Brief Commentary

Tea is found throughout China, with different regions having tea plantations and industries. Through the gradual development of the tea industry, more and more diverse teas have been invented, including different ways of using tea leaves. Chinese tea culture is divided into six main categories: green tea, black tea, white tea, oolong tea, yellow tea, and dark tea (Liu, 2012). These types of tea are the mainstream, and there are more detailed categories below these types. The difference between these types may be classified according to the type of tea, the process used to make the tea, etc.

Learning outcomes:

1. Illustrate the main types of tea originated from China. 
2. Analyze the technological process of tea producing. 

The main types of tea in China & The produce process

Green tea: Accounting for 75% of tea production is green tea, which is also the most widely consumed beverage by Chinese people (Jian, Xie, &Lee, 2003). Green tea is mainly manufactured from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis tree, and its manufacture also requires a hot and humid climate (Shi &Schlegel, 2012). “Two leaves and one bud” is the key collection method for green tea (Shi &Schlegel, 2012). The process of producing green tea preserves many compounds that are relevant to human health, which distinguishes green tea from black and oolong teas (Shi &Schlegel, 2012).

Black tea: Yunnan Province mainly produces black tea, which is also a very well-known and traditional tea drink (Oi et al., 2011). Post-fermented tea is the main classification of Chinese black tea, and it is called black tea because of the dark brown color of the liquid after it has been steeped (Oi et al., 2011). However, there is a big difference between Chinese black tea and foreign black tea, which is an oxidized tea (Oi et al., 2011). Dried green tea leaves are the main raw material for Chinese black tea (Oi et al., 2011).

White tea: The southeast coast of China is the origin of white tea, which is mainly produced here, and it maintains the natural characteristics of white tea with minimal processing (Tan et al., 2017). White tea is made only through withering and drying; it is not fermented during the production process like other teas (Tan et al., 2017). According to the seasonality of growth, white tea is divided into three grades Tan et al., 2017).

Oolong tea: Oolong tea tastes different from green tea black tea, like something in between (Zeng et al., 2020). The special fruity and floral aroma is what makes oolong tea famous (Zeng et al., 2020). Dehydration and bruising are the reasons for the unique manufacturing techniques that give oolong tea a stronger and more refreshing flavor (Zeng et al., 2020).

Yellow tea: Yellow tea is mainly distributed in Sichuan, Anhui, Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Zhejiang, and Guizhou provinces in China (Xu et al., 2018). In the middle of the Tang Dynasty from 618 to 907 AD, yellow tea was discovered, and it was also the second tea discovered after green tea (Xu et al., 2018). “Sealed yellowing” is the step in the processing of yellow tea that is different from other teas (Xu et al., 2018). This special step causes a significant change in the composition of yellow tea, resulting in a taste that is different from other teas (Xu et al., 2018).

Dark tea: “The major types of Chinese dark tea are Pu’er tea in Yunnan, Liubao tea in Guangxi, Kangzhuan tea (i.e., Tibetan tea) in Sichuan, Anhua dark tea in Hunan, Qingzhuan tea in Hubei, and Fuzhuan tea in Shannxi (Ye et al., 2020).” Pu-erh tea is the most famous among these types (Ye et al., 2020). As early as the Tang Dynasty black tea was invented and exported in large quantities (Ye et al., 2020).

Interactive activities

Think and discuss the following questions: Do different kinds of tea bring the same benefits to human health? Why or why not? Why do you think different regions grow different kinds of tea?

https://groups.google.com/g/tea-types/c/hz5q9LUykno

Formative assessment

Here is a quiz on the types of tea in China. This quiz is to be completed by the students and it contains multiple choice and short answer questions about the type of tea and will be in a scoring format.

https://forms.gle/MHDoc47YkQhJ7LuXA

References

Jian, L., Xie, L. P., Lee, A. H., & Binns, C. W. (2004). Protective effect of green tea against prostate cancer: a case‐control study in southeast China. International journal of cancer, 108(1), 130-135.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ijc.11550

Liu, T. (2012). Chinese tea. Cambridge University Press.

Oi, Y., Hou, I. C., Fujita, H., & Yazawa, K. (2012). Antiobesity effects of Chinese black tea (pu‐erh tea) extract and gallic acid. Phytotherapy Research, 26(4), 475-481.

https://europepmc.org/article/med/22508359

Shi, Q. Y., & Schlegel, V. (2012). Green tea as an agricultural based health promoting food: the past five to ten years. Agriculture, 2(4), 393-413.

https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/2/4/393

Tan, J., Engelhardt, U. H., Lin, Z., Kaiser, N., & Maiwald, B. (2017). Flavonoids, phenolic acids, alkaloids and theanine in different types of authentic Chinese white tea samples. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, 57, 8-15.

htps://agris.fao.org/agris-search/search.do?recordID=US201800106123

Xu, J., Wang, M., Zhao, J., Wang, Y. H., Tang, Q., & Khan, I. A. (2018). Yellow tea (Camellia sinensis L.), a promising Chinese tea: Processing, chemical constituents and health benefits. Food Research International, 107, 567-577.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29580521/

Ye, Z., Wang, X., Fu, R., Yan, H., Han, S., Gerelt, K., … & Zhou, Y. (2020). Determination of six groups of mycotoxins in Chinese dark tea and the associated risk assessment. Environmental Pollution, 261, 114180.

https://europepmc.org/article/med/32088438

Zeng, L., Zhou, X., Su, X., & Yang, Z. (2020). Chinese oolong tea: An aromatic beverage produced under multiple stresses. Trends in Food Science & Technology.

https://pubag.nal.usda.gov/catalog/7139593