Tea Snobbery for Beginners, Part 3

Alright future snob, you gotta pay attention here. All this tea business is complicated and too weighty for some to grasp, but not for you because you understand that snobbery costs, but pays off in the end.

This will tell you a little about black tea in all its gloriousness.

Black tea is certainly one of the most intriguing beverages on the market today. It comes in a variety of forms and flavors, making it popular among people around the world.

Deep background

All black tea (and green tea and white tea too!) comes from an evergreen perennial plant, Camellia sinensis. The tea plant can grow as high as 40 feet, but it is typically maintained at two to three feet.

Black tea tends to vary in color from a shade of reddish brown to black. Interestingly enough, as black tea ages, it often becomes even more flavorful.

In order to store black tea, you should place it in a location that is ventilated well, but you don't really have to worry about the temperature of the location.

In general, black tea is formed into cakes that can be round, square, or tube-like. How black tea smells and tastes may depend largely on the location in which it was harvested.

As a result, scent and flavor may vary significantly from region to region. Black tea is known for its therapeutic benefits.

For instance, fans of black tea in China tend to have little problem with cancer or other degenerative illnesses. In fact, they may have better overall health than non-tea drinkers.

Because of its presence of caffeine, black tea can stimulate the central nervous system and the heart, while increasing the output of urine from the kidneys because of its diuretic nature.

A typical cup of black tea possesses 50 milligrams of caffeine. Other components of black tea include polyphenols, tannin, trace elements, and vitamins.

The various varieties of black tea are determined by the region or district in which they're grown, the form, and the processing method. It was introduced to the West in the 6th century.

The fad caught on and by the 18th century, tea was a beverage of choice in England. In fact, each day at 5 p.m., chances are you'll find legions of Britons sipping a spot of tea.

What makes black tea different?

Even though all tea comes from the same plant, it's the fermentation that changes everything.

Through the fermentation procedure, tea leaves take on a red color, then turn black after they have been dried.

In sharp contrast, green tea does not undergo fermentation, but instead is heat-treated, enabling it to maintain its distinctive green coloring.

We don't know why the Chinese started fermenting tea. One theory is that they did it to store it for a long time. In any case, fermentation helps to giveblack tea its unique taste.

Because of the variety of ways you can serve black tea, it is often highly favored over other forms of tea.

Preparation methods

Since tea is super easy to make, I wasn't gonna add a section on this, cuz all you need is tea and water, but apparently people around the world do it differently.

In India, black tea is often steeped with a combination of milk and hot water. In Great Britain and the rest of the United Kingdom, tea tends to be stepped quite strong, with milk or a sweetener such as sugar or honey added to enhance the taste.

In the United States, it's quite popular to microwave a cup of cold water in order to brew tea. Damn, we're lazy! At least we are opting for loose tea over bagged tea nowadays.

Origins matter

While harvesting and plucking times make a difference in the taste of tea, the thing that makes the biggest difference is where it's from.

The soil, climate and landscape all affect the flavor, which means different regions produce teas with distinct characteristics.

A large proportion of the world's tea comes from China, although you can now buy varieties from South America, Turkey and Nepal as well as India and Africa.

Unblended teas are also quite popular-such teas are known by the term "single estate teas." Single-estate teas are usually named after the province or area where they are grown.

Here are just a few of the better-known black teas:

Africa

Around a third of the world's tea now comes from Africa, from countries like Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Kenyan teas are highly bright and colorful, with a pleasant flavor.

Although tea has only been grown in Africa since around 1900, the climate and advances in scientific know-how mean that African teas are used in many of the more common blends available today.

Be adventurous and try some teas from around the world. You'll be pleasantly surprised to discover new flavors and you may just find your new favorite tea.

Indian Sub-Continent

The most famous Indian tea is Assam, a full bodied and strong tea with a particularly malty taste.

This is often drunk in the morning as a wake up brew! Darjeeling, from the foothills of the Himalayas, is often considered the 'champagne' of teas - with a light and delicate flavor.

Sri Lanka gives us Ceylon tea, known for a clean and bright, full bodied taste. Because of the unique climate in Sri Lanka, tea can be grown year round.

If you prefer a lighter tea, the Indian Nilgiri may be best. However, be aware of the fact that Nilgiri requires expert steeping in order to achieve the right flavor.

China

Lapsang Souchong is probably the best known Chinese tea.

Lapsang has an aromatic, smoky taste from the pine wood fires used to dry the leaves.

Yunnan is another well known tea, from the southwest of China. It has a rich, malty flavor and blends well with milk.

Keemun tea produces a rich brown color with a delicate nutty flavor, and is made with great skill and discipline, the leaves dried without breakage to preserve the flavor.

For a Chinese tea with a little bit of a kick, try Yunnan, which offers a hint of pepper.

Pardon the dust...Grading black tea

This is kinda complicated, but in this example we'll use black Pekoe and all its variants. Black teas are classified according to their grading.

For instance, (plain) Pekoe is a black tea that is derived from medium plucking of the second leaf of the tea bush. "Pekoe" comes from the Chinese word for "white hair." (The Chinese called it Pekoe because early tea pluckings look like white downy fur.)

Other types of Pekoe:

Broken Pekoe consists of broken portions of a coarse leaf without the tips.

Orange Pekoe has a leaf ranging in size from eight to 15 millimeters with only a few tips.

Flowery Pekoe is a black tea with a whole leaf that has been rolled lengthwise.

Broken Orange Pekoe is a smaller leaf tea that has broken segments but a number of tips.

Flowery Orange Pekoemay consist of a whole leaf or broken leaf with a great deal of tip, causing it to have a particularly fine quality.

In order to be prepared for market, the graded tea leaf is placed into plywood chests which have been lined with aluminum paper.

Other terms

Fannings--Fannings consist of small grainy leaf particles which have been taken out of higher grade teas.

Dust--The term "dust" refers to the smallest particle leaf size which is customarily utilized for tea bag teas.

Smells good

Black tea may also be specially flavored or scented. These teas are often produced from standard-grade teas that have been accented with flowers, flavored oils, or flavored crystals.

Interestingly enough, there can be incredible differences in teas according to the quality and the flavoring.

Typically, teas that are derived from natural flavoring techniques create the most flavorful teas. Some teas are so aromatic that they are reminiscent of perfume.

Originally here: http://www.squidoo.com/black_tea