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TEA PRODUCTION

What is Tea?

Origins of Tea

Chinese tea or Thea sinensis is a low shrub-tree which reaches a maximum height of 10-15 feet and can survives frost conditions.  Assam tea or Thea assamica is a larger tree which attains a height of 30-50 feet.  It grows in the tropical climates. Cross-fertilization of these introductory plants constitute the basis of all teas throughout the world.

Tea Ingredients:

Trace elements and minerals

Fluoride, potassium, calcium, manganese, vitamins including niacin, vitamins B1 and B2

Tea is unique

Tea is a stimulant which is soothing and calming.  Moreover, tea offers its stimulation effects with a low caffeine content.

Tea does not impact heart circulation.  However, studies have indicated that tea has favorable impact on the brain and central nervous system.  It bonds to the tannins and is not released until it reaches the stomach. As a result, tea improves digestive functions.

Cultivation

Tea leaves are generated by cutting tea plants. The tea plant is kept in the growth mode by normal pruning which stops flowering and fruit formation. These conditions ease the task of tea pickers to pick the topmost leaves and the most current tea buds.  Tea picking is performed by hand to obtain the most tender harvest. There are certain mechanical picking techniques which simplify production.

Tea is grown in large plantations such as those of the Darjeeling district of India.  These are located on the 5,000 foot high slopes of the Himalayas. The lower lying Assam region of Northern India is the largest tea cultivation area of the world, situated in the Brahmaputra.

On Sri Lanka  or Ceylon, the three cultivation areas of Dimbula, Nuwara Eliya and Uva are known worldwide for produces a strong, aromatic tea.

The Chinese produce a mild tea in provinces such as Yunan and Zhejiang. The Chinese teas are produced from tea bricks and tea roses. Due to its unique climate, Japan produces fabulous green tea.  Most Japanese tea is consumed in Japan. Other tea producing regions include Africa, Indonesia, Taiwan and Argentina. Thailand produces relatively small tea volumes.

Production Of Green Tea:

Green tea comes from the same plant as black tea.  However, fermentation is prevented by heat treatment immediately after withering.

Oxidation:

This process is only carried out where necessary. The necessity and duration of oxidation varies according to the type of tea.

Steaming  or dry heat treatment:

This destroys the plant's own enzymes so that the leaf will retain its green color instead of turning black.

Rolling:

Rolling is performed manually or by machine depending on the type of tea. In certain cases the leaf is rolled into artistic shapes following a tradition which dates back thousands of years.

Drying: For this purpose, the leaves are either stacked in hot-air rack driers or exposed to the natural heat of the sun.

Sorting:

Green tea is available in the same familiar grades - leaf, broken, fannings or dust - as black tea, depending on the specification. Green tea is a strongly alkaline drink which protects the body from hyperacidity. It contains numerous tannins, minerals and vitamins.

Oolong Production:

Oolong is a semi-fermented tea. Its secret lies in the fermentation of the leaf's outer edges, while the heart of the leaf remains unfermented.  It is grown in Taiwan and China.

White Tea:

White teas originate mainly from the mountainous regions of Fujian in Southern China. The leaves are slowly, gently steamed in the open air and extremely careful handled. This tea is becoming more popular. The bud (silver needle) and the upper leaves are harvested.  White tea is low in tannin and teine.

Black Tea Production:

There are three different methods of producing black tea: 1. Traditional production; 2. CTC production and 3. LTP production.

The Traditional production method:

This production method consists of five stages: oxidation, rolling, fermentation, drying, and sorting.

1. Fresh green leaves are spread out to dry on ventilated trays. During this process, approx. 25% of the moisture is extracted from the leaves, thereby leaving them soft and pliable for processing.
2. The leaves are rolled by applying mechanical pressure to break up the cells and extract the cell sap. After 30 minutes, the leaves, still damp from the sap, are sieved to separate the finer leaves. These are spread out immediately for fermentation, while the remaining coarse leaves are rolled again under high pressure.  This process may be repeated several times.  Less rolling generates larger leaves, whereas longer rolling breaks the leaves up more, thereby generating smaller grades. During rolling, the cell sap is extracted;  it reacts with oxygen and thereby triggers fermentation.  The essential oils responsible for the aroma are released.
3. After rolling, the tea is spread out in layers approx. 5 inches high for up to three hours in a cool, damp environment to complete fermentation.  During this process, the substances in the cell sap oxidize. In this phase, the green leaf turns a copper color. Chemical reactions cause the leaf to heat up during fermentation. It is critical for the quality of the tea that the fermentation process be interrupted at its peak, when the temperature reaches the maximum.
4. The tea is dried with hot air at a temperature of approx. 85º-88ºC in order to stop the oxidation process. Residual moisture is extracted from the leaves, the extracted sap dries on the leaf and the leaves turn dark brown to black.

5. The dried tea is sieved to separate the different leaf grades. The traditional production method provides teas of all leaf grades: leaf, broken, fannings and Dust. Leaf grades refer to the leaf size; grades do not necessarily indicate the quality of the tea.

The CTC production method:

CTC stands for crushing, tearing and curling. Both the CTC and LTP methods are mainly used for the finer end of the scale, i.e. fanning and dust grades. These teas are usually destined for teabag production. The oxidized leaf is often cut to a uniform size by machine. Then the leaves are placed into the CTC machine where they are crushed, torn and curled in a single operation by metal rollers. The extracted cell sap is collected and added to the leaves again. The crushed leaves are then fermented, dried and sorted.

This CTC method is primarily used in India.

The LTP method:

The third method of producing black tea is the LTP method, named after the inventor of the Lawrie Tea Processor. In this method, the oxidized leaves are leveled before processing in the LTP machine.  They are shredded by blades rotating at high speed. This is followed by the typical fermentation, drying and sorting procedures.

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