Tea is many things to many people, but at its most basic definition tea is the leaves of the camellia sinensis plant brewed in hot water and consumed the world over for its pleasing aroma, flavor, and health benefits.
You may be wondering how it can be that all teas come from the same camellia sinensis plant when green tea and black tea are so different in character. This difference is owed entirely to different processing and centuries of tradition. Keep scrolling for the differences between types of tea and links to deep dives into each of your favorite types of tea.
Traditional Tea
White tea is the least handled of all the types of tea and is the first picked tea of the spring. Usually white teas are comprised of the first, downy buds of the camellia sinensis plant and perhaps the first few leaves.
Traditional Tea
Green tea is made from the non-oxidized leaves of the camellia sinensis tea plant. Green tea is thought to taste the most similar to plucking a leaf fresh from the tea tree and is high in antioxidants like EGCG.
Traditional Tea
Oolong is the rosé of the tea world - neither green nor black but somewhere in between. Brewed from partially oxidized camellia sinensis leaves, these teas are beloved for their well-balanced tannins and wide variety of flavor profiles.
Traditional Tea
Brewed from fully oxidized camellia sinensis leaves, black tea is the newest form of tea and arguably the most popular in the west. The name black tea stems from the color of the dry tea leaves, but if you travel in China, you will find that they call this type of tea Hong Cha, or red tea, for the color of the brewed tea liquor.
Traditional Tea
Aged teas - sometimes called dark teas - are post-fermented teas that are aged either over decades (sheng pu erh) or in a pile fermentation process (shou pu erh). These teas tend to have a fun and funky aroma and flavor and are valued for their benefit to digestion, cholesterol, and blood sugar.
Traditional Tea
Matcha is a ground green tea popularized in Japan. Matcha is valued for its health properties, including high caffeine levels and L-theanine content, leading to enhanced focus for those who consume it. While matcha was traditionally made only with water, it is common now to serve matcha as a latte with milk and add it to smoothies and baked goods.
Infusions & Tisanes
As you may be beginning to suspect, herbal tea isn't really tea at all because it does NOT contain the camellia sinensis leaf. Herbals (sometimes called tisanes or infusions) are brews made from herbs, leaves, berries, fruits, flowers, and other consumable plant life that can be brewed separately or together as a delicious and warming beverage.
Whether you are brewing raw or ripe aged tea, you will follow many of the same basic principles. Aged teas may come in many forms, including loose tea, large cakes, or small nests called touchas. For loose teas and the small cakes, you can add your tea directly to the...
Brewing Scented Tea may seem complicated at first glance. Usually when you brew an Herbal Tisane full of fruits, flowers, herbs or spices, you brew just off the boil to extract all the delicious flavors and health benefits from your tisane. But what do you do when you have a...
Herbal Tisanes (a.k.a Herbal Teas) are some of our favorite brews for tea newbees because they are extremely forgiving and easy to brew - hot or iced! Though often referred to as Herbal Teas, tisanes do not actually contain any tea (leaf from the camellia sinensis plant), and are instead blends...
As discussed in our What is White Tea blog, White Teas are often perceived as the most enigmatic of the tea types. Hailed as delicate, yet comprised of sturdy, frost-resisting downy buds, it's no wonder that White Tea as a category can feel somewhat ambiguous. That's why we like to liken...
Cozy up to these staff-favorite teas for autumn!
Struggling with cloudy iced tea? We talk a little about the chemistry of why your iced tea is outlook: hazy and what to do about it.
Debate the terminology behind wild foraged versus orgainc ingredients with us! We discuss ingredient labeling and whether or not wild foraged ingredients are technically organic.
DISCLAIMER: We do not currently serve Boba at our Tea Bar. We encourage you to try the bubble milk tea at Storied Coffee just down the road in Scotia, instead! You asked and we answered! Saratoga Tea and Honey has been working behind the scenes to bring you boba tea...
