How to choose loose leaf tea. Loose and granulated tea

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 finished product poured hot water , but how to do it without errors, read on.

History of black tea

The first mention of black loose leaf tea appeared in the 17th century. According to sources, it was delivered to Romanov Mikhail Fedorovich by a messenger from Mongolia. At that time, they did not know how to brew the leaves correctly. The king liked the slightly strange-tasting drink, and its deposits quickly evaporated. Tea was forgotten for almost 200 years, and only after 2 centuries he went to the masses, after which he was added to the army diet.

Compound

The chemical structure of tea leaves has been observed by scientists throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, but there is still no exact set of components. At present, scientists are more than a hundred useful components.

The main ones are:

Tannins make up approximately 13 of the total composition of the leaves. One of them is tannin, it gives a tart and strong taste.
Essential oils enhance fragrance 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 main vitamins included in the composition, 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.

Brewing black leaf tea:

Almost always, tea manufacturers write incomplete information on the packaging. And she is not always worth believing, for example, the same can be brewed with different temperatures water.

For maximum flavor and aroma you can not take iron utensils. Porcelain is ideal. To get a drink without bitterness, it is worth filling it in before the procedure begins hot water for 3-5 minutes. After the container is warmed up, put 1-2 tablespoons of tea leaves there;

When your kettle boils, let it stand for 7-10 minutes so that the water temperature drops to 80 degrees

Fill the dishes with tea leaves, and cover with a napkin, or a towel.
In 5 minutes your tea is ready.

When there is a mug, but no teapot.

Sometimes there is this problem: there is tea, there is water, there is nowhere to brew, what should I do? Edition 2tea found an original, and at the same time, a simple way to solve this problem.

We'll need a plastic cup or, for example, a yogurt box, tea itself and a mug.

We pierce holes as in the picture:

Then we lower it into a mug and lay the tea leaves there. Be careful, 80 degrees is still a lot, the plastic will melt!

In a thermos:

A feature of tea in a thermos is the fact that time which is required to brew less, but 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, put in a thermos and fill with water. Brewing time approximately 1-2 minutes. Tea is ready.

In the teapot:

Initially, we remove everything that may have a strong odor. Fish, perfume, pepper, etc. If you want a little citrus taste, can be together put a piece of lime with tea leaves. Have you put it down? Is the tea already inside? Now we fill it with hot water at about 80 degrees, as we remember, if the temperature is higher, then the drink will lose many of its beneficial features. There is important detail, so that the tea leaves are as tasty as possible, first fill in 1/4 of the teapot. Let this mass infuse for 4-7 minutes, then fill the remaining space with hot water.

Let's summarize:

There is nothing difficult in welding. The main thing to remember is just 3 rules:
good tea
Optimal water temperature
Proper utensils

We wish you health!

Tea connoisseurs prefer loose leaf tea. He possesses pleasant taste and aroma, has many useful properties. Most people cannot imagine a meal without tea. Between meals, they also drink tea, a cup of hot drink is conducive to pleasant communication, relaxation.

Useful properties of leaf tea

Leaf tea has a full spectrum of useful substances. Other types of tea are also useful, but due to the long machining most of them disappear. Tea leaves are not exactly suitable for brewing in the office, another place where tea needs to be brewed quickly. Therefore, people often prefer granulated or bagged tea. Such tea has undergone appropriate processing, which allows you to get a strong infusion, but this drink is unlikely to contain useful substances.

This tea is less tart, but it has bright taste and aroma. It is better to brew it when friends or relatives gathered at the table for tea drinking. The tea ceremony should be held in a leisurely, friendly atmosphere.

This tea has the following effects on the body:

normalizes metabolism, digestion, pressure;
replenishes strength, tones, improves well-being, relieves fatigue;
slows down the aging process;
quenches thirst;
supports immunity;
has antibacterial properties;
improves the condition of hair and skin.

Black leaf tea useful for people with diseases of the oral cavity, gout, peptic ulcer.

How to choose loose leaf tea

High quality tea made from tender tea buds and young leaves. Therefore, it is appreciated by true connoisseurs of an oriental drink. When choosing tea, you should pay attention to the packaging, it indicates the date of collection of the tea leaf, the date of packaging. If the packaging is marked "Ortodox", this means that the leaves were collected by hand, did not come into contact with mechanical equipment, passed natural fermentation. The drink is considered the most useful and tasty.

