White, green, Oolong and black teas are all produced from the same plant using different processing methods. Fermenting the leaves to give it black color and stronger taste makes black tea. The freshly picked leaves are withered for 18-24 hours by passing dry air over them. This makes the leaves softer and some chemical reactions start taking place. In the orthodox method the leaves then go through machines that twist and break them to release the natural chemicals that react with oxygen during fermentation. In the newer process, called crush, tear and curl (CTC), the leaves are passed through a machine that crushes and breaks the leaves to release the natural chemicals. The leaves are then exposed to the atmosphere to oxidize or ferment. (This produces the dark leaves to get the liquor of strength, color and aroma associated with black tea.) The fermentation is stopped at the desired level by passing the leaves through hot drier- ovens, which reduce the moisture to about 3%. The leaves are then sorted and graded according to size.

White tea is made by plucking only the small, unopened leaf buds. They are then allowed to wither, allowing moisture to evaporate. This tea has a whitish green appearance and produces pale liquor.

Green tea is made by letting the fresh shoots dry for a couple of hours, followed by steaming or heating to stop any fermentation. They are then rolled and dried to produce green tea. China and Japan are the largest producers of green tea.

Oloong tea is made mainly in China and Taiwan. The leaves are processed immediately after plucking. The leaves are first wilted in the sun. Then the edges are brushed to release the natural chemicals from the leaves. The leaves then oxidize, or ferment.

Flavored and Scented Teas

Adding natural or artificial flavoring agents directly to the final tea product makes flavored teas; whereas scented teas are made by keeping the final dried tea in close proximity to natural or artificial aromatics. Teas naturally absorb aromas and pick up the scent of whatever is nearby.

Herb teas of Tinase: They are not teas at all but preparation of herbs.

Grading of Tea

Most exporters and large tea estates have offices 
in Calcutta where teas are auctioned and shipped
to importers all over the world. Here tea samples are
prepared for potential customers

Every tea is graded by the size of the leaves in the final product. Grading has nothing to do with flavor or taste or any other character. The final process of tea manufacturing, before packaging, is grading. The tea is separated into different sizes by passing it through various sieves. This is very important because during infusion the leaves of different sizes take a different amount of time to give the proper infusion. Thus, if small and large pieces and tea dust (called fannings or fines) are all infused together, the smaller particles are over extracted and the larger ones are under extracted.

There are three main divisions, namely leaf grade, broken and fannings. Each one is subdivided into many grades with complex terminology like fine flowering golden orange pekoe, or golden flowery broken orange pekoe or broken orange pekoe fanning, etc. Dust or fannings are generally used for teabags as they do not swell as much during infusion and brew faster.

Tea and Health

.It is said that tea started out as a medicinal drink. Ever since the seventeenth century when the use of tea spread, there have been speculations about good and harmful effects of tea on human health. The amount of caffeine in tea is about half of that in coffee.

Much research has proven the antioxidant properties of tea. This is helpful in combating premature aging. Recently it was found that regular intake of tea helps fight cavities by weakening the cavity causing bacteria streptococcus mutans. It is also shown that tea drinkers have a higher bone density. The flavonoids in tea seem to more than compensate for the effect of caffeine in calcium excretion. Tea is also believed to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Research conducted in the Netherlands showed that those who drank more than four cups of tea per day reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease by 69%. Green tea is also believed to help increase metabolism and help reduce weight. It is found that tea compounds fight cancer by inhibiting the cancer causing tnox enzyme.

One of the most effective ingredients of tea is probably its social aspect, which helps the mind, which in turn definitely has an effect on body functions. Tea preparation generally takes some time and the tea is usually consumed in congenial social or in a quiet home atmosphere.

FAQ

1. Why is Darjeeling tea expensive compared to others?
• An acre of land yields only 500 kg of dry tea in fine tea growing areas of Darjeeling, about a third of the yield of many non-specialty teas grown at lower elevations. Each bush yields only 100 grams of finished tea, the result of 20,000 individually handpicked leaves.
2. Why Organic tea?
• With the world economies and competition, tea estates have been trying to increase production by using synthetic chemical fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, rather than using the old method of shade grown tea with natural fertilizers and manpower for weeding. Both coffee and tea production are heavy users of synthetic chemicals, some of which are banned in industrialized countries. These chemicals are carcinogenic. The small farmers and laborers are not knowledgeable as to how to handle them safely. This regularly takes the lives of many farm workers. In the case of coffee it is believed that at least the consumers are protected because during roasting the high temperatures drive off most of these harmful chemicals. However, in the tea processing temperatures are not very high, so even the consumers are at risk. See link to organic farming and certified organic.
3. What is biodynamically grown tea?
• Biodynamic agriculture is different from just organic. It uses organic methods of agriculture plus cosmic energy to plant, harvest, and prepare natural fertilizers and pesticides. It was introduced by the German scientist Rudolph Steiner and is currently used by some of the forward-looking tea estates in Darjeeling in India. See link to biodynamic farming.
4. How to best prepare tea infusion:
• Heat the water to just below boiling, pour it over the leaves and let it seep for 4 to 6 minutes before straining. Green teas should be seeped for lesser time than black tea. Milk and sugar can be added as desired along with other spices.

Suggested Readings

Books

1. Tea by Jane Pettigrew PRC Publishing
2. The Tea Companion by Jane Pettigrew Quintet Publishing
3. Coffee and Tea by McCoy and Walker
4. Tea The Universal Drink by R.S. J Lawar UBS Publishers
5. The Story of Tea by E. Jarwant Paul Roli Books Pvt LTD
6. TTTA Tea Digest Calcutta Tea Traders Associatio
7. Socio-Economic Development of Plantation Workers in North East India by R.N. Chakravorty N.L. Publ.
8. The Himalayan Tea Plantation Workers by Kemraj Sharma N.L. Publishing
9. Social Dimensions of Health of Tea Plantation Workers in India by R.K. Bhadra, N.L. Publ.

Periodicals

1. Tea and Coffee Journal
2. Fresh Cup

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