White tea is the new trend for tea connoisseurs around the world. The tea has struck a sure chord among tea drinkers with its delicate natural sweetness and gentle flavor. The tea brews a pale, wine like infusion and offers a mild and silky taste. White tea is best enjoyed without any added sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners can overwhelm its natural sweetness and subtle taste. Besides, the extra calories can interfere with its nutritional profile.
White tea is a rare delicacy. It is grown only in very few areas of the world and only a small number of tea bushes are allocated for early harvest to produce white tea. As it is scarcely produced, it is also a bit more expensive than other varieties of tea. But as the demand for white tea is picking up, more tea estates are diverting their resources to the production of white tea. An increased supply is likely to bring down the prices and make it more easily affordable for the masses.
Producing white tea is a meticulous affair. It takes perfect soil, climate, water and sunlight to produce an exquisite cup of white tea. White tea is mainly grown in the Fujian province of China where the physical conditions are ideally suited to grow white tea. It is produced from select high grade tea bushes. The best quality strands of the tea plant are carefully tended and grown before being harvested. The youngest tea shoots, covered with soft white hairs, are plucked from these tea plants early in the spring. The silvery white down gives the tea a uniquely delicate appearance and texture. The leaves are plucked by hand and are gently steamed. The leaves are then left to dry on the field itself. There is absolutely no machine used throughout the entire production process.Noble, Long Life Eyebrow (Shou Mei); White Peony (Bai Mu Dan) ,Silver Needle (Yin Zhen),Snow bud are some of the world famous varieties of white tea.
Brewing a fine cup of white tea is an art in itself. White tea should not be brewed in stale water that has been sitting in the kettle. Instead, it should be brewed in fresh cold water or spring water. The tea leaves must not be added to boiling water as that can kill the tea’s delicate taste. White tea is ideally brewed at a temperature around 180 Fahrenheit. Preferably, you can boil the water and let it sit for a few minutes before adding tea leaves to it.
The quantity of white tea leaves brewed per cup also needs to be carefully determined. As white tea is less dense than other tea varieties, more of it is required to brew a single cup. You may start by brewing two teaspoons per cup and then gradually adjust to a quantity according to your own individual taste. Next, the duration of time for which tea is steeped is perhaps the trickiest part of the entire process. White tea is brewed at a gentle temperature but for a longer time. The length of time it is steeped determines its strength. The first steeping may last from 5-8 minutes while the subsequent steeping may last anywhere between 3-4 minutes.
However, you need not restrict drinking white tea to only the traditional brewing style. You may check out the latest white tea preparations which beat imagination as to what all dishes and drinks can be made out of white tea. You can make a stunningly refreshing iced white tea punch by adding fructose and lemon extract to it. It may be served with fresh fruits. White tea can also be used to make tea soufflé, smoothies and white tea brownies.
