Besides water, what is the most consumed drink in the world? It’s not beer, and it’s not coffee. It’s tea.
Americans drank about 3.8 billion gallons of tea in 2019. It’s widely consumed across the world, from China to Peru.
Drinking tea has deep cultural ties. It’s a refreshing must-have beverage to cool off during the summer.
It’s an afternoon ritual in the United Kingdom. It symbolizes purity and tranquility in Japan.
To reach its full enjoyment, you need to have quality tea on hand. With so many options on store shelves, it’s hard to know what a high-quality tea is.
If you want to know how to separate good tea from bad, you’ll want to keep reading. These are the things to look for in the best quality tea.
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Table of Contents
Sight
There are two aspects to how the tea looks. It contains certain characteristics in the tea before and after it’s brewed.
Is the shape of the leaf intact? That’s a sign of a high-quality tea. It says a lot about how the tea was grown and harvested.
Whole tea leaves are a sign that the tea was planted and harvested by hand. Unbroken tea leaves tend to produce the best flavors.
If you see broken tea leaves, it means that the leaves were harvested by machines. This is usually the case for mass production teas.
Do broken tea leaves impact the flavor? You’ll end up with a bitter flavor. For people who drank nothing but commercially produced teas, they won’t know what unbitter tea tastes like!
Observe the color of the tea upon brewing. An older green tea will have a brown or dark green color. A fresh tea will brew similar to the color the leaves were when they were picked.
Other teas have their own characteristics. Black tea should have red or golden characteristics.
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Smell
Smell the tea leaves before and after brewing. If you can’t smell anything from dry tea, it is either stale or low-quality tea.
A green tea should have a refreshing smell. Some have light floral notes, while others have an earthy chestnut aroma. Black teas tend to be sweet and floral in their characteristics.
Teas hang on to their aromas through multiple brewings. If a tea loses its aroma quickly, it is a poor quality tea.
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Touch
How does the dry tea feel in your hands? A whole-leaf tea should have a little weight to it. If it feels very fragile or too light, it’s probably getting old.
It’s also an indication that it was overdried.
A tea that falls apart easily is another indication that it’s overdried or old. Tea that was already brewed should feel intact and smooth.
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Taste
Tasting tea for quality is hard if you don’t know what to look for. Take a small sip and move it around different parts of your mouth.
High-quality teas have a light and smooth flavor. Green tea is bright while black teas are more intense. You’ll still be able to pick up floral and earthy notes from the best quality teas.
If your tea doesn’t taste like anything, seems to have chemicals, or bitter are low-quality teas.
Tea Bags vs. Loose Leaf Teas
There’s a long-standing debate between tea connoisseurs. Should you get loose leaf tea or tea bags?
It depends.
There are people who automatically think that loose leaf teas are of better quality. That’s not true. You can get low-quality loose-leaf teas and you can find high-quality bagged teas.
Use the guidelines above to tell if a tea is among the best quality tea or not.
Most bagged teas are mass-produced. They’re more likely to contain broken leaves, which makes the tea bitter.
There are some tea brands that offer their best teas in bags. They still maintain the high quality of loose leaf teas.
Buying Loose Leaf Teas
If you’re thinking that it’s time to purchase high-quality tea, you’re in the right place. Think about the types of tea that you enjoy drinking.
Also, consider why you’re drinking tea. There’s a difference if you need an afternoon pick-me-up that’s not coffee and if you drink tea for the health benefits.
For people who want to try a variety of teas, look for a tea company that has a broad offering. Tao of Tea, Steven Smith Teamaker, and New Mexico Tea Company have different types of tea, medicinal teas, and herbal blends.
Find out how tea company sources their teas. Many tea makers source their teas and blend them on site. Ask tea companies if their sourcing process is sustainable.
The more you can learn about where the tea comes from and how it’s processed, the more you’ll decide if a tea is quality tea or not.
How to Store Tea
When you do get tea, it’s important to know how to store it. Improper storage leads to tea losing its quality quickly.
The best thing to do is keep tea in a dark, airtight container. Store the tea in a cool and dark place. Keep the tea away from heat, as this starts to oxidize the leaves.
The storage space also has to be dry. Tea will absorb moisture quickly. It will degrade in quality and may get mold.
What to Look for In Quality Tea
There’s a lot that goes into a quality tea. Where it is grown, how its harvested, and processed all impact the flavor and quality of the tea.
If you want to find a high-quality tea, you need to rely on your senses. Touch, see, smell, and taste the tea to determine if it’s the best quality tea.
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