KNOW-HOW The history and preparation of tea

The different types of tea

White, green, black and dark teas from China, India, Japan and elsewhere all come from the same plant: the tea plant. Once plucked, the leaf is processed in different ways, undergoing numerous transformations. Depending on the terroir, the fineness of the leaf and the way it is processed, the result is an unlimited palette of tastes and vintages.

The tea plant (Thea sinensis) is an evergreen shrub in the Camellia family. Only one species is cultivated today. This has been known as Camellia sinensis since 1773.

For a long time, botanists and planters thought that there were two kinds of tea, green and black, but in 1843 Robert Fortune proved that these two types were derived from the same plant and differed only in the processes they underwent after plucking.

Recognized virtues

Tea, a daily ally

Ever since the discovery of tea, mankind has been interested in its virtues. Stimulant, immune-booster, antioxidant, this elixir of longevity is constantly the subject of new analyses.

Medicinal properties

From its earliest days, tea was recommended for curing and preventing headaches, gloomy thoughts and poor digestion. Later, it was also discovered to regulate temperature and reduce anxiety. However, these properties depend on the quality of the leaf. A healthy, rich environment, young shoots, a natural growing method and good working conditions are the keys to a tea "bursting" with active ingredients!

Virtues according to tea type

The various treatments that Camellia sinensis leaves undergo before becoming white, green, black, oolong or pu'er tea influence their respective virtues.

• White tea, with its low theine content, develops delicate flavors. It refreshes and lowers body temperature.
• Non-oxidizedgreen tea is very popular for its high concentration of polyphenols, iron, vitamins and catechins, which give it numerous health benefits, including a preventive role in many ailments. It is a refined beverage.
• Black tea is oxidized, warming the body. Like green tea, its theine content makes it an excellent stimulant.
• Oolong tea, a pleasant compromise between green and black tea, is said to have a relaxing and slimming effect when drunk regularly.
• Dark pu'er tea, oxidized then fermented, has a distinctive, sought-after taste, and is recognized by Chinese pharmacopoeia for its benefits in regulating the body.

A cocktail of benefits

During infusion, 60% of the leaf's active ingredients are released into the cup, which is why it's so important to keep the leaf free of harmful substances! A tea leaf is ¾ water, with the remaining ¼ mainly containing:

• Tannins (or polyphenols), which are powerful antioxidants ;
• Alkaloids, including theine, which imparts bitterness, stimulates the central nervous system and helps destroy fat ;

The combination of these two substances means that theine is released much more smoothly and consistently than in coffee, making tea a stimulating rather than an exciting beverage.

• Amino acids (proteins), including theanine, which relaxes and energizes;
• Vitamins, including C (unfortunately fragile to heat), A, B1, B2, B6, B9, E and K;
• Minerals: fluoride, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, manganese.

A simple pleasure

Analyses of tea are regularly carried out, and it seems clear that this plant still has many surprises in store for us. Climatic variations and evolving cultivation techniques also add changes to the composition of tea leaves. As with food, it's also important to know your own body type and adapt your intake to it. As the level of theine varies according to the quality and type of tea, it is also important to adapt consumption to each moment of the day. The pleasure of tasting tea is essential. By choosing and savouring their tea, tea-lovers discover all its benefits in just a few sips.

Tea, healthy food for the body, uplifting for the spirit!

The history of tea and its expansion throughout China and Japan are directly linked to the development of Buddhism. Indeed, monks have always seen tea as an invaluable aid to their spiritual journey and meditative practice.

When you visit ancient tea gardens in China's southern provinces, you'll often find that they were planted by monks around their temples, as in Hangzhou, near the famous Dragon Well (Long Jing). We can therefore consider tea to have been one of the first "foods" used to nourish both body and mind.

These simple leaves infused in a little water are the focus of particularly profound ceremonies. The best-known of these is the "chanoyu" (Japanese tea ceremony), during which tea is not only a hydrating and stimulating beverage, but also takes on a symbolic dimension around which an entire process is articulated, the aim of which is to return to oneself, to become receptive once again, aware of the beauty and simplicity of the present moment.

Orienting the mind through the nourishment of the body is therefore a familiar thing to a tea-lover, and is perhaps one of the simplest and most effective ways of achieving the serenity and inner calm we all need.

Ideally, then, every meal should be as much an act of physical absorption as a spiritual contemplation through our sense of taste. There's something almost sacred about becoming one with our planet by absorbing parts of it. The act of eating should not suffer from its contemporary triviality: it's the primary way of sustaining the spark of life we receive at birth.

What's more, recent scientific research shows how the quality of our intestinal flora and what we eat influence our emotional state and the way we behave.

We can therefore make a direct link between our diet and our ability to enjoy our lives, and quite simply be happy..

What if, in the end, the quest for happiness began with our food?

But we still need to find healthy foods available to us.

