Loose tea is a drink of real gourmets and connoisseurs of tea ceremonies. The drink has useful properties, pleasant aroma and taste. Most people cannot imagine a meal without a cup of tea. A high-quality product calms, relieves stress and fills the body with energy when tired.
Production technology
Tea leaves go through several stages of production, the first of which is the cultivation and preparation of raw materials. Product Manufacturing Steps:
- Harvesting. Top leaves are needed; those that grow slower produce tea with a more intense aroma.
- Selection, sorting. Raw materials are screened to prevent dust, debris and damaged leaves from entering the bulk.
- Wilting. Gentle drying contributes to the destruction of chlorophyll and the loss of a certain amount of moisture. All types of leaf tea are subjected to this process, after which the raw materials become more elastic, guaranteeing a high-quality passage of the following stages.
- Twisting. This process gives the gulls the necessary shape, prepares them for fermentation, and forms a flavor. All types of leaf tea are twisted except white.
- Fermentation. At that stage, the raw materials are in special cabinets or in a room with optimal moisture and temperature. Fermentation affects the flavor and color of the product.
- Drying. The leaves should have a minimum of moisture so that they do not deteriorate quickly, but also not completely dry.
- Sorting. Raw materials are carefully selected, after which the company hosts a tasting of the drink.
- Packaging. Most often, tea is placed in semi-rigid or soft bags of 25-250 g. It is allowed to pack up to 1.5 kg for industrial purposes.
Such technology will help to create a good product with a pleasant taste and beautiful color.
Varieties of leaf tea
By the type of bush, these types of leaf tea are distinguished:
- Chinese - Oolong, Yunnan, Japanese, Darjeeling, Georgian, Vietnamese, etc.,
- Assamese - Indian, Ceylon, Kenyan, Ugandan, etc.,
- Hybrid (Cambodian) - a mixture of different types of tea that are grown in the southeastern part of Asia.
By origin, the tea product is divided into Chinese, Indian, Ceylon, Japanese, Indochinese, African and Turkish. According to the duration and method of oxidation, a highly oxidized and slightly acidified (unoxidized) drink is noted.
Ways of packing leaf tea:
- small leaf - the most low-grade product made from residues. The drink is brewed quickly and strong, but the taste is inexpressive,
- midleaf - made from damaged or broken leaves that are filtered at the factory. Tea has a pleasant smell and deep color,
- large leaf - has whole tea tree leaves that have successfully passed all stages of processing. This is the most useful product, when it is brewed, a deep taste and medium color are obtained. Tea is sold in the form of whole twisted leaves.
These are the main methods of packaging and varieties of leaf tea, which should be considered when buying it.
Large and intact dry leaves are the key to a high-quality tea product.
Useful properties of leaf tea
Natural leaf tea positively affects the entire human body. Useful properties are maximally preserved compared to other types of product that lend themselves to prolonged heat treatment. Leaves are not too convenient to brew where you want to quickly prepare a drink.
Tea has a pleasant taste and aroma. Most often, he brews in the circle of friends or relatives. Basic properties:
- slowing down the aging process,
- normalization of pressure, metabolism,
- strengthening protective functions,
- quenching thirst
- improvement of skin, hair, nails,
- antibacterial effect
- fight against fatigue, drowsiness,
- restoration of the digestive tract.
Black tea helps to cope with manifestations of gout, peptic ulcer and diseases of the oral cavity.
Green leaf tea
There are some rules for brewing oolong tea, white and green leaf tea. It is worth remembering that the more tender the variety of the product, the lower the temperature of the water should be and the shorter the brewing time. Depending on the type, the brewing time is from 30 seconds, and the temperature is 75-85 degrees. Oolong can be filled with water up to 7 times, increasing the time of infusion.
To make green tea, you must first warm the teapot. It is better to take dishes made of glass or ceramic. Tea is placed inside, filled with hot water. The drink is tasty and healthy.
Black loose tea
Black tea is the most popular drink, which is consumed both hot and cold. It includes Puer and all kinds of black teas. Proper brewing includes water temperature - 85-100 degrees. For two cups, you need to take from 4 to 7 g of tea raw materials, depending on the degree of strength.
