Tea Journeys Colorado is committed to providing you with delicious loose-leaf teas from around the world. However, the majority of tea drinkers in the US, the UK and elsewhere still use tea bags. Is there really much of a difference? After all, people are still drinking tea, aren’t they?
The history of tea and tea drinking is said to date back to 2737 BC. Tea bags are a much more recent invention. According to most tea sources, they are attributed to Thomas Sullivan, a tea trader from New York. In 1908, he decided to put samples of his tea leaves into small silk bags to give to his clients. Whereas he expected his clients to remove the tea leaves from the bags before brewing, they instead just put the bags in hot water. They loved the convenience, and tea bags took off in popularity.
This story is repeated over and over by tea experts, including Jane Pettigrew and Kevin Gascoyne. However, in the very interesting book Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea, by Michelle Francl, Professor of Chemistry, tea bags of some variety predated Mr. Sullivan. She notes that large muslin bags were being used as infusers as far back as the mid-1880s. Also, two women from Wisconsin, Roberta Lawson and Mary McLaren, were granted a US patent for cotton teabags in 1903. Today’s tea bags have evolved from those silk and cotton pouches. The largest change came in the 1950s, when Joseph Tetley & Co began mass-producing tea bags. Bags have continued to change with consumer demand, in both material and shape. This is noted not to discount the contribution of Thomas Sullivan to the popularity of tea bags, but to add to our knowledge of the history of tea bags.
For a discussion on how tea leaves make it from the plant to your cup, see this Blog Post. Briefly, tea leaves come from the Camellia sinensis plant, and from these leaves, we can make black, green, white, oolong and pu-erh tea. At the proper season, the leaves are picked (called plucking) and allowed to dry slightly (withering). After this, the leaves are processed in different ways. There are enzymes in tea leaves that, when exposed to oxygen, cause oxidation. Tea producers will manipulate the leaves to encourage this process, producing fully oxidized black teas. For green teas, heat is applied to inactivate enzymes and produce unoxidized tea. Oolongs are considered partially oxidized, and the amount of oxidation that is allowed to occur will determine whether you get a light or dark oolong. Finally, the tea leaves are thoroughly dried and packaged for our enjoyment.
There are two basic methods of this tea processing – Orthodox and Non-Orthodox. For quality loose-leaf teas, the Orthodox method is utilized. The tea leaves are carefully handled throughout this process to minimize breakage. Tea producers call this “treating the tea leaf with respect.” Traditionally, processing was done entirely by hand, but in today’s world, machines may be involved. Whichever method is chosen, very highly skilled tea producers carefully monitor the entire process.
Tea destined for the typical envelope-shaped tea bag undergoes non-orthodox processing. This was developed to reduce labor costs, reduce the time involved and save money. This method is called the CTC method – Crushing, Tearing, Curling. The machine used for CTC processing was invented in the 1930s. After plucking and minimal withering, the tea leaves are put into this machine and passed through a series of cylindrical rollers with sharp “teeth” that crush, tear and curl the leaves. This results in tea that has been torn into small shreds and rolled into tiny balls. This process leads to quick and full oxidation.
Even though this method was used before the advent of tea bags, it became much more popular with their invention. It allowed the bags to be filled with very small pieces of tea. As a cost-saving measure, inferior tea leaves are typically used in this process. People who want to drink this type of tea want an inexpensive, strong, dark and consistent tea flavor that will take well to milk and sugar.
Let’s look at some of the differences and how they impact your cuppa.
Appearance
The orthodox processing method yields larger leaves, which are especially evident when you look at them in the dry form. In contrast, the CTC method produces tea with very small tea leaves that can resemble ground coffee. In liquid form, the cup brewed with CTC tea will be very dark in color. Orthodox tea will be lighter, and even black orthodox tea will produce a more golden and reddish cup.
Flavor
The flavor of tea brewed from orthodox loose-leaf tea is more complex and generally thought to be fuller in flavor. Here are the reasons why.
More careful plucking of tea leaves
For orthodox tea, tea pickers carefully pluck tea according to the day's plucking instructions. The instructions could be to pluck the unfurled leaf tip, one leaf and a bud, two leaves and a bud, or just one leaf, etc. For CTC tea, this precision is unnecessary, leading to a lower-quality result.
Longer withering
As withering time increases, the resulting flavor of the tea is more complex, the tea leaves are less uniform in color, and the color of the brew is lighter. Orthodox tea often has a longer withering time than CTC tea.
Slower oxidation
Tea experts will carefully control the oxidation process, adjusting the temperature, humidity and airflow. Whereas CTC teas undergo full oxidation in as little as 90 minutes, orthodox teas can take up to four hours. As a result, chemical reactions occur, producing a deeper gold/red color in the cup and more complex, nuanced flavors.
The agony of the leaves
According to tea expert Kevin Gascoyne, the “agony” of the leaf refers to the time a tea leaf unfurls in hot water and releases its components into the liquor. The leaf is “agonizing” over giving up the precious cargo of aroma and flavor that it had held from the time it was created. Observing this agony is very important to the Chinese tea lover. By observing the leaves’ agony, the experienced tea drinker can tell that the leaf was properly and caringly folded, flattened, rolled or twisted, another way to read the tea leaves. As there are only minuscule pieces of tea in CTC tea, there is no agony of the leaves.
CTC tea
The cup of CTC tea is very full-bodied and can quickly become bitter when brewed. Because of this, it is often drunk with milk and sugar. The flavor is much less complex and more “one note” than that made with orthodox tea.
Convenience
No one can dispute that commercial tea bags are very convenient. Brewing loose-leaf tea is not difficult, although it does take some knowledge. See this brewing post for more information on how to brew the perfect cup of loose-leaf tea.
Cost
People who purchase supermarket tea bags often do so because they are relatively inexpensive. At my local grocery store, the cost of a single bag ranged from about $0.05 to $0.30, depending on the brand and box size. The majority of teas sold by Tea Journeys cost between $0.40 and $0.70 per cup. When you realize that you can rebrew those leaves at least once, if not twice, the cost per cup is much more comparable.
Health/Environmental
There is also the issue of the beneficial compounds in tea, such as flavonoids and antioxidants. Although drinking any tea will give you these ingredients, there is evidence that using a tea bag inhibits some of these compounds from infusing into the water.
Tea bags mean disposing of the bags and any attached strings. The environmental and health effects of different tea bag materials is outside the scope of this article, but it is a valid concern, especially if the tea bag contains plastics. Once again, the above-mentioned book, Steeped, has an excellent discussion of this topic.
None of this discussion is meant to denigrate those people who use tea bags. It is, though, aimed at explaining why so many tea enthusiasts prefer orthodox loose-leaf tea. Many people do not know the difference. No one has introduced them to the wonderful world of loose-leaf tea. Once they try loose-leaf, many never turn back. Others are happy to stick with their tea bags. Still others use both depending on the situation. As long as you are drinking tea, I am happy!
Whether you are already a loose-leaf tea drinker or you are just interested in seeing what the hype is all about, Tea Journeys is here to help you. Check out our collection and contact me if you have any questions.