Green Tea

In China, the homeland of tea, green tea is produced by thinly spreading the fresh leaves to dry on bamboo trays.  Small amounts are then dried in hot, round roasting pans, to stop any fermentation.  While still soft, the leaves are sometimes hand rolled into balls, roasted and dried.  In Japan, the leaves are steamed on a moving belt, then cooled, rolled, twisted,dried and vacuum packed for shipment.  Yellow is the best liquid colour for green tea.

Characteristics

The quality of green tea is judged by its AROMA which should be complex, and the LENGTH OF TIME the taste remains in the mouth.

The occasional BITTER note is highly prized, but if you prefer to avoid this nuance, quickly rinse the leaves before brewing.

Green Tea is taken at any time of day, and is popular for its refreshing and digestive properties and its good health properties including low caffeine, low sodium and no calories. Green tea is also popular for its high anti-oxidant polyphenols content.

"One or two cups of tea, depending on tea strength, are equal in anti-oxidant activity to five portions of fruits or vegetables, or 400mg of vitamin C." Ref Tea and Health by The Tea Reasearch Institute of Sri Lanka.

All green teas are produced whole-leaf, whether flat (Lung Ching), twisted (Pi Lo Chun), rolled lengthwise (Chun Mee), or in a ball (Gunpowder or Pearls).

Green tea is taken without milk or sugar.