What is tea?Updated 6 months ago

Did you know that tea is one of the most consumed beverages in the world, second only to water? Tea has a recorded history that spans over 5,000 years. Legend has it that tea was discovered in 2737 BC when some tea leaves blew into Chinese Emperor Shen-Nung's pot of boiling water. In the 1600's, tea became highly popular throughout Europe and USA.

All tea comes from the plant Camellia sinensis. Camellia sinensis is a tropical and subtropical evergreen plant native to China. As an evergreen, the tea bush continuously grows but goes into dormancy owing to cooler seasonal weather changes e.g. Sri Lanka, located 8 degrees north of the equator produces tea year round due to due to its warm climate and high rainfall, producing a new flush about every 80 days.

There are two primary types of Camellia sinensis used in the preparation of the tea:

Camellia sinensis var sinensis or (China Jaat) which has smaller leaves (5-12cm); and is propagated widely around China, Taiwan and Japan.

Camellia sinensis Assamica (Assam Jaat) which has larger leaves (15-20cm). The assamica variety is known for its large leaves, its hardiness, are grown widely in India, Sri Lanka and Kenya for the production of black tea.