Quality tea can be steamed up to 6 times without losing deep taste. Tea leaves are poured into the teapot in a dry form, everything is poured with steep boiling water. The dishes should be covered with a lid and let it brew for about 5 minutes. If desired, honey, sugar, milk, cream, spices are added to the finished tea.
Features of natural loose tea
High-quality loose tea has several characteristics by which it must be bought. The main selection criteria:
- the taste of the drink with honey, walnut, floral and milk notes. After its application, a pleasant aftertaste remains,
- natural flavor remains even after the third steaming, there are no flavors in tea,
- freshness of raw materials is maintained for three years after the collection of leaves and affects the taste,
- the color of the drink without dyes - from light green to black,
- in the package must be twisted whole leaves without impurities, dust,
Expensive tea is considered better because it is harvested by hand and you can count on high quality production.
Any high-quality tea has certification, which indicates compliance with the manufacture of products.
Black tea
Black and green tea is made from leaves collected from a single tea bush - just black tea is fermented longer. Sheet Black tea - The highest quality, and it is produced in India: the areas in which it is grown are called Darjeeling and Assam - under these names the best black large-leaf teas are known throughout the world.
Tea is a delicious, popular drink, a constant companion of each of us. It does not depend on the time of year, time of day, life circumstances. We drink it alone to pass the time and be alone with our own thoughts, at a business meeting, to set up the conversation in the right way, in the family circle to create a special warm atmosphere and just like that in a noisy company of friends. Do not forget about the incredible benefits of this drink.
Leaves that are fully fermented are called black tea. The color of the drink is brown, dark gray or burgundy. Proper brewing is one of the most important steps in preparing for a meal. Almost always already the finished product is poured with hot water, but how to do it without errors, read on.
The most expensive black tea - Darjeeling: buying it, you need to be careful and avoid fakes - the packaging must always indicate the time of harvest, the place where the tea is grown, the age of the tea bush. Darjeeling's color, if brewed, will be lighter than other black tea varieties, and it is less strong, but very fragrant and fragrant, with a faint smell of flowers and almonds.
Green varieties are especially appreciated. How to make green tea? Proper preparation is an important requirement for obtaining a drink with maximum disclosure and preservation of valuable taste, aromatic, health-improving properties.
There are many varieties of green tea. Cooking any of them seems an elementary task. But there is another side. In the process of brewing, it is important to get aromatic and tasty colored water. The main goal is to reveal the distinctive features of each of the varieties.
At the same time, it is impossible to take into account the features of a wide range and to create a universal universal full-fledged brewing algorithm. Some nuances are determined solely by the type of product. These include:
Regarding how to brew green tea, a number of generalized aspects can be distinguished. But they may differ from the manufacturer's recommendations for a specific type of product. In the case of such "disagreements," one should focus on the latter.
The optimal amount is a teaspoon per one serving.
The history of black tea
The first mention of black leaf tea appeared in the 17th century. If you believe the sources, then he was delivered to Romanov by Mikhail Fedorovich as a messenger from Mongolia. At that time, they did not know how to brew the leaves correctly. The tsar liked the slightly strange taste, and his deposits quickly evaporated. They forgot about tea for almost 200 years, and only after 2 centuries he went to the masses, after which he was added to the army diet.
Assam - a very different black tea. It is not as fragrant as Darjeeling, and much stronger, its color is dark, reddish or orange, and it smells slightly of malt. Assam is rarely sold in its pure form - more often it is mixed with other types of tea. The British love Assam very much: they consider it English, and call it classic, and usually drink it in the morning or at lunch - it is Assam who is included in the famous English Breakfast blend - English Breakfast Tea.
The aspect affects the concentration of the tea drink. Another important point is the tonic effect. If there is a desire / need to quickly cheer up, you should not hold the variety for a long time, one minute is enough for a leaf. A longer insistence makes this property less pronounced, but longer.
The chemical structure of tea leaves under the supervision of scientists throughout the entire 20-21 century, but there is still no exact set of components. At the moment, scientists count More than one hundred useful components.
The main ones are:
- Tannins make up approximately 13 of the total composition of the leaves. One of them is tanninIt gives a tart and strong taste.
- Essential oils enhance aroma, but it is worth remembering that they dissolve with improper brewing.
- Alkaloids give the body a tonic effect, so some varieties of tea can act no worse than coffee.