Loose tea packaging options

Small-leaf tea is the lowest grade, it is obtained from the remnants of production. The infusion is strong, quickly brewed, but its taste is inexpressive.
Medium leaf tea is obtained from broken and damaged tea raw materials. Tea leaves are filtered at the factory for this purpose. The infusion has a deep color and a pleasant aroma.
loose leaf tea consists of whole tea leaves that have passed all stages of processing. They are considered the most useful. They are sold in the form of twisted leaves without damage. The tea is medium in color and has a deep rich taste.

Signs of natural leaf tea

The taste of tea. It should be floral, nutty, milky, honey. After tea for a long time a pleasant aftertaste is retained.

Freshness of tea. The shelf life of tea should not exceed three years. The date of harvest must be indicated on the packaging of loose tea, as this affects the taste characteristics.

Aroma. Tea should not contain flavorings. Bright aroma should be retained when brewed even for the fifth time.

Leaf integrity. natural tea should have whole twisted leaves, without cuttings, debris, dust.

Tea color. The color should be natural: from silver-green to black.

Benefit for health. After drinking tea, you can feel relaxation or a surge of vigor and strength. This also speaks volumes about the quality of the tea.

Availability of certification.

Limited. High-quality leaf tea is harvested by hand, it is produced in small batches and has a high cost.

Rules for brewing leafy green tea

How to brew green and white teas, oolong? It is necessary to remember the rule: the more tender the tea variety, the shorter the brewing time and the lower the water temperature. Depending on the variety, the temperature ranges from 75 to 85 °. Brewing time from 30 seconds. Since oolong can be brewed up to seven times, the steeping time is gradually increased.

To prepare a drink, warmed teapot. It can be ceramic or glass. Green tea is poured into it, poured hot water. It turns out tea drink rich in nutrients.

Rules for brewing loose leaf black tea

Black tea is the most popular. Often it includes all types of black teas, ethnic drinks, Puer tea. How to brew such tea? The brewing temperature of such teas ranges from 85 to 100 °. For a 400 ml teapot, they usually take 4-7 g of tea. Tea already has saturated color, so you should not get involved in tea leaves.

Tea can be brewed 5-6 times, each time it will give a deep infusion and a lasting taste. Dry tea leaves are placed in the teapot, boiling water is immediately poured. The kettle is covered with a lid and left for five minutes. IN ready drink you can add cream, milk, sugar, honey to taste.

It would seem that even a child can brew such a common drink as tea. Given its popularity in the world and in Russia in particular, no one has long thought about whether we use tea correctly, whether we can really feel its full range of tastes and whether we do everything according to long-accepted canons. The “tea” that the majority of Russians drink is rather just a tea drink, and each one is different, as the population brews it at random. Suppose you received a really good, quality loose leaf tea in a gift box and don't know how to brew it properly. Here are the basic rules for brewing tea.

Green tea

It can be teas with and without additives, and this also includes White tea and ulun. Basic rule: the more tender this drink, the lower the water temperature and the shorter the brewing time. Usually this temperature is 60-75 degrees. Such tea is brewed from 30 seconds to 2.5 minutes - it depends on the characteristics of the tea and the time of brewing. With each time (and their number can reach 5-7 times), the brewing time increases, and the taste becomes more refined. In addition, in subsequent times, tea gives much more useful substances.

Black tea

This is perhaps the most popular tea. There are many more names of black teas, they include plain black tea and tea with additives, pu-erh, fruit, herbal and ethnic teas. They are brewed at a temperature of 85-95 degrees. On a teapot designed for 400 grams of tea, an average of 4-7 grams of tea is placed. It must be remembered that not everyone likes too much strong tea, so you don’t need to overdo it with welding. Such teas can be brewed up to 5 times.
Some more helpful tips

Between brewing, do not completely drain all the water, you need to leave a little so that the leaves are closed. This will keep the tea strong enough.

In China, the method of brewing tea in a tall glass is common. So most of the leaves will sink to the bottom, and the few that remain on the surface can simply be removed with a spoon. With this method of brewing, it is easier to assess the color and strength of tea.

Before brewing, it is customary to pour hot water over the teapot several times.

It is not difficult to find good enough tea now, any store is ready to provide an extensive selection of high-quality tea. In any, even a small city, there are at least a few specialized stores that can satisfy the taste of any gourmet. For example, the Valdi Tex St. Petersburg company is ready to provide several collections of loose, health, bagged tea, as well as tea with special ingredients in special Christmas gift packages, which will please any connoisseur.