For almost 30 years, living things have been at the heart of our concerns. As pioneers in the sale of organic, fair-trade and biodynamic teas and herbal teas, we have always been committed to offering products that are as healthy as they are good. Back in 1994, this approach seemed a little "crazy" when it was already difficult to simply buy loose leaf tea on the other side of the world. Today, it's a long-term gamble that's paid off!

Respecting tea workers, their health and their land, and helping them through crises has always been part of our DNA, which puts the well-being of our partner producers, employees and consumers first. A long-term vision and a virtuous chain that is now bearing fruit.

"Every day, we take pride in selling a noble product, good and healthy for our bodies and minds, in a responsible and sustainable approach, because what is "good for the Earth" is "good for people"..."

How to prepare tea properly?

An art or simply

Preparing tea can be as simple as it is refined. Either way, there are rules to follow and utensils that are best suited to each type of tea, enabling you to enjoy your favorite beverage to the full. To help you adopt good practices, here are a few tips.

Preparing tea the right way

Water quality and temperature are the first things to consider. It's a good idea to heat the container with the previously boiled water before placing the tea leaves in it. Then there's the dosage (around 2 grams of tea per cup) and the infusion time. This last point is crucial, because while black, oolong and pu'er teas are relatively tolerant, green, white and yellow teas are more sensitive to approximations. Within a few degrees, you can go from a pleasant infusion to one that's particularly bitter or even undrinkable.

You'll find all this information on the back of your tea bag, under your tube or in our online store.

Tea-making accessories

To brew tea properly, it's important to choose the right accessories. The classic teapot in porcelain, glass or enamelled stoneware remains a benchmark vessel for brewing tea without too many questions. The neutrality of the non-porous walls means you can enjoy the freshness and full flavour of the tea with each new infusion. It can be used for both plain and flavored teas, as it retains no traces of the aromas of the previous infusion.

Grand cru and other precious loose teas deserve particular attention when it comes to the accessories used to prepare them. The traditional way :

In a gaiwan or zhong

This small traditional porcelain bowl is fitted with a lid and saucer. This typically Chinese technique is mainly used for green, yellow and white teas, and even oolong and pu'er. Thanks to thin walls that don't store heat, this container prevents delicate teas from burning. Several infusions are possible with the same leaves (and, what's more, the tea generally loses its theine content when re-infused!) This way of tasting allows you to follow the evolution of a tea through its various infusions, and to smell the aromatic sequences through the lid.

Traditional Japanese teapot with handle

This small kyusu teapot makes it easy to control the preparation and infusion of particularly delicate Japanese teas. The walls are relatively thin so as not to burn the tea, and it is fitted with a filter designed not to let through the finely rolled leaves of fine Japanese teas.

Gong fu cha

Aesthetically pleasing, this is the tasting technique par excellence for oolong and pu'er teas in China and Taiwan. It highlights the complexity of the teas and allows you to extract all the subtleties of their fragrances and aromas using two dedicated cups (one for smelling, the other for drinking). Several infusions are possible with the same leaves, depending on the quality of the tea brewed. The Yixing teapot, made from the famous clay of the city of Yixing (China), is particularly recommended for tasting oolong, Chinese red (black) and pu'er teas. These teapots are unique in that they can be tumbled and retain the memory of previous infusions by diffusing the tea's essential oils into the teapot's pores, giving it a lovely patina over time and amplifying the aromas of infusions of the same type of tea.

In a matcha bowl

Matcha, an extremely fine powder, is a ceremonial green tea that can be enjoyed in this type of ceramic bowl. It is measured out with a cha-shaku bamboo spoon, then beaten with a chasen bamboo whisk. The airy, flavorful infusion is appreciated for its freshness and vitality. Find out how to prepare your matcha tea in our dedicated article.

Water at the center of flavors

Since water makes up over 99% of tea, its quality is the first thing to take into account to bring out a tea's full potential. Here are a few tips to help you refine your infusions..

The effects of minerals on infusion

Water with too much calcium or mineral content tends to mask the subtleties of the infused tea, resulting in a soulless liquor. The chlorine in some tap waters will spoil the taste of the infusion, while spring water too low in minerals will tend to produce a flat, characterless infusion. A happy medium is therefore necessary. If you use tap water with these defects, it is advisable to filter it. For bottled water, a lightly mineralized spring water with a discreet taste is ideal, to "carry" the aromas.

Should I boil my water?

It's advisable not to boil the water for too long, as it loses its temporary hardness and oxygen, which tends to enhance the bitterness of the tea. Finally, it should be left to cool to the recommended temperature, or topped up with cold water if necessary.

These considerations apply generally to all teas, rooibos and herbal teas. In order to respect the specific characteristics of each type of leaf and plant, we indicate the recommended temperature and infusion time on the back of our tea bags, and on each product sheet in our online store in the tasting advice section.