The composition and benefits of black tea
The composition of black tea is very complex - it contains about 300 different components, but its most important parts are substances that form several groups: these are tannins, amino acids, alkaloids, pigments, essential oils and vitamins.
It would take a long time to talk about all the basic substances of tea, but it’s worthwhile to dwell on vitamins in more detail, especially since most people who drink tea are unaware of its vitamin “richness”.
There is carotene in black tea, from which vitamin A is formed in the body - everyone knows about the importance of this vitamin: when there is a shortage of it, bones are not formed correctly, mucous membranes and skin suffer, fat metabolism and pancreas function are impaired, and vision deteriorates. Malfunctions of the endocrine system lead to skin diseases, immunity is reduced, so black tea should not be neglected - of course, it should be brewed correctly.
The indicators characterizing the infusion time and the number of infusions, it is difficult to standardize. The reasons for this:
Regarding the use of water, several recommendations can be made:
- Possible temperature conditions are 80 (maximum 90) degrees Celsius. At lower rates, tea leaves will not be able to reveal all its properties, and at higher rates it will open and partially lose.
- Water must be clean. The best option is a spring. If there is only tap water, then it must be allowed to stand before use.
The main vitamins that make up are: B, K, A, C, P. Due to the large amount of vitamin P, it is produced industrially as a means of strengthening the cardiovascular system.
We brew black leaf tea:
Almost always, tea manufacturers do not write full information on the packaging. And she doesn’t always have to believe, for example, the same kind of tea can be brewed with different water temperatures.
For maximum taste and aroma Do not take iron dishes. Porcelain is perfect. To get a drink without bitterness, it is worth pouring it before the procedure hot water for 3-5 minutes. After the container is warmed up, put 1-2 tablespoons of tea leaves,
Pour in tea leaves and cover with a napkin, or a towel.
After 5 minutes, your tea is ready.
Sometimes there is such a problem: there is tea, there is water, there is no place to brew, what should I do? Revision 2tea found an original, and at the same time an easy way to solve this problem.
We will need a plastic cup or, for example, a yogurt box, tea itself and a mug.
A lot of black tea and B vitamins: this is thiamine, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, vitamin PP - nicotinic acid, so tea is useful for diabetes, gout, stomach ulcers, serious liver diseases, disorders of the nervous system, skin problems and a tendency to allergic reactions.
It is necessary to stop using dishes that hold heat well. The ubiquitous possible options are teapots made of clay and porcelain. They should not be infused with odors. The ideal situation is to use one teapot for one type of tea.
The use of chemical detergents is contraindicated. An alternative is plain soda. But the brown tea film on the walls of the kettle is not bad at all. Outwardly, it does not look attractive and can confuse those who are not familiar with the technology of proper preparation of green tea. But such a film protects the drink from interaction with external factors.
We puncture holes as in the figure:
Then we lower it into the mug and put the tea leaves there. Be careful, 80 degrees are still a lot, the plastic will melt!
The peculiarity of tea in a thermos is the fact that time which is required for brewing lessbut the drink is much stronger. To slightly reduce astringency and bitterness, we recommend adding a spoonful of honey. The procedure is simple, take 2 tablespoons of leaves, throw in a thermos and fill with water. Brewing time approximately 1-2 minutes. Tea is ready.
Vitamin C in black tea is also there., although it is not so much: if it could be preserved during processing, tea would be one of the champions in its content - a fresh tea leaf contains it several times more than citrus fruits.
However, the first place among the "tea" vitamins is vitamin Pcalled rutin, although this substance is a whole complex of plant bioflavonoids. The biological significance of vitamin P is enormous: it actively protects cells from free radicals, and even restores the structure of damaged cells, thus slowing down the aging process and increasing the overall stability of the body.
Proper preparation of a leaf variety will help us by performing the following sequence of actions:
- warm water
- pour teapot over with hot water,
- add tea leaves in the required quantity,
- fill with water and immediately drain (this will allow to “awaken” the tea leaves and get rid of possible pollution),
- refill with water
- let it brew for the required amount of time,
- pour into cups.
The latter is recommended to preheat. There are several ways to do this:
- over the fire
- in the microwave / oven,
- by rinsing with boiling water (a common and obvious way), etc.