Yakovleva Elena, especially for the site Best Recipes for you.

Green tea has replaced black tea and coffee. Without additives in the form of herbs and dried fruits, this tea is not as fragrant as its counterparts, but it has more beneficial properties. How to extract benefits from green tea and minimize harm? We would like to answer this question in this article.

The properties of green tea have been used for hundreds of years, but only in recent decades has scientifically proven the effectiveness of green tea from various diseases. It is important to use not only high-grade tea, but also to store and brew it properly.

In the right way, tea should be brewed in a special dish ...

What is green tea?

Green tea is the result of processing tea leaves with steam at a temperature of 170-180 degrees, then fermentation is possible for no longer than 2 days, which is completed forcibly by heating. When dry, the color of green tea varies from light green to dark green. The tea itself turns out to be light yellow, orange or greenish in color with a herbal note and a slightly tart taste. If tea has a bitter taste, then it Bad quality, overstayed or improperly brewed.

It is safer to use loose leaf tea of the highest quality. This is because green tea bags are waste. tea business basically tea dust. Even if packaged green tea is properly brewed in boiling water, it will not bring tangible health benefits.

In Asian countries, "brick" green tea is preferred, made from old leaves, branches and cut parts. "Bricks" contain at least 75% green leaves, thanks to which such tea stands out for its tart taste and can be stored for a long time.

The composition and beneficial properties of green tea

Green tea contains:

vitamin K;
minerals (fluorine, copper, iodine, manganese, chromium, zinc and selenium);
natural antioxidants (polyphenols);
caffeine;
tannin (vitamin B1);
riboflavin (vitamin B2);
nicotinic acid (vitamin PP).

Vitamin C boosts immunity, helps fight viruses and avoid illness. Tannin has a beneficial effect on the digestive process, supports stable work nervous system and has an antimicrobial effect. Vitamin B2 affects the elasticity of the skin, and B15 helps to penetrate into the body beneficial substances. Vitamin PP has an anti-allergic effect. But vitamin P is especially distinguished, which affects the strengthening of blood vessels.

Iodine affects work endocrine system, and fluorine will help to effectively fight caries in combination with other methods of treatment. Vitamin K affects blood clotting by promoting the formation of prothrombin in the blood. Natural antioxidants in green tea effectively remove radicals from the body, which is used in various diets and diseases. This is where green tea can be helpful. How to brew it correctly and for what diseases it benefits is discussed later in this article.

Benefits of green tea

Green tea can be used for prevention various problems and diseases. Green tea benefits:

vision;
cardiovascular system;
vessels of the brain;
hypotension, regulating blood pressure;
pregnant women with toxicosis, during lactation;
metabolic processes in the body, cleansing it of toxins;
digestive system;
nervous system;
the immune system;
teeth, whitening them;
diuretic system;
with diabetes;
with excess weight;
alcoholics, reducing the effect of a hangover - although these representatives of the animal world can only benefit from getting rid of a bad habit;
mammary and prostate gland (anti-cancer properties);
the body, uplifting and relieving stress.

In general, it should be noted that among the varieties of tea, green is second only to its useful properties, which retains more healing substances in the composition due to minimal processing and fermentation.

For effective effects of green tea on the body, it should be consumed regularly, an average of 2 cups per day. But no more than 4 glasses of green tea per day. Pregnant women should alternate drinking green tea with other healthy drinks- compote, fruit drinks.

In order not to destroy the beneficial properties of green tea, it is important to know how to brew it correctly. To do this, it is necessary to monitor the quality of all components involved in the brewing process:

