Which tea should you buy? How can you tell if it’s a good tea or a bad tea? These are just guidelines, not hard and fast rules. The best tea you can buy is the one you enjoy the most, and only you can determine that by trying new varieties and different methods. It’s an exciting journey!
Appreciating fine tea is very similar to gaining an understanding about fine wine. Tea is grown in many countries across the world, but, as with wine, environmental conditions such as climate, soil, humidity and sunlight effect the types of tea which are best suited to the location, the quality of the tea that is produced, and, of course, the price. Another similarity to wine is that different harvests give varying results depending on the weather. Certain years are considered “good” years, and each harvest will produce slightly different nuances. The very best teas are grown in a few select locations with a unique combination of environmental factors and the great skills that farmers, pickers and tea masters have learnt over many generations.
It figures that if the most expensive teas are exclusively from the best growing areas in the world, the cheapest teas are from less favorable locations, mass produced and machine harvested. There is a great deal of variation from the worst tea to the best tea, but there is a pretty clear demarcation line – almost without exception, loose leaf teas are of far superior quality to the tea found in teabags. Tea samplers are a good way of trying several loose leaf tea varietals without overcommitting.
Buying teabags
It is possible to get good grade tea in teabags, but loose leaf will always be superior. Teabags were invented as a way for the tea industry to market what is known as the “dust and fannings”, the by-product of loose leaf tea production. Nowadays, these tiny particles are usually mixed with mass-produced tea that is finely cut to fit in the bags and release flavor quickly. Tea from different countries of origin are blended to produce consistent results. However, cutting the leaves releases the bitterness of the leaf as well. This, and the fact that poor quality teas are usually used, was the original reason that milk and sugar, and a variety of fruits, herbs and spices were taken with tea.
Whilst the modern tea industry still uses lower quality tea for teabags, and for mixing with fruits, herbs and other flavorings, the world has grown to love the many delicious flavors that have been added to tea, and if the flavors mask the poor tea taste, then the beverage is still beneficial and very enjoyable.
Many teabag manufacturers don’t even tell you the country of origin, let alone the style of tea, which is determined by the region or farm the product is from and the methods used to produce it. Some teabag tea comes from respectable areas in China, Sri Lanka and India, but manufacturers may be reluctant to mention the less favorable countries of origin, or that tea from several areas have been blended to produce a particular, regular taste. Some manufacturers concentrate on the less informed market and possible don’t think their customers want to know where the tea comes from. (which is the vast majority of tea drinkers, but a majority which is shrinking as tea fans rapidly gain more interest and knowledge of the product).
If the manufacturer tells you the tea comes from Darjeeling in India or is a blend of Dimbula Ceylon and Chinese Keemun black teas, then you have a base to go from. Without the ability to judge on origin or style, it’s largely up to you to determine which teabags are your favorites by trying as many as possible.
The best teabags we’ve found are at Generation Tea, who use their excellent organic loose leaf teas to make teabags of real character and quality. We also recommend you browse the shelves of Buy Tea Online for teabags of every conceivable style and flavor.
Teabags are undoubtably convenient and are more readily available, but we wholeheartedly suggest trying loose leaf teas. They really are very easy to handle and the rewards for a tiny bit of extra effort are well worth it.
How to buy loose leaf tea online
You should bear in mind that you will always have to trust retailers and producers on the internet to give you reliable, accurate information. Most do – some don’t! It makes so much difference to be able to actually see and smell the tea, and, ideally, to taste it before you buy it, especially if it is an expensive tea.
Conversely, it is also possible to buy some of the world’s very finest teas online. So before we give our guidelines to tasting and smelling tea, here are some things you can be aware of when buying ‘blind’:
Many of the product images of tea you see online are carefully contrived – with photographers and art directors setting up tantalizing shots and picking out the best leaves and buds with tweezers. Carefully looking at these leaves will give you some indication, but don’t be fooled by a fancy production if the supporting information doesn’t back up the claims.
Tea is subject to a great deal of misinformation, mislabeling and a certain amount of ‘Chinese Whsipers’ as it gets passed from one merchant to the next. It is sometimes the case that the retailer is selling the tea in good faith, but has been misled somewhere along the chain, and the tea is not really the grade that the retailer, and therefore the consumer, thinks it is. If the retailer buys directly from the farms, or has a reputation for obtaining top quality tea, you will generally fare better.
