Tea

Tea is like wine with different areas famous for growing different styles of tea with different soils,

micro-climates, harvesting techniques and processing. Taste, fragrance, colour, body and finish all make up the subtleties of tea drinking. Tea growers are fiercely secretive about their unique methods which have been developed over thousands of years. Different harvests yield varying qualities and quantities of tea with vintage or rare tea being sold for thousands of pounds to tea connoisseurs, in fact Tea is so valued that it has commonly been used as currency. Chinalife has been tirelessly searching China and Taiwan to create our exclusive and unique range of pure, premium teas. Begin a healthy obsession today.

WHITE TEA

Young leaves that are heated immediately after picking. The buds may even be shielded from sunlight to prevent formation of chlorophyll. White tea is produced in lesser quantities than most other styles making it more expensive.

GREEN TEA

The oxidation process is stopped within a day or two of harvesting by application of heat, either with steam, a traditional Japanese method; or by dry cooking in hot pans, the traditional Chinese method. Tea leaves may be left to dry as separate leaves or they may be rolled into small pellets to make gun-powder tea.

JASMINE TEA

Jasmine flowers are mixed with Green or Oolong overnight to allow the fragrance and taste to infuse into the tea. Oolongs - Oolong means \"black dragon\" in Chinese. Oxidation is stopped somewhere between the standards for green tea and red tea. The oxidation process will take two to three days.

OOLONG TEA

Oolong means "black dragon" in Chinese. Oxidation is stopped somewhere between the standards for green tea and red tea. The oxidation process will take two to three days.

RED TEA

Known as black tea in the West, the Chinese call it red tea because of the colour of the liquid. The tea leaves are allowed to completely oxidise.

PU ERH TEA

Made from a special broad leaf tea, oxidisation is stopped similarly to green tea but then the tea is aged or ripened to create a unique and full bodied flavour. While most teas are consumed within a year of production, pu-erh can be aged for many years to improve its flavour. Pu-erh is considered to be a treasure of China with fat burning properties.

FLORAL & HERBAL TEA

Tea which is not derived from camellia sinensis but is typically made from flowers, fruits, herbs, roots, bark and seeds. They are tecnically called Tisanes and are usually caffeine free.