Water - filtered or drinking non-carbonated, brought to a boil of 100 degrees. But it is better to brew green with slightly cooled boiling water - 80-85 degrees.
Kettle for brewing - ceramic (porcelain) dishes are used with thick walls that keep longer desired temperature. It must be with a lid on top and on the spout. Before use, it is poured with boiling water inside and out to warm up, and only then green tea is put.
tea leaves - High Quality, a reliable supplier and are located in right conditions storage. Transfer to the teapot only with a dry and clean spoon. Before brewing, rinse the leaves with boiling water in a teapot, and only then pour boiling water over them.
Brewing time - depends on the variety of green tea leaves. Large-leaf tea takes longer to brew than small-leaf tea. The average brewing time is 10-15 minutes if tea is planned for a large number of people and dilution of tea in glasses. If it is brewed only for a family or a couple, then it is infused for no more than 5 minutes, and it is not diluted in glasses.
Proportions - 1 teaspoon of green tea leaves per 1 cup, about 200 ml in volume. When drinking tea for a large number of people, 1 more spoon is added on top of the norm.
Additional components - lemon, sugar, milk. Especially popular is the addition of milk to green tea during pregnancy and lactation, such tea regulates the pressure of a pregnant woman, cleanses her body and supplies some of the necessary nutrients. The warm liquid itself stimulates milk production, and the combination of milk with tea provides an increase in lactation.

Harm of green tea

Green tea may not be beneficial, but harmful in cases of violation of the storage rules or the brewing method. Therefore, when buying, pay attention to the leaves, they should be of a light shade. If they are broken, with a nondescript and dull color, this indicates a long shelf life. This tea should not be used.

When brewing, the main mistake can be the ingress of unboiled water into the tea tincture. This will spoil the tea and may cause stomach problems. You can not drink strong brewed tea on an empty stomach, during the period of exacerbation of diseases, tone and the threat of miscarriage. The limits on the time of brewing tea should be observed, too strong tea can cause insomnia or nervous tension.

You can not drink green tea medicines, as it does not contribute to their absorption. Do not use stale tea leaves or leftover tea from yesterday morning. You should follow the rules for storing it - in a wooden box or in glass jar with tight closed lid. This is what green tea can be, the benefits and harms of which are discussed in this article.

Still, you should not abuse the beneficial properties of green tea, drink it a few hours before meals, and not on an empty stomach in the morning. Regular use properly brewed green tea, both men and women, will benefit. It is strongly recommended that you do not overdo it and limit yourself to 1 cup of green tea per day during pregnancy or serious chronic diseases.

What's wrong with tea bags? Is it made from the same tea leaves as the loose leaf? What are the benefits of tea bags? And why does he lose to the sheet - or maybe not? We understand these and other issues together with tea expert Viktor Enin and Stefan Quack, head of the international cooperation service of the German company Teekanne, which has been producing loose and bagged tea since 1882 and sells it to more than 50 countries around the world.

The phrase "ground tea" - namely, such tea is produced in bags - initially has a negative connotation and does not sound like a designation of what we would like to buy.

IN this case you can talk about a false understanding of things. Few people know how tea bags are actually made. People know that it is called “ground”, “remains from the production of “other” tea”, and “is bound to be of poor quality”.

If you want a small portion, and a tea bag means small portions, then you need finely ground tea, as it gives more rich taste and placed in a bag.

The composition of the tea bag

When you brew loose leaf tea, you see the tea leaf. In the tea bag, the leaf is ground, you can't recognize it - it could be anything.

Consumers are often unaware that a tea bag is a mixture of several teas from different regions and plantations. Sometimes there can be four or five in one tea bag. different ingredients- varieties of tea. If you give the tea expert five different tea bags, he can tell you what's inside. It can be a mixture of Ceylonese, Chinese and Indian tea. It is difficult for a non-professional to determine the difference between one tea bag and another, so trust in the company and its authority play a very important role.

What is tea blend used for? By mixing different types of tea, you get a stable result, and this is the main thing for a branded product. When our company first started, in the 1880s, people bought tea from the plantation as it came: today it could be better, tomorrow it could be worse. Then the company came up with an idea to compensate for the instability of the quality of tea by mixing different varieties. And the formula is constantly changing, as production is still unstable: today a tea bag can contain 30% assam, and yesterday it was 25%, because, for example, there was more Ceylon, and today it is less. But you won't feel the difference. Color, taste and aroma will remain the same.

About the quality of tea

Quality is more likely to suffer with tea in a tea bag than with loose leaves - I will now explain why.

One tea bag usually contains 2 grams of tea. Someone buys high-quality tea, travels to plantations, controls the process, buys tea directly from the manufacturer, and someone does not.

In a tea bag can put 1 gram really good tea, which gives taste, and another gram - we call it a filler - relatively speaking, garbage that we do not notice. This is also tea, it's just of poor quality - and it depends primarily not on the leaf, but on the region of growth. For example, the second gram may be tea from Argentina, Georgia, Turkey - a different climate, different ingredients, different oils. The collection method also matters: handmade it costs more, as it is more laborious and takes more time, and, for example, on the same Argentine plantations, tea is in most cases harvested by machines. But if you are a company that values its reputation, then you will not use such tea.

