White tea has caught the wide attention of tea lovers, nutritionists, and scientists. The countless studies indicating that white tea is abundant in anti-oxidants, anti-viral and anti-bacterial benefits, are leading more people to consume white tea. Along with the increasing demand, more brands and even tea producing countries are offering white tea. But it’s important to realize that you can find great variations quality one of the many brands that offer white tea products. Just how do someone distinguish the product quality and expense in the white tea they are buying? Bill Lee, tea master of China Flair Tea Company and founding father of the Institute of Masters of Tea Arts, explains the way to distinguish the grade of white tea by its most crucial aspect–taste.
Styles of White Tea
White tea is a group of tea created in many areas of China, Taiwan and countries for example India and Nepal. White tea gets its name through the beautiful silvery white down that covers the young leaf buds. However, to be viewed as a white tea it has to be processed based on the orthodox white tea method. That’s the reason silvery young leaf buds are also seen in other tea categories such as green teas and black teas, however they are not viewed as a white tea.
Essentially the most traditional and prized white tea comes from Zhenghe and Fuding counties in China’s southeastern province of Fujian. Traditional white teas from China are broken into several grades, each using a different name. Each grade represents the quantity of young leaf buds which can be included and if the lower leaves underneath the bud are incorporated. White teas with additional silver leaf buds are usually considered a finer grade. Are mainly the original grades of white tea by name:
o Bai Hao Yin Zhen (White Downy Silver Needles, or just Silver Needles) – made entirely of young silver leaf buds
o Bai Mu Dan (White Peony) – includes the young silver leaf bud and also the two lower leaves
o Shou Mei (Longevity Brows) also referred to as Gong Mei (Tribute Brows) – almost entirely composed of mature leaves, with few silver buds.
What they are Silver Needles, White Peony, and Shou Mei represent grades of white tea, however these names particularly indicate design for white tea, and never the specific quality of white tea. Each name only indicates the share of young silver buds and mature leaves which can be incorporated to generate that type of tea. Types of white tea with an increase of silver leaf buds and much less mature leaves can create a lighter flavour as well as a more delicate character. Incorporating old leaves will make a warmer and nuttier style.
The key reason why these styles are called grades happens because producing white tea with increased silver leaf buds requires higher costs. White teas like Silver Needles, that happen to be consists of 100% silver leaf buds, are therefore higher priced and regarded an increased grade.
So the issue of quality is not really in regards to the grade that people choose, nevertheless the actual tea we buy within that one grade. Organic beef choose to drink a White Peony because we love that style of white tea, but we have to distinguish its quality by comparing it along with other White Peony teas. Many brands now provide a white tea called White Peony, however the quality of White Peony provided by brand X is not necessarily the identical quality as brand Y. Factors that determine its quality including the period of harvest, age the trees, their environment, as well as the proper processing with the leaves are not indicated by its name.
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