The retailer that can guarantee where the tea has come from, especially if it is more accurate than just a country or a vague region, obviously knows their tea and can be better relied on to get quality tea. If the origin is uncertain, then it’s a fair bet that the retailer doesn’t know for sure where the product originated.
Picking a favorite is hard, but the online loose leaf tea retailer we keep going back to time and again is Generation Tea. A great combination of competitive prices and consistently high quality from guys who really know their tea. Not the most fancy website or product photos, but really solid, dependable products. All the tea stores featured on our website have to meet our high standards though, and happily they all do.
We hope this will give you some way to evaluate the teas you buy online.
How to buy loose leaf tea you can see, smell, touch and taste
Tea has always failed to be graded in any kind of objective way, especially good quality tea. There are thousands of great teas to be discovered, and the best way to learn about tea is to experience it.
Four ways to judge tea…
1) By the look
The shape of the leaf, and the color. The shape varies for different kinds of tea. The unbroken tea leaf is always preferable, whether it is leaf or bud. Bitterness comes from broken leaves. Broken leaves are also a sign of machine-harvested tea. Keep in mind, however, that some tea, especially some black tea, is cut to provide for stronger tasting tea. Also, many oolongs are deliberately ‘bruised’ or abraded to give flavor and improve appearance.
The dry leaves and wet leaves should be examined – wet leaves when they are fully opened. There is a lot to be learned from the wet leaf. How the leaf was oxidized is evident. The are many colors of dry green tea and the way it has been processed can be seen in the color. For example, hand fired leaves will be a little bit yellow, steamed tea has the look of a leafy green vegetable, like spinach, and baked green tea will be a very dark green. Upon brewing the tea it should become close to the color it was when it was picked. Age will affect the color of the tea water, causing it to be brown or very murky green. The color of black tea water should be bright reddish gold and should leave a ring in the cup. The dry tea leaves from dark fermented oolong, like WuYi Mountain and Dan Cong (Phoenix Mountain) oolongs are a dark green/brown color; tieguanyin oolongs should be bright to dark green. Anxi oolongs are lighter than Taiwan oolongs. Good green teas in general are smaller, more delicate buds and leaf, and oolongs are a bigger leaf where the ‘created’ edge is obvious.
2) By the smell
Generally, there are two smells to consider, the dry smell and the wet smell. The dry smell should be obvious. If there is no smell to the dry leaves they are very suspect. Green tea should have a light, fresh, soothing fragrance, from a light orchid to a chestnutty smell. Black tea should have a sweet, floral fragrance, and the smell should not be easily lost. The aroma of dry Oolongs can range from peach to Osmanthus flowers, whilst the smell of Tieguanyin should remind you of sweet corn. In judging scented tea (such as Jasmine tea), the smell should be maintained over multiple infusions. If a scented tea loses it’s smell quickly, the quality is poor. It should be remembered that the fragrance of a tea is just as important in judging a tea as its taste.
3) By touch
Through touch you can determine if the tea leaves are smooth or coarse, whether or not it crumbles easily, and whether it is heavy or light. A good green tea feels smooth, not coarse, and the wet leaves should be tender. Tieguanyin should be heavy and dense. Wet Tieguanyin tea leaves should be tender, almost like silk, but also sturdy. Whatever the tea, it should not crumble easily; if it does, it has been baked too long or is too old.
4) By the taste
The best way to judge a tea, of course, is by the taste. Green tea should taste fresh, not stale, and should not be too astringent. Black tea should be full bodied and fresh. In general, good tea has a sweet aftertaste and should feel very slippery going down the throat. The aftertaste should linger. Some teas can provide a very interesting taste by sipping some water while the aftertaste is present, the effect being quite dramatic. Tasting tea is like tasting wine. Slurp it to aerate it – unlike in Western countries, in Asia, the home of tea, slurping is a sign of appreciation and knowledge and not considered bad manners! Let it slide down the middle of the tongue in one sip, and down the sides of the tongue in the next, followed by the whole tongue with a big slurp. Pay attention to the subtleties and the complexity of the tea. A large part of learning to appreciate tea is learning to slow down and pay attention to the details.
We hope that these rough guidelines will have helped you enhance your tea experience. But, as we always say, it is really up to you. The best teas are the ones you enjoy drinking the most. And the only way to find those teas is by trying as many as possible. The world of tea is an exciting place to explore and we’re glad to be a part of your journey. Take a look at our other subjects in the Tea Info Zone…
