One of the mostly widely consumed beverages in the world, second only to water. Tea is the infusion made by steeping the processed leaves of the tea bush, Camellia Sinensis in hot water for several minutes before being enjoyed with or without milk depending on the tea.
The name Tea
The word tea came into the English Language from the Chinese word for tea (茶), which is pronounced tê. Other names are used such as Char which comes from the Mandarin Chinese pronunciation of Cha.
Types of Tea
There are many varieties of tea all coming from the same plant, the most well known are:
- Black Tea
- Green Tea
- Oolong Tea
- White Tea
These traditional teas are sometimes blended with fruit and herbal elements but a tea that comprises of only fruit or herbs and does not contain Camelia Sinensis is known as a Tissane or Infusion. Best known as Herbal Teas, they are not tradionally classed as tea.
Caffeine
Traditional teas contain a varying quantity of caffeine while herbal & fruit teas have none. The section of the tea bush affects the quantity of caffeine, generally the higher on the plant the more the caffeine, i.e. the top leaves may have 4.7% caffeine down to the stem which may have as little as 1.4%.
A common myth is that tea contains more caffeine than coffee. While in their raw state, the tea leaf does in fact contain more caffeine, but by the time they end up in your cup tea in fact has significantly less than coffee. The table below gives an estimation of the difference. (Note: these levels will vary depending on the variety both of coffee and tea)
| Double espresso (2oz) | 45-100 mg |
| Brewed coffee (8 oz) | 60-120 mg |
| Instant coffee (8 oz) | 70 mg |
| Decaf coffee (8 oz) | 1-5 mg |
| Tea - black (8 oz) | 45 mg |
| Tea - green (8 oz) | 20 mg |
| Tea - white (8 oz) | 15 mg |
Tea in the cup is often between a third to half the level of caffeine compared to coffee and drinking up to 10 cups a day is said to have no detrimental effects, based on current findings that intake of caffeine up to 400-450 mg per day does not increase the risk of heart disease, hypertension or have an adverse effect on pregnancy or the foetus. The presence of caffeine in tea does not produce unhealthy results due to its combination with polyphenols. It is claimed that 80% of the caffeine in tea remains unabsorbed by the human body.
Nutrition from Tea
Polyphenols are the most important component in tea, they constitute about 36% of the dry weight of tea. Components of the fresh leaf include vitamins, minerals, protein, amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids and of course caffeine.
What's healthier - Green or Black?
Green and black tea actually have a similar chemical make-up. The real difference between the two types lies in the chemical change that take place during their production. In black tea the plant Polyphenols are oxidized, but this is prevented in the manufacture of green tea.
Black tea is all-natural (non flavoured) and contains no additives. It is virtually calorie-free (1 calorie per 100 ml) and sodium free and is therefore a suitable beverage for individuals on calorie-reduced or low sodium diet. All tea includes fluoride, traces of vitamins A, K, C, B carotene and B vitamins.
It's all in the antioxidents
One of the most important groups of Polyphenols in tea is the catechins in green tea and the theaflavins & thearubigens in black tea. It's these Catechins that act as powerful antioxidents.
• Over half of the total intake of dietary flavonoids.
• Nearly 16% of the daily requirement of calcium
• Almost 10% of the daily requirement of zinc
• Over 10% of the folic acid need
• Around 9%, 25% and 6% of vitamins B1, B2 and B6 respectively.
Beginnings of Tea
It's history is long and mysterious, but legend tells us that it was first discovered by Chinese Emperor Shennong in 2737 BC. While travelling through a distant region of China he stopped his army to rest in the mountains. The emperor would always have a servant boil his drinking water to make it clean, on this occasion a dried leaf fell unnoticed from a wild tea bush into the boiling water. The emperor soon after drank the brew and discovered the refreshing taste and it's cause. The drink was born. He was later known to have said "Tea… quenches thirst, it lessens the desire for sleep… it gladdens and cheers the heart."
Philosophy of Tea
Taoist alchemists considered tea an essential ingredient of the elixir of immortality.
Lao Kong
Invite as author
2737 BC?
But the real reason for me to write is to ask about the citation of "tê". I presume this is Chinese. Do you know the dialect? Is it Cantonese, Hakka? I'm interested in this because as you stated in Mandarin, tea is called Cha2 (that means "cha" with a rapidly rising tone). However in Korean, tea has two pronunciations which transliterated into Roman letters works out as "ta" and "cha". I've always suspected that "ta" came from a South Chinese dialect. To round this issue out, in Japanese tea is "cha". If you've heard "ocha", the "o" part is simply an honorific, equivalent to "your honored/revered" tea.
I think Mesopotamia has nothing to fear from China in the World History books. That is the center where urbanization was invented, along with so much more.
What China has that is unique is the continuous nature of their culture. Today's older Chinese could read an 1,800 year old text aloud and an average man of that time would likely recognize their words. We can't say that for the Romans reading their dead language. Shakespeare's 500 year old English would qualify, but Chaucer's 700 year old Middle English would not.
So, I suggest: (1) a citation of dialect for tê, and (2) a qualification for the date such as "according to legend" or at least "traditional accounts".
A final thought. In Chinese, the word for "black tea" is hong cha (red tea). I suspect Westerners are describing the color of the leaves before steeping, and the Chinese are describing the color of the water after steeping.