We produce such tea, but not for our own company, but for retailers who are not able to pay big money. For comparison: our tea costs 2.5 euros; the one sold by retailers is 80 cents. They cannot be of the same quality.

The younger the leaf, the juicier it is, which means that the fermentation process will go well. Tips - leaf buds - the most delicate component in the tea mixture, but they are not used for tea bags, because in this case, when crushed, they will lose all their meaning and you simply will not feel them.

Loose tea and tea bags can be made from the same tea. One sheet is crushed into leaves of different sizes, then the machine separates them with a sieve, and then they go to different products. Smaller particles, due to the larger area of contact with hot water, release their taste and aroma faster. Due to what? When the leaf is cut, it releases juice, and the more small leaves it turns out, the larger the oxidation area will be and the stronger the tea will be in the end. In a tea bag, the tea should be saturated because it is designed for one cup, that is, 200 milliliters of water.

About green and black tea

Since oxidation occurs in air, and after drying, there is no juice in green tea, respectively, and there is nothing to oxidize, so the fermentation process does not begin. Fermentation under hot water (not in air), close to the boiling point, also cannot start in any way. But the longer the tea is brewed, the more substances from the leaf pass into the water, so the drink turns out to be richer, bitterer and darker. With black tea, there will be no such reaction, since the fermentation process has already taken place. Does the tea leaf lose its beneficial properties, minerals and vitamins during the fermentation process? It occurs at a temperature of 60 degrees, so it can kill some elements (perhaps because of this it is commonly believed that green tea more useful than black), but a small amount, not so much that the difference is noticeable.

Aroma

I have not heard of manufacturers adding artificial color to tea. What you can do is to choose the composition of the ingredients that will give color. For example, hibiscus - it gives a very strong red color.

There are people who say that they only buy loose leaf tea: “I go to tea shops and choose tea from large jars.” People inhale the aroma and think it comes from the fruits, flowers, or herbs in the tea. In fact, the fragrance is not from there, but from a spray that you cannot see. It could be like natural flavors - essential oils, for example, bergamot, orange, lemon - and artificial, identical to natural ones. They are used in the event that natural is not enough.

The main differences between loose and bagged tea

A quality tea bag is just as good as a quality loose leaf. The difference is that they give different results in your cup.

Leaf tea is lighter, and tea bags are very strong, with high content tannins (tannins). It brews quickly and can be bitter if you brew it longer than the allotted time. You should not neglect the rules and keep the tea bag in the cup for 10 minutes - I usually do not brew for more than two minutes.

Leaf tea is brewed to a certain strength, and that's it - after that it does not become very strong and bitter. Since it is lighter, brewing is more complex, and due to this, more fragrant. It's like with perfume: if you overdo it, it can kill on the spot, it will be difficult to recognize the nuances of the smell, and you can savor a light aroma and find new facets every time. Therefore, leaf tea is more suitable for a relaxing pastime; this is not the tea you drink while you work.

As for the oil film that can form on the surface of tea in a cup, this is not an indicator of the quality of the tea, but of the quality of the water. A film forms if the water is hard.

Price

Why is loose tea more expensive than tea bags? The world does not yet grow enough loose leaf tea, and its extract is not rich enough. And then, let's count. 100 grams of loose leaf tea is 8 grams per cup, which is 12–13 cups (because the tea is less strong, more is needed). 100 grams of tea bags is a minimum of 50 tea bags, that is, 50 cups. Therefore, leaf tea is rather an exclusive product, if, of course, we are talking about high-quality tea.

The quality of tea poured into bags is limited technological features this method of selling and brewing tea. It also reflects the marketing calculation of tea bag producers in accordance with the known parameters of demand from the outside. target audience product.

A tea leaf crushed into dust quickly loses its freshness and taste due to oxidation by the surrounding air. A small dosage (about 2 grams per sachet), even if not very long-term storage, leads to the loss of almost all valuable qualities tea - the oxidation surface is many times greater than that of whole leaf tea.

In other words, it simply does not make sense to pack high quality tea in bags - all valuable properties it will lose during storage, and the increase in cost when using more expensive raw materials will not be appreciated by the target audience.