Number of brews
High quality green tea can be brewed up to seven times (the amount depends on the properties of the tea leaves). Each time, noticeable changes in its properties are manifested. The first use reveals the greatest aroma, the second - the greatest benefit, with each subsequent - the taste is brighter. The brewing time should be gradually increased.
Initially, we remove all that may have a pungent odor. Fish, perfume, pepper, etc. If you want a slightly citrus flavor, you can together with tea leaves put a slice of lime. Put it down? Is tea already inside? Now fill it with hot water about 80 degrees, as we remember, if the temperature is higher, the drink will lose many of its beneficial properties. There is an important detail here, so that the tea leaves turn out to be as tasty as possible, first fill in 1/4 teapot. Let this mass infuse for 4-7 minutes, then fill in the remaining place with hot water.
The most important property of vitamin P is capillary-strengthening: it maintains the strength and elasticity of blood vessels, prevents the development of atherosclerosis and maintains normal blood pressure, if vitamin P is always sufficient, blood circulation will be normal, and varicose disease will not develop. Together with vitamin C, vitamin P prevents the molecules of hyaluronic acid from breaking down: this acid connects the cells of blood vessels - that is why the permeability of capillaries decreases, and they become stronger.
Возможность повторного использования не подразумевает хранение «отработанного» сырья. С течением времени (уже через два часа) оно начинает накапливать вредные свойства.
Contraindications
Even compliance with all recommendations for brewing green tea does not allow to neglect a number of contraindications. As a result of many years of research and experiments, bans on the use of the drink in question have been established:
To summarize:
In welding there is nothing complicated. The main thing to remember is only 3 rules:
Good tea
Optimal water temperature
Proper utensils
The bioflavonoids that are part of vitamin P strengthen our immunity, strengthening the protection against infections - they have antibacterial activity, the antioxidant activity of other bioflavonoids - for example, quercetin, provides cells with protection against cancer - regular use of good black tea can even slow down the pathological processes in blood cancer and the mammary gland.
Under the influence of bioflavonoids, substances provoking allergic reactions cease to be produced in the body, so black tea relieves allergic edema and eases bronchial asthma.
I must say that the content of vitamin P Black tea occupies one of the leading places: it is much more in it than in buckwheat, and buckwheat has long been considered one of its main sources. Drinking 2-3 cups of properly brewed tea a day, we get a daily intake of vitamin R.
Vitamin K is also important to us. - it provides normal blood coagulation, and in black tea it is also there, essential oils, which are also abundant in tea, have a calming effect on our nervous system. The most amazing feature of tea is that it tones and soothes at the same time: it is not for nothing that they say - “drink tea and calm down”, or “drink tea, cheer up!” - both of these are true.
How to brew black tea
All the healing properties of tea described above and its healing effect on the body are preserved only if it is used correctly. First of all, black tea must learn to brew properly - This is not such a simple process as it seems, although there is nothing complicated in it either.
The teapot intended for brewing must be washed cleanly, rinsed with water and dried. Water for tea is boiled over low heat - do not add water to the kettle with the remaining boiling water - all the water should be fresh: as soon as the water begins to boil - it becomes slightly cloudy, whitens and small bubbles form, the kettle must be removed from the stove and wait - the water should cool at least up to 65 ° C.
The dried kettle for brewing is rinsed 3-4 times with fresh boiling water, and put in it dry leaf Black tea - as many spoons as there are cups in it, and add 1 more spoon. For example, if the kettle’s volume is 5 cups of water, 6 tsp should be put in it. tea - with this ratio, the strength of tea will be average. It is not necessary to quickly pour tea with boiling water - let it lie in the teapot for about a minute, and only then pour water at a temperature of about 63 ° C into the teapot, quickly cover it with a lid and cover it with a napkin - the nose should also be covered. You can insist on quality black tea for no more than 5 minutes: after about 3 minutes, remove the napkin, open the lid and add boiling water so that the water does not reach the lid a little, then close the lid and napkin again, and after 2 minutes add boiling water to the top. This method of pouring allows you to slow down the process of cooling water in the kettle.
During this process, as a rule, a foam appears on the tea: it is not necessary to remove it - it is all the useful and valuable that is concentrated in it, so it is better to let it fall into the cup - so that everyone suffices, just froth this foam in a teapot with a spoon.
